Junior Chemistry
In Chemistry, taught by Steve Smith, we have spent the first semester learning about materials. This means that we learned about physical and chemical properties, atomic, molecular and microscopic structure, bonding and even applications of some of these materials we explored. One of the most important things that I learned in the first semester was how to decipher and understand the periodic table. The periodic table represents just about everything about specific elements which allows us to understand the way those elements react and behave when they are in an everyday material. We also learned about specific bonding and how the bonding effects the final material. Through in class demonstrations and lectures, we discovered covalent bonding, ionic bonding, metallic bonding as well as different types of attractions and bonding structures. The second semester we will be learning about energy and tying parts of the first semester into learning about energy.
Energy and Place Project
During the Energy and place joint project, we were required to answer one of the following essential questions:
Reflection:
In our mini Intelligence Squared debate, the motion I was arguing was: “Nuclear power is a clean source of electrical energy and the United States government should provide incentives for the construction of new nuclear power plants throughout the United States, including the Four Corners region.” I was arguing for this motion during our exhibited debate. While researching, I came to support this side of the debate in my personal stance as well.
Initially, I was in support of nuclear power based on my slight understanding of the subject. The more I researched, I realized that there are negatives, but these negatives are being solved with advances in technology and compared to our other energy sources, nuclear is an answer to our energy consumption. Through the research and Joint Scientific Statement, I was able to really understand the science behind nuclear energy and see the clear value in this source of power. One of the most significant pieces of evidence in support of nuclear power is that small amounts of uranium can create masses of energy. I believe that this is one of the clearest benefits of nuclear energy. A minimal amount of uranium is needed to create tons of energy, which means that we will have a lasting supply of uranium because not a lot is needed. Also, this means that there is little waste produced. This large quantity of energy certainly helped establish my support for nuclear energy. Additionally, when researching the radiation of the environment surrounding the power plants, I read that there is little radiation that is in the surrounding environment and natural sources, like the sun, may expose us to more radiation than a nuclear power plant. Both of these pieces of evidence for nuclear energy helped me argue in professional and personal support of nuclear power.
In the debate, I feel that I held my positions well, but I was convinced of some very interesting opposing points. My opponents highlighted severe downsides of nuclear energy that shifted my opinion in the debate to “reserved enthusiasm.” Currently, there is not an effective, safe way to store the nuclear waste in the United States. We have been using dry cask storage and geological repository systems for this waste, but before it is transported to these waste facilities, the uranium rods must be cooled in water. This allows the rods to emit radiation and uses large amounts of water that then is contaminated. Water in the Four Corners Area is a precious resource and we cannot afford to use gallons of it per day on these nuclear facilities. Additionally, there was an instance at the Waste Isolation Power Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico where the underground storage leaked radiation and contaminated many workers as well as releasing radioactive dust into the air. Lastly, this radioactive waste remains a hazard to the health of future generations because it takes an immensely long time for the radioactive material to decay. These are clear downsides to the use of nuclear energy in the United States, but I believe that technology will be developed for improving these storage systems if nuclear energy is widely accepted as the future of energy. After listening to my opponents speak on this point, I realized that there are still negatives of nuclear energy that we must be aware of as we move forward.
After I had determined that I was in support of nuclear energy, I found the opposition to be quite frustrating. I personally believed that nuclear was a great solution to the energy crisis, so why didn’t everyone else? One of my opponents, Allee McKown, was against nuclear energy and so she was very strongly arguing against me. I found that it was engaging to discuss outside of the debate. I appreciated the way that she forcefully presented her ideas and brought evidence to the conversation. While we were unable to formulate clear ideas before the debate, I believe that disagreeing with her allowed me to deepen my patience. Additionally, I learned how to really be a conscious listener. This talent was needed in the open debate section of the live performance. By listening to my opponents and focusing on their points instead of focusing on the emotional attachment to my position, I was able to learn more about nuclear energy as well as supporting my peers in this learning process.
To better understand energy issues, I would like to have researched all of the current energy sources as well as new resources. This would be a lot of research, but I think that it would be valuable to have an understanding of all of the current resources and ones that we are working on promoting. Particularly, I would like to have researched more about renewable energy sources. While nuclear energy is clean, it is still a nonrenewable which inevitable will stop us from using that energy source. I would have liked to read more about solar energy or hydro or wind, because these are areas where we need to focus the majority of our innovations. I would have liked to have researched the current usage of these energy resources as well as the ways that these systems need to be improved because they are still in the beginning stages of development. The other resource I would like to have researched is the current use of natural gas. This was the other motion for this project, so I watched one of the natural gas debates and gained a clearer understanding of this resource, however I feel like understanding this energy sources is important as well as understanding nuclear.
- How does energy production impact place?
- How does your sense of place, environmental ethic and understanding of our energy needs influence your perception and decisions relating to energy production and consumption?
Reflection:
In our mini Intelligence Squared debate, the motion I was arguing was: “Nuclear power is a clean source of electrical energy and the United States government should provide incentives for the construction of new nuclear power plants throughout the United States, including the Four Corners region.” I was arguing for this motion during our exhibited debate. While researching, I came to support this side of the debate in my personal stance as well.
Initially, I was in support of nuclear power based on my slight understanding of the subject. The more I researched, I realized that there are negatives, but these negatives are being solved with advances in technology and compared to our other energy sources, nuclear is an answer to our energy consumption. Through the research and Joint Scientific Statement, I was able to really understand the science behind nuclear energy and see the clear value in this source of power. One of the most significant pieces of evidence in support of nuclear power is that small amounts of uranium can create masses of energy. I believe that this is one of the clearest benefits of nuclear energy. A minimal amount of uranium is needed to create tons of energy, which means that we will have a lasting supply of uranium because not a lot is needed. Also, this means that there is little waste produced. This large quantity of energy certainly helped establish my support for nuclear energy. Additionally, when researching the radiation of the environment surrounding the power plants, I read that there is little radiation that is in the surrounding environment and natural sources, like the sun, may expose us to more radiation than a nuclear power plant. Both of these pieces of evidence for nuclear energy helped me argue in professional and personal support of nuclear power.
In the debate, I feel that I held my positions well, but I was convinced of some very interesting opposing points. My opponents highlighted severe downsides of nuclear energy that shifted my opinion in the debate to “reserved enthusiasm.” Currently, there is not an effective, safe way to store the nuclear waste in the United States. We have been using dry cask storage and geological repository systems for this waste, but before it is transported to these waste facilities, the uranium rods must be cooled in water. This allows the rods to emit radiation and uses large amounts of water that then is contaminated. Water in the Four Corners Area is a precious resource and we cannot afford to use gallons of it per day on these nuclear facilities. Additionally, there was an instance at the Waste Isolation Power Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico where the underground storage leaked radiation and contaminated many workers as well as releasing radioactive dust into the air. Lastly, this radioactive waste remains a hazard to the health of future generations because it takes an immensely long time for the radioactive material to decay. These are clear downsides to the use of nuclear energy in the United States, but I believe that technology will be developed for improving these storage systems if nuclear energy is widely accepted as the future of energy. After listening to my opponents speak on this point, I realized that there are still negatives of nuclear energy that we must be aware of as we move forward.
After I had determined that I was in support of nuclear energy, I found the opposition to be quite frustrating. I personally believed that nuclear was a great solution to the energy crisis, so why didn’t everyone else? One of my opponents, Allee McKown, was against nuclear energy and so she was very strongly arguing against me. I found that it was engaging to discuss outside of the debate. I appreciated the way that she forcefully presented her ideas and brought evidence to the conversation. While we were unable to formulate clear ideas before the debate, I believe that disagreeing with her allowed me to deepen my patience. Additionally, I learned how to really be a conscious listener. This talent was needed in the open debate section of the live performance. By listening to my opponents and focusing on their points instead of focusing on the emotional attachment to my position, I was able to learn more about nuclear energy as well as supporting my peers in this learning process.
To better understand energy issues, I would like to have researched all of the current energy sources as well as new resources. This would be a lot of research, but I think that it would be valuable to have an understanding of all of the current resources and ones that we are working on promoting. Particularly, I would like to have researched more about renewable energy sources. While nuclear energy is clean, it is still a nonrenewable which inevitable will stop us from using that energy source. I would have liked to read more about solar energy or hydro or wind, because these are areas where we need to focus the majority of our innovations. I would have liked to have researched the current usage of these energy resources as well as the ways that these systems need to be improved because they are still in the beginning stages of development. The other resource I would like to have researched is the current use of natural gas. This was the other motion for this project, so I watched one of the natural gas debates and gained a clearer understanding of this resource, however I feel like understanding this energy sources is important as well as understanding nuclear.
Materials Project and Reflection
After studying materials, we took our skills to a field of more practical applications. We had a base of knowledge regarding many aspects of the materials that we use in our every day lives and so a project was designed for us to exhibit this through individual research. We were given the choice of a researcher, a historian or an entrepreneur and for each "profession" we wrote appropriate pieces to correlate with the research we had completed. I researched about a polymer gel that can change depending on pressure, for weight lifting. I chose my project to be in the form of a letter to a company that designed weight lifting mats and floor mats. However, many of my peers wrote research articles about new chemistry advances that can be used in practical applications and many of them were published in the prestigious Scijourner magazine. To complete this project, we completed a "Venture Capitalism" night where we wrote 60 second elevator pitches and tried to convince the public to donate their fake money to our product.
In the past, materials have changed the way we communicate, participate in sports and even how we teach. Before we understood the chemistry and all of the components of different materials, many of our every day products were toxic or wasteful. An example of this would be the way we used mercury, steel or even lead. One particular way that these things have shaped our past is by allowing us to further advance and progress. Without steel we would not have been able to make such significant advances in construction, building and even the railroads. Railroads shaped our past by allowing for speedy transportation across the country. Now, in the present, we have learned new ways that steel can help us. By researching the chemical properties of steel, we learned that we can make a steel alloy with carbon to form a steel that is less reactive and this created stainless steel. Stainless steel is used in the medical field and is also used for cooking ware to prevent corrosion and keep pots, pans and cutlery clean and usable. With new discoveries being released daily and new advances being pursued at every opprotunity, it is nearly impossible for the chemistry of materials to not shape our future. Steel has changed from its first form to a second form that can be used for other things, based on the chemical of the material, so in the future, it is safe to assume that we will continue to find variations of materials to meet necessity in the future.
Through the first semester, the most important thing that we have learned is how the atomic, molecular, microscopic and macroscopic parts of the material contributes to the properties. In particular, the atomic structure effects the way a material reacts because of the bonding on a microscopic level. For example, a polymer is malleable because of the long chains of molecules that make up a polymer. Additionally, a polymer is formed from covalent bonding between nonmetal elements. The bonding between the elements forms molecules and then the molecules form intermolecular attractions which are generally weak. These attractions cause the polymer to have a low melting point. On the other hand, a ionice bond is between a nonmetal and a metal. This bond is stronger because the elements are exchanging electrons to fill their valence shell. Once they have a full valence shell, then they are unwilling to lose or gain any more electrons which makes their melting point higher. Ionic bonds also form a crystalline structure which, if you can imagine bending, would be harder to bend than a long chain of molecules. When ever looking at a material, now I wonder more about the molecular, atomic, and microscopic levels that make up the material and make it behave in specific ways.
To find the letter I wrote to the floor mat company, click on the title link above!
In the past, materials have changed the way we communicate, participate in sports and even how we teach. Before we understood the chemistry and all of the components of different materials, many of our every day products were toxic or wasteful. An example of this would be the way we used mercury, steel or even lead. One particular way that these things have shaped our past is by allowing us to further advance and progress. Without steel we would not have been able to make such significant advances in construction, building and even the railroads. Railroads shaped our past by allowing for speedy transportation across the country. Now, in the present, we have learned new ways that steel can help us. By researching the chemical properties of steel, we learned that we can make a steel alloy with carbon to form a steel that is less reactive and this created stainless steel. Stainless steel is used in the medical field and is also used for cooking ware to prevent corrosion and keep pots, pans and cutlery clean and usable. With new discoveries being released daily and new advances being pursued at every opprotunity, it is nearly impossible for the chemistry of materials to not shape our future. Steel has changed from its first form to a second form that can be used for other things, based on the chemical of the material, so in the future, it is safe to assume that we will continue to find variations of materials to meet necessity in the future.
Through the first semester, the most important thing that we have learned is how the atomic, molecular, microscopic and macroscopic parts of the material contributes to the properties. In particular, the atomic structure effects the way a material reacts because of the bonding on a microscopic level. For example, a polymer is malleable because of the long chains of molecules that make up a polymer. Additionally, a polymer is formed from covalent bonding between nonmetal elements. The bonding between the elements forms molecules and then the molecules form intermolecular attractions which are generally weak. These attractions cause the polymer to have a low melting point. On the other hand, a ionice bond is between a nonmetal and a metal. This bond is stronger because the elements are exchanging electrons to fill their valence shell. Once they have a full valence shell, then they are unwilling to lose or gain any more electrons which makes their melting point higher. Ionic bonds also form a crystalline structure which, if you can imagine bending, would be harder to bend than a long chain of molecules. When ever looking at a material, now I wonder more about the molecular, atomic, and microscopic levels that make up the material and make it behave in specific ways.
To find the letter I wrote to the floor mat company, click on the title link above!
Fort Lewis Labs
At Animas High School, the facilities do not lend themselves to extensive labs, like the Junior Chemistry class requires. However, the school has partnered with Fort Lewis College to allow students to complete their labs in the college chemistry facilities on every third Friday of the month. These labs ranged from examining the chemical and physical properties of 6 unknown powders to making polymer (plastic) rods and pucks for destructive testing. Follow the title link to read my Fort Lewis labs!
Animas High School 3206 North Main Avenue Durango, CO 81301 (970) 247-2474
My Contact Information: [email protected]
Updated on 1.17.14
My Contact Information: [email protected]
Updated on 1.17.14