Chem blog week 3

This week we introduced density and reviewed volume and density by doing and experiment with different liquids. What happened was that each group got a different type of liquid. The choices varied from water, oil, fruit drinks and a few carbonated drinks which included them being diet and original. In my group we measured the Diet Coke. We first found the mass of the drink which involved a lot of patience due to the bubbles deceiving the eyes until it fizzled down. We did this five times with five different levels on the graduated cylinder which measured from 10mL to 50mL. When we finished calculating our data we were then notified that everyone else had subtracted the mass of the cylinder so we had to edit our results before we submitted them on Lino. (Which that day I found out was pronounced LY-NO). We then discussed the experiment and we came to the conclusion that density equals mass divided by the volume. Along with the formula came two tricks to remember them: "hearts and arrows"and "mountains over valleys". I can just see people making the shapes with their arms during midterms. We then listed all of the liquids in order of density from least to greatest. Contrary to my hypothesis, oil ended up being the least dense liquid even though oil seems so thick. Also water came second to last which was also against what I planned. I tried to understand why it worked out the way it did but all of my solutions had flaws. That will be something that I will have to find out next week. In our experiment we also showed particle diagrams of what we thought the liquids particles would be formed close up. I pictures depicted that with less density there would be less particles and with more density, more particles. Mr. Abud then showed us how our information could be applied worth vegetable oil and water. Of course everyone said the oil would float because it was light but Mr. Abud also acknowledged that the water was denser than the oil. While I knew the oil would float based on past experiences I never really thought about why it actually happened. Also this week we had our first chemistry assessment. While a lot of people were kind of stressed out about it and trying to cram I was pretty calm due to the fact that in physics last year we also had assessments and if you don't do as awesome as you would have liked to or now understand an aspect of the unit we have reassessments. When I took the assessment I was very confident on some things and a few things I had no idea how to solve them. But thankfully I got through it finding almost everything out I was struggling on. This week I was able to catch up on everything easily and the things that we learned about volume and mass totally correspond with what we are learning about density. Everything is going great in chemistry and each week I get more and more excited about the following week.

Chem blog week 2

 Even though I missed a few days of chemistry this week i still got a brain full! This week we were learning a lot about mass and volume. Before the two used to just get jumbled together but now I know the actual difference. While mass is the amount the object contains volume is the amount of volume it has. I was able to apply this knowledge to an experiment we had to do involving different  prisms. But when finding the measurements out we found that in order to be accurate I would have to use not only use the volume we measured, but the one we calculated. This is more accurate because sometimes we get things wrong but that is just human error and by calculating it we are able to be more sure in our results. The answer can also be different based on how you are measuring your object from on side the water was perfectly measured, and on the other it looked like it had less in the graduated  cylinder. Something else that was more reviewed than learned was that mass did not determine the size of the object and vice versa. We watched this cute video about it and though it was kinda funny it was completely true. For example, if you see a giant cube of  styrofoam next to a small block of lead some would believe that the larger block would have more mass. But the truth is that while the lead cube was smaller it was more massive. This is how volume and mass are different in one way: you can  determine volume based on the size of the object but you can't in finding the mass. I was gone Thursday and Friday but I was told that we did and experiment using different sized blocks and they needed to find their  mass and their volume. In order to find the volume we had to use the height and the length and in order to find find the mass we used the scale. That also brings up a point about accuracy. With the scale you have to very precise with your measurements, in not you overall data could be  incorrect and could affect the experiment greatly. They then learned that there is no actual relationship between mass and volume which is incredible to me because they used so much together. Overall this week has gone pretty well even though I missed a couple of days I should be able to catch up on everything the following week and do well on our first chem assessment but it is not the same as experiencing  the class and learning hands on. I believe that I put  in a lot of effort in chemistry this week and I was really involved with what we were learning. Next week I hope to learn more about volume and density and things that are connected with them. I am having a great time in chemistry and I am excited for next week to come!

Chem Blog Week 1

This first week has been very enjoyable. I learned that it is not always about the answer but instead it is what is behind the answer. I also learned this week that there is a great amount of answers to on e question and infinite solutions. This week we did the "fire in a can" experiment. We were then told to describe it at its smallest possible point. This is how Mr. Abud introduced us to the term "particles". We use this word instead of atoms because we only know of atoms because we were told about them and none from personal experience. took this class so I could learn more about chemistry to be prepared for AP Bio next year. Mr. Abud is a great teacher because he uses different types of teaching strategies which are really helpful and exciting. It is fun that we are using blogs and twitter accounts to learn than just worksheets. While I do see Honors Chem as being a challenge, it not impossible as it seems and I am looking forward to what the rest of the year brings.