You are currently browsing the Just Only Blog blog archives for February, 2010
Marta visited the river on Pulaski Street South of the Loop. She observed that the river is near an industrial district and suggests that the river is used for industrial waster disposal. She tells us it was a cold day. You can see water vapor above the river.
Magdalena visited the river in China town and noticed a dark green color and water that appeared to be frozen in some areas.
Thank you for bringing us these wonderful pictures.
Here is a link for a Hesse’s Law worksheet:
http://www.bishops.k12.nf.ca/science/chem/3202/assign/thermo/hess/Hess’s%20Law.htm
Here is a link for heat capacity problems:
http://www.anndannenberg.com/ip/IPHandouts/CSPProblems.pdf
The answers are not given but we can work some of these problems in class.
The lab on Tuesday is Experiment 14 in the laboratory textbook. You can buy a copy of a single experiment at the following link:
I was asked for a source for more practice, especially on the mathematical aspects of these first four chapters. I’ve identified some online worksheets with answers. Let me know if you find these resources helpful.
http://www.math-drills.com/measurement/convert_centimeters_millimeters_001.pdf (mm and cm)
http://www.math-drills.com/measurement/convert_meters_centimeters_005.pdf (meters and cm)
http://www.math-drills.com/measurement/convert_all_grams_004.pdf (mg, g and kg)
http://www.math-drills.com/measurement/convert_all_volume_006.pdf (mL and L)
http://www.math-drills.com/measurement/convert_between_celsius_fahrenheit_negatives_005.pdf (temp conversions)
Density
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht27a.htm
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht27b.htm
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht27c.htm
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht27f.htm
Specific Heat (Cp is used for the S.H. in our book – Specific Heat)
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht210a.htm
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht210b.htm
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/worksheets/worksht210c.htm
Main source for all these worksheets:
http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/lessons/lessindex2.htm
Who knew the periodic table could reveal the way to succeed?
Practice to prepare for the upcoming exam. There are many resources available to you. Try this link: SciencebugZ or try to work some problems from the Algebra Lab. Email me if you have any questions.
When it is time to take the exam you will need to:
Get rest before the exam and clear your mind of worries and distractions. Que será, será.
After the exam we will begin Chapter Five. We will also do the lab: Observing Chemical and Physical Change. Please read: How to Describe.
The results of the quiz given last Tuesday were pretty dismal. I’ve decided to give another quiz on Tuesday February 23rd on gases. The format will be very similar – mostly concentrating on the two main gas equations; the ideal gas law and the combined gas law. I will also have a question about gas density and one about gas descriptions.
The more quizzes I give the better as I only count your best five. All quizzes are worth 20 points.
We do not have laboratory on Tuesday – we will be finishing that chapter on gases and beginning the chapter on Thermodynamics.
Today we discussed some of the common gases. As an exercise see if you can write a chemical reaction that produces each of the following gases: oxygen, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, nitrogen dioxide, methane, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, chlorine and acetylene.
Can you write reactions that use the above gases as reactants?
Consider this video on Ted.com.
On Tuesday we will begin Chapter Six. Please check the updated syllabus as the dates for the next quiz and next exam are posted.
Another fun-packed Sunday learning chemistry for our class. The day began with a brief review and quiz covering temperature conversions, accuracy vs. precision, and drawing a laboratory set-up. After the quiz we discussed the states of matter and the classification of matter. We then separated a heterogeneous mixture of salt and sand. This gave students an opportunity to apply what they had learned about recording observations. Some lessons learned included how to handle hot glassware and the difference between beakers and erlenmeyer flasks when it comes to removing a solid product from the bottom of a vessel.
Our next topic was a discussion of density. We didn’t have much time for working through the many problems possible with the density equation.
It is important to understand how to rearrange the d=m/V equation to also solve for mass (m=d*V) or volume (V=m/d). The best way to learn how to work these problems is to do lots of them. The drill sheet provides some practice but I also suggest: this online density worksheet. Embedded in some density problems is the concept of mass by difference (subtracting out an empty container) and volume by difference (displacement of water, the water level rises when a solid object is submerged).
Our last activity was to explore the properties of an emulsion. Listen to the podcast on Molecular Gastronomy to hear a description of this tasty activity. Students exchanged business cards that they made themselves representing the elements.
Cards included slogans such as “I put the C L in clean”, for chlorine. The cards were a lot of fun and hopefully will become flash cards to help students learn the symbols and names of the elements. We ended the day with a discussion of a couple of wonderful books about the elements: The Elements and Nature’s Building Blocks. It is important to remember the seven diatomic molecules: H2, N2, O2, F2, Cl2, Br2, and I2, and also the two unusual elemental forms for phosphorus (P4) and sulfur (S8).
There will be a quiz next week (density, classification of matter, states of matter, names and symbols of the elements, counting atoms in chemical formulas) and the first Exam will occur on February 28th. Homework should be completed through Chapter Three by next week. Laboratory notebooks will be collected on the day of the exam. Next week we will only carry out one laboratory: Identification of an Unknown solid.
Today we talked about rivers and watched part of a National Geographic Video called Nature’s Fury about the great flood of 1993. Students are invited to carry out an extra credit assignment – go look at the Chicago River, take a digital photograph that you can send me by email, in the email describe the river (a few sentences).
Remember that on Mondays we meet in room 3833 now but on Wednesdays we are still in room 3974.
Students took the first quiz which covered the scientific method and basic calculations with significant figures and metric-metric conversions.
This was followed by a scramble to obtain printed copies of laboratories resulting in a lost of productive time in class. (Please print laboratories ahead of time and read them!) The laboratories carried out were:
Next week the laboratories will be:
We will complete Chapters One and Two and begin Chapter Three next week. Topics remaining in Chapter One: states of matter, classification of matter. Topics remaining in Chapter Two: density, metric-english conversions.
We will have a quiz next Sunday. It will cover: accuracy vs. precision, temperature conversions Celsius – Fahrenheit, drawing apparatus (know the names for common glassware: beaker, erlenmeyer, funnel, watch glass, test tube, etc.)
We will also have our “Elements Party” so please bring your business cards. Some folks had to remake cards due to incorrect representation of the chemical symbol. Remember that it matters if you use a capital letter or a lower-case letter. For example, Co is cobalt but CO is carbon monoxide. Case matters!
See you next Sunday. Please email me with any concerns or questions.
The first exam in Chem 201 will be given on Tuesday February 9th. In order to be prepared I recommend the following:
The exam will last approximately 1.5 hours and be composed of multiple choice questions, short answer questions and problems to solve. Material will be covered from Chapters Three and Four in the textbook and from lecture, demonstrations and laboratory. (Remember that methane is CH4)
The balancing of redox reactions and the assignment of oxidation numbers will not be covered on this exam. Percent composition and empirical formula problems will also not be covered on this exam.
Recommended additional problems in the textbook are:
The very best way to prepare for this exam is to work problems and then THINK about them. Reflection is a very important part of the learning process.
Email me with any questions.
On Monday (2-1) students indentified rock samples by observing their details and measuring their mass and volume to determine their density. Granite and basalt are the most common rocks – granite making up the core of mountains and basalt found on the ocean floor. Other rocks examined included the igneous rocks: diorite, gabbro, obsidian, pumice and felsite porphyry (rhyolite); sedimentary rocks: sandstone, conglomerate, shale, limestone; and metamorphic rocks: slate, schist, marble and quartzite. See photos of all rock types.
On Wednesday we went into the computer laboratory (3186) and watched videos about mass wasting. We also looked at soil samples and carried out research on a variety of terms such as talus slope. Students are requested to use Google Earth and to practice navigation. We will be doing google activities soon.
