Friday #8 12-7-12

     Recently, I got over my horrible cold, for about three days I had a raging headache, I even stayed at home on Thursday that's when you know its bad. I completed chapter 17 in history, which was all about war strategy and victory of World War 2. We completed a unit in Spanish class and I GOT AN INCREDIBLE score on the test it was great! However Spanish will get crazy because no matter what Spanish I've taken they over lode us with work in the end!! Chemistry has been rough I've been keeping up with my twitter grade and hopefully I can hold it all together until the semester ends.
     Learned a little I guess, History I learned why exactly the Nazis blamed the Jewish people for a lot of things, and it was because they ran successful businesses, they also had very separate life style(schools, language, beliefs, etc.). Music wise in choir we are learning a lot of songs with Jewish roots and its a very interesting music style, it sounds different but good. Making solutions in chemistry is about the only thing I am good at(except for I split 12 molar HCl everywhere inside the hood).

http://themetapicture.com/sick-chemistry-joke/

      I plan to start and finish my Literacy Glog for chemistry class...well off to read, bye!

Industrial Titration (3 Dec)

     There are plenty of industries that use titration, but I decided to pick the one that seems to be slightly futuristic because biodiesel is a relatively new technology! You may say to yourself "wait a minute Ethan! How exactly does the biodiesel industry use titration?" Well hold on to your pants! You are about to find out. So basically the waste vegetable oil that biodiesel facilities get is chock-full of fatty acids, which would be good if you were making soap(but that's a different story).
 
     Vocab: Ester-"Esters are chemical compounds consisting of a carbonyl adjacent to an ether linkage.[1] They are derived by reacting an (acid and a alchol).   ⁽¹⁾

Space-filling model of Ethyl Stearate, or Stearic Acid Ethyl Ester, an example of an Ethyl Ester produced from Soybean or Canola Oil and Ethanol.

 "To make biodiesel fuel efficiently from used vegetable oils and animal fats we have to avoid one major problem: soap formation. Soap is formed during base-catalyzed transesterification (using lye) when sodium ions combine with free fatty acids present in used (and some virgin) vegetable oils and animal fats. The soaps diminish the yield because they bond the methyl esters to water. The bonded esters get washed out at the washing stage but make water separation more difficult and increase water consumption. This process takes care of the free fatty acids." (2).

     So in English, you need to neutralize the fatty acids or they will bond to the methanol which is important making and being a part of the fuel. Now that is settled you ask "Where does titration come into play?" Your answer is: You have to get a sample of waste vegetable oil, and determine how acidic it is, once you know that you can add the salt to the right ratio in a large amount of the oil!
      The chemical equation is a little difficult to do, because the salt (usually KOH, NaOH, or CH3NO) gets processed out eventually. However this explains it fairly well.

     Vocab-Transesterification is the chemical process which replaces one type of alcohol for another in an ester. An ester is made by combining an alcohol with an acid.(3)


"The chemical formula for biodiesel transesterification is: C3H5(RCOOH)3 + 3CH3OH <-> 3RCOCH3O + C3H5(OH)3
The biodiesel transesterification process is slightly reversible making it difficult to get 100% conversion. To push the reaction to it most complete status we use LeCh�telier's Principle and offset the reactants to drive the reaction in a more favorable direction. The formula above calls for 3 moles of methanol for every mole of vegetable oil, but we double that to six moles of methanol to take advantage of LeCh�telier's Principle. After we convert from moles to volume we end up with 1 part methanol to 5 parts vegetable oil.(3)"

Links consulted:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titration#Particular_uses
http://transesterification.info/
http://www.make-biodiesel.org/Biodiesel-Recipes/single-stage-base-recipes.html
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_aleksnew.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiesel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhpeXuRYJWg

I posted on some other Blogs!!!

I commented on Windy's blog :

"Don't get nervous until the day comes, and you shouldn't be anyways I think you have chemistry down because you answer a lot of questions in class. Good luck dude!"

Her blog has a very clean design and is super helpful, Windy explains things well in her blog

Also on Sophia's blog :

"Do you know when we will ever use electrolytes? And thank you for mentioning the HW I almost forgot!"

Sophia is very organized. I really like when Sophia makes jokes, there are very few of them, but they are funny!

Friday #7 11-30-12

     Man, this week was nonstop homework. I wasn't necessarily behind but I had to juggle chemistry, Spanish, and history(and even then I didn't do any Spanish homework because its not worth that many points). High school is all about playing the system if necessary. Anyway we had chemistry notes almost every night, and I have no idea why they take so long to do! There is a lot of pausing, writing down, and un-pausing. The notes  covered chapter 4, I want to say there was about 5 different notes. Thank goodness that I can pick up Spanish so quickly if need be, we had a vocabulary test on Thursday and I had no time to study! The only time I had to study was the five minutes for passing period and the five minutes the teacher gives us to review, but I know I at least got a B+. In history we basically did the same old, we had to write a half page summary of 1 section of the chapter and I wrote a full page (mostly on accident there is a lot of information).
     There is a lot I have learned but maybe not fully understand in chemistry...yet! Like electrolytes, I really don't know why we learned about them, other then maybe net ionic equations and solubility. The notes covered a lot more, i have learned about Net ionic equations, which is basically the equation of what reacts in a reaction. Metathesis reactions, which aided in determining the probably products of a chemical reaction, like combustion, single replacement, double replacement  composition, and decomposition. and of course redox reactions, which is short for oxidation reduction, and that is all about following electrons in reactions. History is passing on, I've learned plenty of things about World War 2. We are learning various military tactics that all the countries used, German sub warfare and how the U.S. used radar and airplanes to combat it. And also the less military impact of it such as, the governments involvement in the economy, issuing rations, encouraging Americans to cut back on things like gasoline.

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/powers_of_persuasion/use_it_up/images_html/ride_with_hitler.html

The war effort during World War 2 was probably the single greatest war effort. Here is a fun fact: Did you know movie maker Mel Brooks Fought in the "Battle of the Bulge." And out side of class I know two new words "Hangry" the feeling of being so hungry that you are irritable, and "amn't" mostly used in Scotland it is the contraction of am not.

     I plan to start to prepare for all my end of course exams by studding over the weekend with the aid of the local library, maybe get Chemistry for Dummies or something along those lines.

Your Choice (12 Nov)

Now with the elections over I feel the need to rant a little bit. This was a Facebook post of mine "I don't care for politics, I'm not old enough to vote, and if I cant make a difference yet then why even care where our country is headed? It will concern me when I'm older, but I'm not older." Having shown that I will correct myself and dish some of my concerns/opinions. I want Puerto Rico to become a state along with the American Samoa, and possible a take over of Canada and Mexico. Having said that I want our flag to be this: 

http://stephensheehan.deviantart.com/art/Futurama-Earthican-Flag-160023003

I want a better fix on Social Security, I want it to be state mandated. I feel its completely necessary to have Social Security, however I think that 330 million people is to many to handle for the Fed's. If it was state run,  I feel people best interests would be put in regards and the program would work smoothly. What if people live longer in other states? Then the retirement age could adjust accordingly. 

     That was my political rant, thank you.

Reactions to Reactions (23 Nov)

"Potassium Chlorate is a compound containing potassium, chlorine and oxygen. It is often used as a disinfectant and in fireworks and explosives. When potassium chlorate is heated to melting point, any item added to it will cause a rapid disintegration in the form of an explosion (as we see in the video above). The gas coming off the potassium chlorate is oxygen. Because of this, it is often used in airplanes, space stations, and submarines as a source for oxygen. A fire on the space station Mir was attributed to this substance."

Source: http://listverse.com/2008/03/04/top-10-amazing-chemical-reactions/

So yeah its not exactly "everyday" but its not like Potassium Chlorate isn't rare either. You wont encounter this reaction everyday, but it may prove useful if you wake up in an action movie with no oxygen. In simple terms Potassium Chlorate will become unstable when melted, it will disintegrate with the addition of Sugar! And you know whats great the gas that is released is only O2. I think someone should care about this particular reaction because its part of our lives, it could easily look very harmful if you were on an airplane and you see stuff like this come out of a generator. Here is the reaction:

KClO3 + C6H1206 ----> KCl + CO2 + H20

Literacy Glog Book Update (23 Oct)

This book is way better then I thought it would be, however it has nothing to do with Napoleon! Napoleon is   a person that I highly regard, so I was very distraught about this discovery. I am actually learning how chemistry works in biology, like how most creatures other then humans can produce vitamin c. Also that the human brain runs off of sugar brought from the blood stream. The world we have today was affected by the simple structures found in pepper, nutmeg, cloves, and vitamin c (those are the ones I have read about, there is so much more.) The previous molecules I listed fueled and/helped the age of discovery, which in turn developed south and north america. I really dig the structure of this book, It links all the things you have read about to the next! Hopefully I can kick into high gear and finish it.

Friday #6 11-23-12

     In this short school week I did the following: finished The Wizard of Oz in history class, finished watching presentations in Spanish, and in chemistry, we went over various reaction types and how to write them out.
     I have learned about composition, decomposition, single and double replacement, and combustion reactions in chemistry class. We made model equations also. As far as history The Wizard of Oz has all the elements of the Great Depression hidden as different symbols in the movie. The Tin Man represents the industrial powers of the time, Scarecrow was the Farmers, Dorthy was Franklin D. Roosevelt, and so on. Spanish was boring, most of the kids in my class don't read with fluency and feeling so it makes listening to the other presentations truly dreadful. Some were good but most were awful.
     I plan to enjoy the weekend before school comes around.

Friday #5 11-16-12

     This week I have successfully: Made my presentation in Spanish class, it was my continuation on the fairy tale Aladdin.  As you know from the previous post I was out of town, and had to miss three of my classes on Friday. I completed all of that work on Sunday and turned it all in, it was mostly history stuff(two maps, four work sheets.) I did very poorly on the Tuesday/Wednesday test in chemistry, however I freaking rocked the corrections, it took like 4 hours though.
     I learned about electrolytes and non electrolytes  I am still learning about the Great Depression in history, but its moving toward WWII Its slightly jumps back and forth time periods though. Spanish is as dull as a hammer, simple put "a mi, no me gusta espanol." My vocal range is greatly increasing, which makes singing about a thousand times harder.

     I still have the weekend to complete my labs and do some notes. I really want to play guitar and stay on top of my blogs. 

Friday #4 11-9-12

This week I completed:
Most of the baby bottle lab:
i.e. the two practice runs, the two test runs, and some of the front page.
Two maps for U.S. History:
WWI pre and post war map(central, allied, and neutral powers)
U.S. map(states only)
Studied for and passed Spanish vocab terms(city and civilization related terms)
I learned a number of new Spanish words for, but are definitely not limited to:
King, Queen, skyscraper, intersection, city, ancient, and modern. Also what caused the Great Depression (farmers over spending then defaulting on loans, Americans buying things on credit, and industries not making money). I also have a way better understanding of stoichiometry!
I plan to try to play guitar more, with the running season coming to and end all my classes should gain a big grade increase!

Friday #3 11-2-12

Hey, this week I finished the following:
"Mi Vida Loca"(Spanish fairy tail project) the guitar playing that I did really locked in my A
History work sheets for chapters 11-12 (World War 1- life in the 1920's) like 6 work sheets
Model's 1-4 for understand moles, and limiting reactants work sheets
Watched stoichiometry b and c notes.
I helped my best friend ask a lady friend on a date through the use of pumpkins (see picture)

I learned you shouldn't say Betelgeuse three times. In history I learned that prohibition failed hard, and the 1920's was a time to party, but sadly the free lifestyle of the 1920's brought on the Great Depression. In Chem I have found out that the limiting reactant isn't always the least amount! Also with some walk through from Mrs.Gardner factor label makes sense now!
I plan to stay on top of my classes with cross country winding down. And I will read my book for chemistry everyday! Lastly I would really like to make time to practice the things I need to for chemistry.
Told yah!

Friday #2 10-26-12

I have finished the write up of the conservation of mass lab, as well as the bean in pot lab. They were mostly done, however they lacked the conclusion and signature. I also completed chapter 11 sections 1-2 in history, chapter 11 covers World War 1. Lastly I finished my Idea for my Spanish fairy tail presentation, I will play my guitar for ambiance while I read my story.
I learned exactly what stoichiometry is (a fundamental part of chemistry that deals with the ratios of reactants to determine quantities of products). With regards to history I have learned why World War 1 was so large (alliances), what countries were involved, and why America got involved (monetary investment in Britain). Y tambien I learned how to speak Spanish in the past tense.
This next week I will hopefully get caught up in chemistry, and history.
For lack of a better picture, here are my lab partners most of the time.

Friday #1

     I have completed the quiz 3 on UT! After completing the 2.5 notes, in class I worked through most of the balancing formula equations practice sheet. On a side note I got the highest grade in my history class on our unit test. This week I learned how learned to balance equations, I also learned Mrs. Gardner's Starbucks order. How to be better at sight reading, and some more vocab in spanish. I plan on studying this weekend in spanish and in chemistry. I've had a very stressful and hectic week. Other wise I need to stay on top of my classes, and just take it day by day.

http://tinyurl.com/9q4l44h

Guaca-Mole!

     I have learned so much about the mole! at first I just thought that it was a concentration of things! like a 6 molar Sulfuric acid.  However it turns out that a mole is simply a unit of measurement, but not in the way you think. More specifically it represents number like much like a dozen, decade or quire would. The number it represents is called Avogrado's  number which is equal to 6.0221415 × 10^23. It really surprised me that the "mole" dates back to the 1800's, and I always just kinda figured it was created by Avogrado in a dark room, but no! it took years of him stuying other scientist to finally come up with it.

Want to know more:
-What is a mole: http://chemistry.about.com/cs/generalchemistry/f/blmole.htm
- History: http://science.howstuffworks.com/avogadros-number.htm



http://youtu.be/zYWsOYOEH0g

Percent Compo-Wha!?!?

Percent composition in it basic form is Part/Whole. Its taking the ratio in a compound, using how much of a compound you have: converting it to g/mol and finally knowing the % of something in a compound.

Here is an example: you have 2.5 grams of H2O2 (Hydrogen Peroxide) find the % of Hydrogen then the weight in g

You need to multiply H2 and O2 by there weight on the periodic table: H2*1=2amu + O2*16=38amu
all together that makes 40amu

2amu/40amu = 0.05 amu * 100 = 5% Easy right? we have the first part of our answer.

2.5g * 0.05 = 0.125g

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7w1PG4Ri_uywu0621Vb_uf43WfPWMrgmRpZvATO1YZICcYmy6u8mWx2ZVHQrajvlWZXV9b9DOa62q9bE_Ad9FfhAVXS1WUPttTJjsAt7LpjtPyrPmOFuY4PffZR9dXVbFP3YPsvmw_w8/s1600/Percent+Composition+Formula.bmp

The Little Things

The book I chose to read in this class was Napoleon's Buttons. I chose that book mostly because I felt like i shouldn't read a book on brains in a chemistry class, but also Napoleon is a man that I look up to (very  punny). I wrote a paper last year on Napoleon that was 1,000 words long he had a very spectacular life, and now he even has a red bull commercial. I have a good feeling about this book it shows the tiniest thing that could affect the rest of history! Its a real eye opener that just gives you a different perspective on everyday things. I sure hope I like it.

http://icarus389.deviantart.com/art/Napoleon-Bonaparte-182191251

Precisely Fast

      Okay so accuracy is if you get the actual measurement, and precision is where the same results would be reproduced. [To make this measurement, scientists used very precise differential GPS, and their measurement was so precise, they could track continental drift between the two locations, and a 2009 earthquake that produced a 7cm shift in the earth’s crust shows up as clear as day.]* They used precise instruments so they were able to get the same result multiple times to come to one conclusion. As far as significant digits go they can be very important when working with the right numbers.
[ But that’s basically the value for the speed of light, so what’s the big deal? The sig fig police would tell you that number is impossible to distinguish from , the defined value for c.
     Good thing the scientists who did this work weren’t nearly so lackdaisical with their measurements as the journalists were in reporting them.]* Like he said they could look like the same thing but in reality they are a bit different, considering that I am not a physicist yet i couldn't tell you the difference. As far as super fast neutrinos that's pretty crazy, it kinda throws off what the Theory of General Relativity states that nothing is faster than the speed of light. This could lead to many different discoveries, like possibly piecing together the big bang.

Source:
*http://quantumprogress.wordpress.com/2011/09/26/neutrino-physics-tells-the-story-of-a-number-and-science-as-a-whole/

Proteins of all Swords

     The taking of "raw materials" transferring them into more pure materials, followed by using those to make something new. That sentence describes the major commonality of samurai swords and the protein of silk. Yes the processes are different, but the steps to get to the final product are the same in these two marvels. The first step of taking Iron and silk, you have materials waiting to be refined. The Iron gets its carbon levels regulated and the silk gets reversed from thread to a glop of protein and water. The iron is now two types of steel one type has more carbon then the other, you melt those down to make a sword, to make things out of the water and protein you don't need to melt them down, proteins will self assemble provided that you give them a good surface. In the samurai sword there is lower levels of carbon to allow the flexibility of a strike but the outside has more carbon to cut through things. The proteins work together as the water evaporates and even can replicate surfaces on the nano scale.

Yes! I am a technology native.

Born with a Mouse in my Hand

      In 1996 there were a couple of very great things released: DVD's, Web TV, Nokia, Internet Explorer 3, and Myself! in 1999 my big brother got his Nintendo and I picked up and a control and was gaming at the age of three. In 2000 at the tender age of Four years old my family purchased a gateway computer, and my dad and I hooked thing up. Soon after we moved it and I set it up by my self! We were buying games at garage sales and I was installing and uninstalling things with ease. While all of this was going on our VCR broke so i took it apart, I did this with all my toys that broke and I fixed them .When I was seven, I discovered my first virus, needless to say it never happened again. My dad up graded from a pager to a Verizon phone, guess what lucky kid got that beeper!

     My mom is a school teacher and I got to spend a lot of time before and after school on the computer discovering things like Google and YouTube! Many years passed and before I knew it I was in middle school and I discovered that I could no longer get on YouTube. Many of my days in tech class were filled with trying to hack past our web filter, and in seventh grade I did it. No, I didn't use a proxy.
     Now being a tech geek isn't always a good thing, it just means more work for me around the house. Things like teaching my parents that there is and address bar and you don't have to type everything into Google. I don't have a smart phone nor do I need one. I simply am not so important that I would need to be connected 24/7, but life would be simpler with one. However I know my way around phones, I hacked my phone and set up a sever so I could get a "free" internet plan. I have also jail broken my iPod and have had to deal with those issues. All in all I was born with a knack for technology.