pH and pOH Quiz

3 Properties of Acids:

• Taste sour
• Acids neutralize bases to produce salt and water
• pH less than 7

3 Properties of Bases:

• Tastes bitter
• Bases neutralize acids to produce salt and water
• pH more than 7

3 Uses of Acids:

• Vinegar - Commonly used in Kitchens and for food preparation
• Batteries - Sulphuric Acid is used in batteries for  anything from toys to cars
• Industry - Nitric Acid and Sulphuric Acid are used in making fertilizers, dyes, paints, drugs and explosives

3 Uses of Bases:

• Drain Cleaner
• Baking Soda
• Bleach

http://www.sciencegeek.net/Chemistry/chempdfs/AcidBaseSummary.pdf
http://www.preservearticles.com/201012261679/common-uses-of-acids.html
http://www.chemistryconnections.com/acids%20bases/Unit%2012%20quiz%20answers.pdf

What is a Mole?

A mole is a standard scientific unit that is used to measure large quantities of small things like atoms and molecules.  One mole is considered to be 6.02214179x10^23.  This number is also considered to be "Avogadro's Number", named after the Italian Physicist Amedeo Avogadro that discovered and created the number.  Avogadro believed that equal volumes of all gases at the same temperature and pressure, contain the same number of molecules.  This hypothesis then led to the concept of the mole.  Moles are helpful in chemistry because they allow scientists to count a large quantity of something small such as molecules.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/388062/mole
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/45884/Amedeo-Avogadro

Earth's Biogeochemical Cycles

         When researchers study the biogeochemical cycles, they combine them or "couple" them to "each other and to Earth's physical features."  This is because one cycle can't exist without the other.  For example, the Nitrogen cycle can't exist without the Carbon cycle, Hydrogen cycle, or Oxygen cycle.  It is now more important than ever to study these cycles together instead of separately because global warming is making these cycles fall out of sync with each other.  Researcher Jon Cole said that knowledge about coupled biogeochemical cycles is "essential to addressing a range of human impacts."  Studying these cycles together is also more important because "it will shed light on questions such as the success of wetland restoration and the status of aquatic food webs."  Earth counts on these biogeochemical cycles to keep the balance between all of the different climates and habitats.  Again Cole states that, "seemingly subtle chemical changes may have large effects."  If we don't study these cycles together and in relation to each other, then we may miss the chance to help maintain the balance between the cycles.

Facts about Bonding

      Facts about bonding:

• By applying strain during bond formation, Professors from NC State influenced the assembly of Silicon crystals
• Optical Spectroscopy was used by these professors to examine what was happening to the Silicon crystal when strain was applied
• Strain has been used to affect overall chemistry for a long time, but is wasn't until now that people payed special attention to how it affects one single bond
• Even when applying a small amount of strain to a bond, it has the ability to increase the reactivity of the bond in a certain direction and therefore could cause structural changes

What is an Alloy?

       An alloy is a substance composed of two or more metals, nonmetals, or possibly gases that are mixed by fusion, dissolving, melting or mixing.

Examples of Alloys:

• Bronze- Bronze is made when Tin and Copper are combined.  Bronze was commonly used in the Bronze Age for technology.  Cruder forms of Bronze can be made by combining Copper with Aluminum, Silicon, Manganese, or Phosphorus.
• Steel- Steel is made when Iron is combined with a small amount of Carbon.  Steel is popularly used in buildings or as reinforcements for more unstable items such as concrete.

What colors do birds see?

Five things that I have learned about the color vision of birds:

• Humans are sensitive to three peak wave lengths while birds are sensitive to four or five making them tetrachromats
• The structure of a bird's retina is much more complex than that of a human
• Birds have a deeper fovea which creates a larger surface area to hold more cones
• There is a strong connection between the habitat and the spectral senses of a bird
• Some birds, like the Kestrel, use their ultraviolet sight to detect the urine and feces of mice in a large cultivated field, therefore allowing them to find and capture them

Naming New Elements

      Naming new elements can be a very tricky thing.  The new elements that are being created are very short-lived and will disappear in seconds.  Before being given a proper name, they are called by a temporary title like "Element 114" where the number stands for the number of protons in the nucleus.  For the most part, new elements are given names that end in "ium".  For example, element 112 was named Copernicium in honor of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.  Elements have generally been named after famous scientists in the recent decades, but that isn't a necessary item in naming the element.  In order for a new element to be considered a new element and accepted on the periodic table, it first has to be accepted and approved by the International Committee of Chemists and Physicists.  Once this is done, the element goes through the process of being given a proper name.