The LAST TEST!

Today, the majority of my class took the last unit test of the semester, I was instead making up a test that I had missed 2 weeks previously. Instead I'm going to be taking the test on Thursday. The test is over stoichiometry which sounds a lot harder than it is! Most of it is just math, which I guess could prove challenging for our less math savvy classmates. The only thing I'm worried about is something that we learned in the previous unit, and that is balancing equations. I've always had a problem with it, even when we did it in physical science two years ago. It really doesn't seem that hard to me, but I always seem to mess up somehow, and it is quite frustrating at times! Anyways, my plan of attack for studying, is to brief over what we've learned this unit, because I feel very comfortable with my knowledge on the subject, and instead spend my time practicing balancing equations.

Just practicing these types of problems over and over again is my key to success, I hope.

Here are some websitse that explains balancing equations, and is really helping me study for the test. nyu.edu, Chemteam.info, Wikihow.com, Dummies.com, Sky-web.net

Final Review

Despite the semester being so close to over, I am still studying for this class. I guess this class will require us to study all the way up until the end. I feel good about what we've learned, as a class, this semester. I think that I will be able to do well on this test as long as I can recall what happened first quarter. I feel like this semester has lasted so long, and that we have done so much, it's almost overwhelming. I've completed nearly 3/4ths of the review packet, and I've done well so far, so I'm hoping this final goes better than in past experiences!

Iron Chloride Lab

On day 1 of the of the lab we did very simply steps. We simply had to get the mass of our equipment and mix together 50mL of water with approximately 7.50g of Copper(2) Chloride in a baby jar. We placed our nail in this mixture overnight and we waited. Today we basically just weighed, and recorded data. Here is what the mixture looked like:

This was before

This was after

Stoichiometry quiz

On Thursday I took a make-up quiz that was originally supposed to be taken on Monday. It wasn't too hard, but there weren't very many questions, so if you got 2 questions wrong it was a B. Overall I thought the quiz was pretty much what I expected, but there was one question that stumped me, and that involved density. I was very confused, and ended up completely guessing on the question, but I think I understand it now, after looking up a video on how to do it. I  have the link down below.

Click Here

But besides that density question I think I did pretty well, hopefully I'll be able to answer a question similar to that one if it comes up on the unit test.

Reactions Quiz

Today I took a make up quiz that I never took because I was sick all last week, so now that I've finally taken it, I can post about it. It only had double-replacement reactions on it, which I understand pretty well. some of the questions were slightly off the topic of what I had studied, but for the most part it would only have an occasional question that would throw me off, and the rest was fairly straight-forward and simple. I feel that I did well on it, but I know I missed at least a few, so I've linked some websites that might help anyone who is struggling with them, come time to study for the final.

Here and Here.

Reaction Lab

We did a lab regarding the solubility rules a long time ago, but I was sick and unable to make the post when originally done, but better late than never. The lab was regarding double replacement reactions. We used various aqueous compounds to form mixtures that would then either form a precipitate or would not. Then we recorded the data down on a data table. Often times it was hard to see if there was a precipitate, so you would have to use solubility rules to predict the outcome of the reaction. Overall the lab was a load of fun, and I hope to do more like it.

Test Time!

Today was the day of the unit test, but I missed class due to an orthodontist appointment. Since I missed class today I will most likely be taking the test tomorrow after school. I feel pretty confident about this unit so far, my only worry is finding molecular and empirical formulas. The method to finding them is quite tedious and requires a lot of time. Unfortunately the test has a time limit, which means I have to answer the questions rather quickly in order to finish in time. I have a few links to websites that might help out anyone else taking the test this week, and also might help on the final exam. Here they are: Chemteam.info, Purdue.edu, Wisc.edu

Difference between empirical and molecular formulas

How to find empirical formulas

Mole Conversion Lab

Yesterday me and a lab partner completed a lab regarding the dehydration of the originally hydrous mixture copper sulfate. The objective of the lab was to use the difference method to determine the amount of molecules there are of water in the original hydrous compound copper sulfate. This required using a bunsen burner to dehydrate the mixture. Through multiple calculations and measurements we finally found out the answer. The method we used can be found on this website which is linked below.

Click here

This is the original CuSO4 with Water

This is after all the water has evaporated

Lab Tomorrow!

On Monday our class took a pretest for our current unit, and I have to say, I'm honestly scared. I wouldn't be surprised if I got a 20% on it, luckily it doesnt count, as always, but it does tell me that i truly know nothing about this current unit. Throughout the week I tried my hardest to pay attention, and so far I am understanding most of it. Tomorrow, our class has a Lab, and I'm honestly afraid of the pre-lab quiz, because on Friday our class learned a new equation that is used to find how much of a compound is water, or how much water was in the compound. During class i was completely lost, and was losing all hope, but thankfully I was able to find this website that not only helped me with this equation, but also on converting units to moles. The website is linked below.

Click here

Converting to Moles

We learned how to convert molecules and mass to moles earlier this week. At first I was grasping the concept but when trying to from mass to molecules I kept accidently messing up the conversion. Even when using a road map to help me, I often set the equation up incorrectly. I decided it might help if I were to find an online source and I found this, it really helped me fix my conversions, and helped me memorize how to convert to moles. I have the link Below.



Click here

Last Meal Project

On Friday our class turned in a project in which we had to take a recipe and convert it into metric units in order to help us practice our conversions from standard to metric units. At first I was skeptical of the project since I saw it as a waste of time, but I started to realize that I was getting more accurate and more efficient as I did more and more of the project. Once I had finished I was able to do the conversions like thy were nothing, and I had multiple conversions memorized. My personal favorite part of the project was creating the food and bringing it in on Friday where everyone shared their food. I made snickerdoodle cookies which were voted as the best cookies in the class. One of the uses I found soon after completing the project was that the Unit Test was more than 60% conversions, so I was quite happy when I was able to write down answers like they were nothing at all. Here is a link to a website that helps with unit conversions between standard and metric,
Click Here

Matter and Measurement Unit Test

Over the course of this week I had been studying for a test that was on Thursday, October 29th, and I feel confident that I will receive a grade that is around 90% which I am grateful for. I feel that I could have studied more though. I took multiple online practice tests, and I read the chapter over a few times, but I didn't make flash cards or look up any questions I didn't understand. I hope in the future I can perform better on unit tests, so I won't have to worry about getting an A in the class.

Signifcant Digits Practice

Over the last week our class has been learning about signifcant digits, and how they work and why we use them in science. I have to admit at first the idea was foreign to me, and we spent a lot of time practicing them in class, but I still made mistakes every once in a while, and was getting frustrated. We have a test on Tuesday, and I was worried that I wasn't prepared enough so I looked up a website that might be able to explain them in a way the book was unable to. Luckily I found one that did just that. I found that the textbook only provided practice problems, they didn't ever provide a step by step example, but this website that I have linked below really helped me, and can help anyone who is struggling with the concept of significant digits.


www.physics.ca

Mole Project

Over the last 2 weeks I have been working on a project that might sound strange to some people, but it was actually quite fun! First, let me provide some background knowledge, as you might know there is a type of scientific measurement called the mole. The mole is a unit used when dealing with atoms and molecules, one mole is 6.02 x 10^23, a mole is one of the most used units in chemistry despite only being used when dealing with things at a molecular level. As for the project, our class, including me, all created moles, but not scientific moles, actual moles! like ones that live in the ground, we made them using fabric and fiber fill. The class wanted to be creative, so we all gave each mole a different theme, mine was a MOLEgician. The project overall was a load of fun despite the amount of times I poked myself with the needle while I was sewing the fabric. I assume the project was originally assigned to express the importance of the mole to us, and I believe that it worked because as soon as I was done making my mole I looked up the origin and use of the mole and why it is important, and I agree, it is very important. Here is a site that helps with conveersions using moles:
Chemwiki, and here is a link that etaches about the history of the mole: kentchemistry.



This was my Molegician.

Star Log

Earlier this week I completed a log of constellations/solar bodies, it's called "The Elements In The Stars." The project included me collecting data on 15 different solar bodies; although this may sound borin, it was actually quite enjoyable, and I actually learned some things I didn't know about before. For each star I told its classification, name, location, visible spectrum, and provided a picture. I don't know about you guys, but I've heard references to certain stars in things like conversations, books, and movies, but I never knew what they were talking about. Now that I have a star log not only have I gathered new information on the topic, but I have a place to refresh my memory.

Aspirin Lab

Earlier this week I was observing several other groups doing a lab. The lab was creating aspirin, it involved the use of a couple of dangerous chemicals. They were using sulfuric acid and acetic anhydride which are both highly toxic. I would ahve participated, but my lab partner forgot to study the lab and failed to answer some of the pre lab questions, which meant he was unfit to continue on with the experiment. However there were 5 other groups that were able too, and that is important because we will be using the product from the experiments for several others to come. The lab itself isn't very difficult. it is just very important that you know what you are doing so you do not hurt yourself. The lab procedure is as follows:

You might have noticed that there is part of the lab that I left out, that is because the portion of the lab was on how to purify the aspirin which wasn't nessecary for our experiments. The reason we did this lab meant little to our current unit, but as I said before we are using the product for other experiments that we will be doing next unit.

Atomic Structure and Radioactivity Unit Test

Today I took a unit test in chemistry, it was over atomic structure and radioactivity. I felt that most of the test was fairly easy, but I was a little stumped on the few questions regarding positrons. I guess that I had not studied them well enough, or I might have just gone brain dead, but I completely forgot what they were, so when I got home I looked them up online and found a few helpful sites.
Britannica, Chemteam, stlcc.

I also found it hard to remember how to find the percent abundance of the lighter of 2 masses given. I rem ember learning the formula in class, but I could not recall it during the test. Luckily I understood the concept well enough that I was able to determine the answer without using the formula. Since it gave the total mass of each isotope and the average atomic mass, I was able to determine depending on where the average lay between the 2 total masses, about what the percentage was, and since it was multiple choice, I was able to plug in my 2 guesses to find out which one matched the average.

Half Live Lab

Yesterday, my lab partner and I finished calculating and inputting data into excel. The data I'm talking about is the data we recieved from the experiment we did 2 or 3 days ago. The expreiment was quite simple, we cut pieces of paper into 567 pieces, I will explain why later, and we pretended that the 567 pieces of paper was a sample of a radioactive element. the way this works is the paper is colored on one side and isnt on the other, after you cut the paper you  put it into a cup and then pour them all out. At this point some of the paper should be color side up, and the other should just be plain white. Once you have poured out the pieces you serperate them ad choose either the colored or non-colored pieces of paper to be the decayed portion of the element, and the non-decayed portion. The idea is that you are simulating a half live by doing this since you should have close to 50% of the pieces to have decayed and 50% to have not. Of course in real life it will always be exactly 50% decayed if the element underwent a half live. After you serpearate them, you take the "non-decayed" portion, and you do the same thing, but with only those. You repeat that about 6 times the ncollect data on how many were left each time. Now for the reason we did this, not only did it help us understand the idea of half lives, but once we graphed our data it visually represented what the graph of a half live looked like.

This is what the the paper looked like inside the cup

(half of it was birthday decorated, the other half was plain).

This paper had a scenario that we had to figure out, we had to figure out who the victim was

by using halve lives and the information given. Although the data we collected was not mandatory in figuring out who the victim was, it helps alot to have it visualized in your head what halve lives look like.

Here is are some links to websites that can help you with half lives if you need it. Chemteam,

Wikihow, GCSEscience.

The History of Atoms

Several days ago I read about the history of atoms, and how they were discovered. J.J. Thomson was the first scientist to come up with the idea that atoms had both a negative and positive charge. His model consisted of a cloud of positive charge with tiny particles of negative charge are randomly despersed inside as show in this model known as the "Plum-Pudding Model."

Later it was Ernest Rutherford who discovered that the center of every atom contained a positive charge not the entire atom itself. He did this by firing alpha radiation at gold foil and finding that some were reflected off when they hit. This diagram helped me visualize how he figured it out.

Rutherford's Discoveries

Beanium Lab

Earlier this week, me and a partner used beans as a way to act like an element, there were 4 different colors of beans and we took the total mass of each color acting as if the color group of each bean represented isotopes of an element. The reason we did this was in order to help reinforce our understanding and ability to calculate average mass and percent abundance of each isotope, and the over all average mass of all the isotopes which would represent atomic weight.

The lab itself isn't very exciting, but it does help anyone who is looking for practice in calcualtion atomic weight, average mass, or percent abundance of an isotope(s), and if you find yourself needing extra practice I have a video linked below to a video on calculating percent abundance. Using that formula you will end up with atomic weight.

The set-up doesn't require much either, the only equipment we used was a scale, samples of beanium, small cups, and a calculator.

Click Here

Frontier Chemistry Project

Over the last month I have been constructing this blog and completing a project at the same time. This blog was structured in a way that you would be able to find certain plants to cure certain maladies, but I also have a page dedicated to plants I know from personal encounter, and with the names of each plant I have their habitat and what they cure. All of the plants I have from personal encounter are found in Missouri. The maladies have plants to cure them, but on each page it doesn't say what all the plant heals, but you will see that some plants cure more than one injury. I used online resources and books to find the information needed to complete the assignment, and on each page there are links to the sources I used. On my next time doing a project I will make sure to find the most efficient way to complete the project because the way i did this one consumed more time than what it needed.

Reflection of Frontier Chemistry Essay

Last week I wrote a semi-essay about different plants that can help heal certain maladies. I used pages that i created and posted on this blog to solve different situations there were presented. The injuries that were given to me were an ax wound, and tick bites. I used mostly plants from personal encounter to find out which plants could help mend the wounds. I hope I did well, I completed all of the requirements, so I presume that I did fine. I have trust in my blog, and the resources I used to create it, and the cool part is that I only used plants that I found from personal encounter, which means if a bear actually did attack me I would be able to use herbs to heal it. The difficult part of the essay was the time frame given, we only got one class time to complete it, and if I had an assignment like this again I would probably use my time more wisely since I barely finished it.

Introduction Page

Interests- Tennis, swimming, and football are my favorite sports. I also like working with mechanics.

Hobbies- I play tennis, and swim a lot. I like spending time with friends and family, and I love Netflix.

Goals for the future- My dream job is to be a mechanical engineer, and one day i want to be able to build my own car engine on my own.