Activity 8: Exploration of Chemistry

For activity 8, students have a choice to explore other topics of chemistry presented in the PhET simulations. 
Tasks to be completed:
1. Choose any Teaching Idea from any of the Chemistry Simulations (http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/chemistry ) and post your results/data and/or answers on your blog.
Simulation chosen: Balancing Chemical Equations
Activity: Balancing Chemical Equations by Kristin Michalski

2. Work with any of the Chemistry Simulations to create your own Teaching Idea. The criteria for this is as follows:

Science Education Standards met through activity created:

B.4.1 Use encyclopedias, source books, texts, computers, teachers, parents, other adults, journals, popular press, and various other sources, to help answer science-related questions and plan investigations

C.4.3 Select multiple sources of information to help answer questions selected for classroom investigations

C.4.6 Communicate the results of their investigations in ways their audiences will understand by using charts, graphs, drawings, written descriptions, and various other means, to display their answers

Literacy Standards met through activity created:

E.4.1 Use computers to acquire, organize, analyze, and communicate information
F.4.1 Conduct research and inquiry on self-selected or assigned topics, issues, or problems and use an appropriate form to communicate their findings.

Activity 7: Acids and Bases

Water is everywhere!  So, lets spend one more activity learning about one of the key aspects of water.  Water has the ability to dissociate (break apart from HOH (or H₂O) into H+ ions and OH- ions).  We refer to solutions with lots of H+ ions as acids and solutions with lots of OH- ions as bases.  By adding chemicals with H+ ions acidic solutions can be made.  By adding chemicals with OH- ions basic solutions can be made.

Activity Tasks:

1. Review the Content Slides Acids and Bases on the D2L site.

2. Complete the Teaching Idea “Concept Questions for Chemistry using PhET”  posted by Trish Loeblein on the pH Scale simulation at PHET (http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/ph-scale). On your blog post the answers with your scientific explanations from the “Clicker Questions pH Scale” posted by Trish.

1. The color of a solution identifies if it is an acid, base, or neutral solution.
1. B. False, because color of a solution does not not mean if it is an acid, base, or neutral solution; the color and number on the pH scale do determine if it is an acid, base, or neutral. 
2. Which solution is basic?
1. D. More than one, because two have a pH level of 7.01 or above.
3. Which solution is acidic?
1. C. There is a very high H3O+ level and a low OH- level.
4. Which solution is basic?
1. B. There is a very high OH- level in comparison to H3O+ level.
5. Which solution is acidic?
1. D. More than one, Both A and B are acidic because they have higher levels of H3O+
6. How will adding water effect the pH?
1. A. Increase the pH, because more water lessens the acidity to solution ratio.
7. How will equal amount of water effect the pH?
1. B. Decrease the pH, because there is less water to dilute the solution, the acidity is higher so the pH level decreases.
8. What is the order from most acidic to most basic?
1. A. ABC, the lower the pH level, the more acidic the solution.
9. What is the order from most acidic to most basic?
1. E. CAB, the higher level of H3O+ in comparison to OH-, the greater the acidic.
10. If spit has a pH = 7.4, what does that tell you about the water equilibrium?
1. A, because the pH was not 7 and more H3O+ was added to make it shift left.

3. Complete the Teaching Idea “Intro to Strong and Weak Acids and Bases” posted by Chris Bires on the Acid-Base Solutions simulation (http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/acid-base-solutions) and post on your blog your data and answers to the questions posed.

Activity 6: States of Matter and Intermolecular Forces

To begin this activity, review the Content Slides in D2L on States of Matter and Intermolecular Forces. We are all familiar with the states of matter (solids, liquids and gases) for many substances. In the First Activity we explored these states of matter for water. In Activity 6, we would like to take our overall understanding of states of matter to the molecular level. We will use the States of Matter simulation at http://phet.colorado.edu/ . There are two key characteristics of molecules that determine their state of matter. The first one is the temperature of the matter, and the second one is the intermolecular forces (how well atoms/molecules stick to one another) between atoms and molecules.

One of the first things to think about here is temperature. Temperature and thermometers have a very similar relation to speed and speedometers. For all practical purposes, a thermometer is really a speedometer for molecular speed or motion. At this site (another good NSF funded science education site)http://www.visionlearning.com/library/module_viewer.php?mid=48 , is a good overview of temperature with a good image of the temperature scales and conversions between different scales. Notice that the Kelvin scale starts at zero and goes up from there. This is like our car speedometer, in that at 0 Kelvin (K), molecular and atomic motions stop. As the temperature rises, atoms and molecules begin to move faster and faster.

The second thing to consider is the intermolecular forces (attractions) that exist between molecules. In the D2L content slides there are a few types of attractions described, notice all of these are defined by the attraction that exists between positive and negative charges. Water is a great example of a molecule that has strong attractions that we call hydrogen bonding. It is this strong attraction that makes water a unique molecule on our planet. It turns out that the hydrogen atoms tend to be positive in charge, and the oxygen atoms tends to be negative in charge. 

Tasks to be completed for Acitivity 6

1. Convert 0°F, 32°F, 70°F, and 212°F to Kelvin

• 0°F = 255.372K
• 32°F = 273.25K
• 70°F = 294.261K
• 212°F = 373.15K

2. Complete the Teaching Idea: States of Matter Simulation Lab by Kelly Vaughan. Complete the lab worksheet as if you were a student, and then post this on your blog. You can scan it or just take a picture of it.

3. In the States of Matter simulation, choose the Solid, Liquid, and Gas Tab at the top of the screen. Choose the water molecule and cool the water to 0 K. Describe how the water molecules are aligned and attracted to each other. Which atoms are attracted to which other atoms?

• The water molecules are aligned in circular like shapes. The hydrogen atoms look to be attracted to the oxygen atoms because the hydrogen atoms are almost always closer to the oxygen atoms than the other hydrogen atoms.

4. Switch to the Phase Changes Tab on the States of Matter simulation. Notice how on the bottom right there is a small red dot that indicates where the system is at as far as temperature, pressure and state of matter. Play with the simulation to notice changes, notice that when you push down the pressure can go way up and explode the box. On your blog, report a temperature and pressure required to make oxygen a liquid. This is sometimes how the oxygen exists in pressurized oxygen tanks, perhaps like ones you may use to go diving.

• Temperature: 135 K
• Pressure: 3.35 ATM

5. List and describe at least two Science Standards that this activity addresses.

C.4.4 Use simple science equipment safely and effectively, including rulers, balances, graduated cylinders, hand lenses, thermometers, and computers, to collect data relevant to questions and investigations

• A computer simulation program was used to demonstrate the changes in matter. This was a safe and simple way to explore how different molecules react.

C.4.6 Communicate the results of their investigations in ways their audiences will understand by using charts, graphs, drawings, written descriptions, and various other means, to display their answers

• In this activity, I was asked to create drawings and written descriptions of what I observed in this simulation program.

Activity 5: Density

One of the most common attributes of chemical materials that we observe and feel on a daily basis is the density of materials.  One of the things we notice in the structures of atoms, is that the atom is mostly space, with a small heavy nucleus and very light electrons orbiting the nucleus. So, how heavy something feels is related to how many protons and neutrons are in the nucleus of atoms that make up molecules.  For example, aluminum is much lighter than iron.  The "heaviness" of a material is quantified through a characteristic called density.
For this activity, and future ones, we will introduce the usage of simulations and gaming to aid in our understanding of chemical principles. The simulation package we will utilize can be found at this site:
http://phet.colorado.edu/


To complete Activity 5, complete the tasks below:
1. Run the Build an Atom simulation http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/build-an-atom and build a neutral lithium atom and a neutral boron atom.  Take a picture, or a screen shot, of these two atoms and place them on your blog.  List the number of protons, neutrons and electrons for each. Also look up and post the density for each of the elements on your blog.

Lithium:

3 Protons

3 Neutrons

3 Electrons

Density: 0.534 grams per cubic centimeter

Boron:

5 Protons

5 Neutrons

5 Electrons

Density 2.37 grams per cubic centimeter

2. Define density and the equation for density and post on your blog.
DENSITY is a physical property of matter, as each element and compound has a unique density associated with it. Density defined in a qualitative manner as the measure of the relative "heaviness" of objects with a constant volume.

The formula for density is 

d = density

m = mass

v = volume

3. Run the Density simulation http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/density and complete one(your choice) of the prepared Teaching Ideas and post your results on your blog. The activity you choose should be one of the student intended activities.

Teaching Idea Used: Density and Bouyancy ; Created by: Milton Johnson

PhET- Density Activity- Funsheet

Custom Section                                                                                                         

Material	Mass (kg)	Volume (L)	Density (kg/L)	Does it Float?
Styrofoam	.75	5.00	.15	yes
Wood	2.00	5.00	.4	yes
Ice	4.60	5.00	.92	yes
Brick	10.00	5.00	2	no
Aluminum	13.50	5.00	2.7	no

1.     In the custom setting, choose the ‘My Object’ option in the material drop down box.  Set the mass of your object to 4 kg.  Adjust the volume to find the minimum volume needed to make the object float.

Volume    4.01L                Density 1.00(kg/L)

2. How does the density of a large piece of aluminum compare to a small piece?

·       There is the same amount of density in a large piece of aluminum when compared to a smaller piece of aluminum.

Same Mass Section

Material	Mass (kg)	Volume (L)	Density (kg/L)	Does it Float?
Blue	5.00	5.00	1	no
Yellow	5.00	5.00	1	yes
Green	5.00	2.50	2	no
Red	5.00	1.25	4	no

Same Volume Section

Material	Mass (kg)	Volume (L)	Density (kg/L)	Does it Float?
Blue	6.00	5.00	1.2	no
Yellow	8.00	5.00	1.6	no
Green	4.00	5.00	.8	Yes
Red	2.00	5.00	.4	yes

3.  Looking at the data on the previous page, what must be true about the density of

     an object in order for it to float?

·       The density must be 1(kg/L) or below in order to float.

Same Density Section:

4.  Calculate the density of the blue object in this section.

     Mass 3.00kg         Volume 3.00L        Density 1(kg/L)

5.  Explain why both the yellow and red objects float when they have different sizes.

·       They both have the density of 1(kg/L)

Mystery Section:

6.  Before you start, pick an object that you think will float.  D

     Pick an object that you think will sink.  E

Material	Mass (kg)	Volume (L)	Density (kg/L)	Does it Float?
A	65.14	3.38	19.27	no
B	.64	.64	1	yes
C	4.08	4.08	1	yes
D	3.10	3.10	1	yes
E	3.53	1.00	3.53	no

7.  In the Custom section describe the difference between how Styrofoam and ice  

     floated.  Also explain why you think this is the case?

·       Styrofoam floated with the majority of the block above the water, where the Ice block only had a little bit of ice above the water. This could be because of the difference in the amount of density each item has. The less dense the item, the more it floats.

8.  In the Same Mass Section discuss what was interesting about the blue object’s behavior in the water.

·       Even though the Blue object had the same amount of mass as volume and a density of 1, it did not float unlike a similar object that had the same mass, volume, and density.

9.  In the Mystery Section, click on the “Show Table” button.  What is the most dense   

     object on the list?  Write its density as well.

·       Gold with a density of 19.3

10.  List something you learned from this activity.

·       Even though an object appears smaller that does not mean that it will float.

·       Objects of different materials may different densities even though they are of the same mass or volume.

·       The majority of objects will float if they have a density of 1(kg/L) or lower.

4. Complete the Mystery Blocks activity on the Density simulation.  Post on your blog the data you collected (mass, volume, and density) and the identification of the material and the known density.

Material	Mass (kg)	Volume (L)	Density (kg/L)	Material	Known Density (kg/L)
A	65.14	3.38	19.27	Gold	.40
B	.64	.64	1	Water	1.00
C	4.08	4.08	1	Gasoline	.70
D	3.10	3.10	1	Ice	.92
E	3.53	1.00	3.53	Diamond	3.53

5. Identify and post on your blog the Science Standards that could be met through these activities completed in Activity 5
Based on the Science Standards examined in Activity 4, I think that the following standards would fit this activity:

• A.4.2 When faced with a science-related problem, decide what evidence, models, or explanations previously studied can be used to better understand what is happening now
• A.4.3 When investigating a science-related problem, decide what data can be collected to determine the most useful explanations
• C.4.2 Use the science content being learned to ask questions, plan investigations, make observations, make predictions, and offer explanations
• C.4.4 Use simple science equipment safely and effectively, including rulers, balances, graduated cylinders, hand lenses, thermometers, and computers, to collect data relevant to questions and investigations
• C.4.5 Use data they have collected to develop explanations and answer questions generated by investigations
• C.4.6 Communicate the results of their investigations in ways their audiences will understand by using charts, graphs, drawings, written descriptions, and various other means, to display their answers
• C.4.7 Support their conclusions with logical arguments