Possible humanitas project...

http://www.charitywater.org/whywater/ <---Check it out :), while it may not directly affect our community, it is a huge ordeal in the global one.

Atoms Throughout the Ages

I posted this picture back in September, and now I am about to finish what I started.

Jesseca M. Kusher

Teacher S. Harrelson

4^th Period Science

12 December 2010

The Atom Models Throughout the Ages

Since the beginning of time mankind has always questioned the world and its surroundings. It has questioned everything from lightning to nanotechnology, and because of these questions mankind has evolved to become an incredibly intelligent species. Yet we still have flaws in our answers, and we probably will always question the answers we have. This process of question asking can be considered one of mankind’s greatest accomplishments; the scientific method. Through the scientific method mankind has come far. One example of how the scientific method has helped scientists throughout the ages achieve greatness is the way the model of the atom has adapted and changed with the input and thought of many generations.

Back many centuries ago, before the scientific method was created a single man broke the status quo and strayed from the path of mythology; Democritus. Democritus lived around 430 B.C.E. and was the first person to think theoretically about the scientific qualities of life and nature without attributing them to a mythical being or phenomenon. Democritus went along to create a name for one of the smallest building blocks of matter. Democritus decided to call the smallest form of building block to be called an atom because atomos meant uncuttable in Greek. So at this point the scientific method had reached no farther than the hypothesis stage, and the atomic model had gotten no further than a name; but as the scientific method grew and more steps were added so did the atomic model.

Centuries later the scientific method stood steady as a rock. One by one scientists took their spot in the limelight with their new atom models. First John Dalton took the stage, and with him he brought a pool-ball-like model. Next came J.J. Thomson in 1897 with a muffin-like-model where positive and negatively charged particles where like berries inside of a muffin; thus thoroughly scattered. Latter on in 1911 Ernest Rutherford claimed his five-minutes-of-fame with his creation of the “peach pit” model in which the center was positively charged and the “flesh” surrounding it was negatively charged. Only two years later in 1913 Niels Bohr took the stage with a model unlike all of the ones previous, an onion model. His model had a nucleus like Ernest Rutherford’s model, but it also had little particles called electrons that orbited the nucleus in orbitals. Soon afterwards in 1932 James Chadwick built on to the onion model to conclude that it was made up of tiny particles called protons and neutrons. Finally after centuries of hard work the atom model stands on stage with Erwin Schrodinger who still stands there with his “cotton candy” model where the electrons orbit the nucleus in a strange cloud where they are constantly popping in and out of existence.

After having had changed for centuries now, twenty years from now another scientist will take the stage. The model of the atom has been evolving for centuries now, and it is not done yet. With the production of new technology and the work of many scientists the model of the atom we have now will someday be looked back upon in the same way we see Dalton’s now. The people of the future will look back at it and think, “What were they thinking?” The people will laugh at our basic scientific understanding of the world and its surroundings. A least our generation of scientists will not be the first or last to be replaced upon the stage of science by another more intellectually evolved thinker than ourselves.

Overall mankind and its model of the atom have come far. It still has a long way to go, but mankind has come far. Imagine that only a few centuries ago lighting was attributed to Zeus, a Greek god. Now science has traveled from pure speculations to speculations with data created via experimentation. From the beginning of time mankind has questioned life, and now some answers unfold themselves, now the model of the atom looks like a lump of cotton candy; whether this is the truly idealistic model of an atom or not only time can tell. Time and the scientific method will help yet another generation of scientists achieve greatness.

How do we know about electrons if they are so tiny?

First of all that's a great question. How do we know about electrons if they are so tiny and small? We had to have discovered them at some point in history in order to know about them now; but when? And how? What experiments were tested to come to the conclusion that there are many little negatively charged particles buzzing around an atom?

To explain this simply, we know about electrons because of protons.

To explain not-so-simply:

Ever since J.J. Thomson's model of the atom back in 1897, probably even before that, scientists have known that atoms have to be composed of negatively and positively charged particles. In Thomson's model the particles were scattered throughout the atom's mass in a random order like berries in a berry muffin. Later on Rutherford speculated that the nucleus of an atom is positively charged (and he remains to be proven wrong) while the matter surrounding the center is negatively charged. While he was correct in both cases he was still missing the vital fact that the negative matter surrounding the center is moving. The particles surrounding the nucleus are electrons. Electrons pop in and out of the shells that they orbit inside of around the nucleus at random. One minute they are there, the next they could be across the universe for all we know. (That just shows you haw limited our knowledge of the universe is.) Anyway after Niels Bohr James Chadwick changed the atom model forever with his amazing addition; the the neutron.

So by knowing that the nucleus is positively charged and by knowing that atoms are normally neutrally charged we must conclude that a particle such as the electron must exist in order to balance out the electromagnetic charge.

Veggies Galore!

Okay so it may have been a while since Mr. Harrelson announced it, but he's gone vegetarian! In honor of this monumental event "Tree Frog Science" has a new Veggie background for a whole week!

:D Always eat your vegi-tab-le-s.

Objective 1: Temperature, Thermal Energy and Heat

1. What are the three common temperature scales? Kelvin, Celsius (Centigrade), and Fahrenheit

. 2. How is the thermal energy related to temperature and heat? Thermal energy is the movement of the particles in a substance, temperature is the measure of heat and heat is the transferring of energy from one substance to another by conduction, radiation, and convection.

3. What does having a high specific heat mean? It is the amount of heat that it takes to raise a certain amount of the given substance's temperature by one degree.

4. Why does an ice cube melt in your hand? Your hand transfer's some of it's heat onto/into the ice cube, so it melts.

5. Why do some materials get hot more quickly than othe

rs? Because some substance's specific heat is lower or higher than others.

Objective 2: Scales

1. How do thermometers measure temperature? This liquid inside of a thermometer is colored alcohol (but it used to be mercury) and it is contained within a glass cylindrical tube. When it get heated up, both mercury and alcohol expand. Because of this the liquid in the cylindrical chamber must rise upwards. That is how a thermometer works. Click here for further info.

2. How are the three temperature scales alike? How are they different? To be honest this question confused me. I think Madeline answered it amazingly when she said: The three temperature scales, Fahrenheit, Celsius, and Kelvin, are similar because they all measure temperature. However they are different. Fahrenheit has the freezing po

int of 32 degrees and the boiling point of 212 degrees. It is also used by the US and many other amazing, prosperous countries. (Please take this time to note any and all sarcasm) Celsius has a freezing of 0 degrees and a boiling point of 100 degrees. It is used by any country in the world that is not called Jamaica, Belize, Palau, USA, or Liberia. Therefore it is used by Canada. Kelvin is used to measure massive amounts of heat or very cold temperatures. The freezing point is 253 degrees and the boiling point is 353 degrees.

Thank you Madeline! :)

3. Convert 5.0 C to Fahrenheit. 41 ^o Fahrenheit.

4. The surface temperature on the planet Venus can reach 860 F. Convert this temperature to degrees Celsius. 460^o C.

5. How much heat is required to raise the temp

erature of 5 kg’s of water by 10 K? 209,000 J.

Objective 3: The Transfer of Heat

1. What are the three forms of heat transfer? conduction, radiation, and convection

2. In what direction does heat move? up 3. How are conductors and insulators different?
Conductors

• transfers thermal energy well
• is a metal like silver and stainless steel
• is cold to the touch
• ionicly bonded

Insulators

• doesn't transfer thermal energy well
• is covalently bonded

4. Would a copper pipe work better as a conductor or insulator?

Why do you think so? A conductor because it is a metal like silver and stainless steel, it is cold to the touch, and ionicly bonded.

5. Suppose you are camping on a mountain, and the air temperature is very cold. How would you keep warm? Would you build a fire or set up a tent? Write an explanation for each action you would take. Tell whether conduction, convection or radiation is involved with each heat transfer.

Suppose you are Harry Potter, Ron Weasly or Hermione Granger, and you are out and about looking for Horcruxes along the countryside and forests of Great Brittan and it's surrounding land. At the same time you are running away from Death Eaters in a magical tent. One day you are camped in Scotland (I know it's a while away from your destination, but deal with it, you have a wand) and it is COLD. So cold that you can remember a simple spell to clean the earwax from your purple-with-frostbite ears. :) So you have to act like a Muggle and somehow get on to the internet where you find a website (or blog such as this one) where an 8th grade science teacher has asked his American students a simple question:
The air temperature is very cold, how would you keep warm?
Then you read the student's answer, "First I would create a shelter to protect me from the cold, this would be conduction energy because the tent and it's blankets within would transfer their heat to me without moving. Then I would light a fire (outside the tent) this would be an example of radiation because the fire would be radiating heat by means on electro-magnetic energy. Then I would get up and do a few jumping jacks to get my blood pumping and heat me up furthermore. This would be an example of convection because I'd be moving around." Then you would close the internet page and chuckle about the Muggle's small viewpoint on the world, you'd then set up your tent, light a fire with your wand, do a few jumping jacks; then finally remember the spell that removes earwax. Then you would sit down in your magical tent and sigh, silently thanking the 8th grader and her science teacher.

Objective 4: Thermal Energy and Matter

1. What causes matter to change state? Matter changes it's state when put under a certain amount of heat (specific heat), or a certain amount of heat is released.

2. What happens to a substance as thermal energy increases? It's temperature increases, possibly resulting in the matter changing states.

3. Why does the temperature of matter remain the s

ame while the matter changes state? Ok so from what I understand the temperature of a given piece of matter stays the same in a state change because the energy that would regularly change the temperature is then being used to convert the given matter's state. Now I'm going to try to give you an analogy that makes sense. So say that I decide to run a 5k. (Ha ha I'm putting those Xcountry skills to the test!) While running that 5k I get very tired, when normally at that point in the day I'm energetic and cheerful. This is like the bit about state change a temperature because I'm using the energy that would normally keep me at a normal state to do something that physically (and mentally) pushes my body.
Now please don't ask me how I made that connection or analogy, I have no clue.

4. What causes a solid to melt? A solid melts because

it has reached its specific heat. For ice that is 2,060J.

5. Why should you poke holes in a potato before baking it? Because a baked potato is like a sack of water, when put in the microwave the water vaporizes and expands. If you did not poke holes in your potato before you put in in the microwave it would explode because of the pressure built up inside of the potato under the radiation of the microwave.

Objective 5: Using Heat http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=about_forms_of_energy-forms <---Awesome helpful website, and it's .gov!!!!!! :D

<---1. How do heat engines use thermal energy? Well from my limited knowledge of engines the thermal energy is what powers the engine. No joke. You'd think that there was more to it (and their probably is) but what basically happens is: the pistons move form each other's force of upward movement. The pistons themselves are thrust upwards by the mini- explosions that gasoline makes when ignited beneath the engine.

2. How are internal combustion engines different from external combustion engines? How are they similar? Ok I'm going to be entirely honest: engines confuse me. With all of their valves and pistons and other stuff with names I forget. I'm also a very visual person, so it helps for me to see diagrams, and so far I've found one helpful diagram on the web. I'm sorry I'm rambling, but here's my best answer:

Two examples of interior and exterior combustion engines are a car and (steam) train. Inside a car you have and internal engine where the heat source is inside the machine. In a train you have the exact opposite kind of engine where the heat source is outside the machine. (Those are their differences.) Now their similarities are

A) they are both engines

and B) they both have a heat source that generates their energy.

3. Why do you think modern cars use internal rather than external combustion engines? If a car had an exterior combustion engine you'd have to shovel coal into it on your way to work every morning.

4. What changes of state occur in the refrigerant of a refrigerator? Firstly I think it is necessary to define the word refrigerant. The word refrigerant loosely defined as a liquid commonly used in cooling systems to keep them cool. The refrigerant inside a refrigerator moves in a cycle in which it evaporates into a gas, and then it condenses into a liquid.

5. If the compressor in a refrigerator stopped working, how would its failure affect the heat transfer cycle? Suddenly the cycle would be only in a gaseous state, which would stop it from cooling off the fridge's inside.

Objective 6: In Hot Water Lab----- See more in class tomorrow. (And in my lab notebook.)

Goal: Build a containter for a 355 mL aluminum can that keeps water hot.

Your container must: - minimize the loss of thermal energy from the hot water - be built from materials approved by Mr H - have insulation no thicker than 3 cm. - not use electricity or heating chemicals (hand warmers, etc)

With a group of classmates or yourself, brainstorm different materials that prevent heat loss. Write a plan for how you will test these materials. Include a list of things you will test when doing your tests. Test out your ideas to determine the best insulating materials. Keep a log of your results in your lab notebook. Then bring the device to class!

Objective 1: Measuring Matter

1. Why is mass more useful than weight for measuring matter? In my opinion mass is more useful than weight for measuring matter because you can exactly weigh a gas, but you can determine it's mass from the container it is in.

2. A plastic box is 15.3 cm long, 9.0 cm wide and 4.5 cm high. What is the volume? Include units. It is 619.65 cm^3

3. What is the unit of measurement for density? Density can be written as g/cm^3.

4. Please write the formula for finding density. Density is equal to M/V = Mass/Volume = g/cm^3.

5. What is the formula for finding volume? Volume's formula is lwh or in other words length times width times height.

Objective 2: Changes in Matter

1. What is the main difference between a physical change and a chemical change? To quote Wikipedia, "A physical change is any change not involving a change in the substance's chemical identity." So in other words the substance simply changes in something like mass or weight.
A chemical change is just about the exact opposite. In a chemical change you are dealing with chemical energy, which includes handling the bonds between atoms.

I hope that covers the basics for that question.

2. What are the four ways that chemical changes can occur? They can occur in a precipitate experiment, when the color changes, the smell changes and when the temperature changes.

3. What is the Law of Conservation of Mass? Who created the law? To quote Yahoo Answers "Mass cannot be created or destroyed." And it was created by the great Lavoisier. (I'm sorry I keep quoting sites and people, but sometimes it's hard to put these answers in a phrase of words that makes sense!)

4. How are temperature and thermal energy different? From what I've read here on the wonderful yet horrible internet the main difference is best expressed with two diagrams:

Hope you can read that! :)

5. Please give an example of an exothermic reaction and an endothermic reaction. Exothermic reactions are reactions that emit heat, while endothermic emit the opposite; cold particles. One example of an exothermic reaction is the digestive system; examples of an endothermic reactions are the hot/cold packs that just about everyone used at one in our life to treat a sports injury or pain.

Objective 3: Energy and Matter

1. What are some of the forms of energy related to changes in matter? Chemical and thermal are two. Chemical = the changing of an object's molecular structure, thus its matter changes while thermal energy could result in something such as ice cream literally changing states of matter.

2. A rolling bowling ball has kinetic energy. (As well as potential and a few others such as thermal [if it is rolling in the sun].)

3. A bowling ball sitting still has (mainly) potential energy.

4. What is electromagnetic energy? Electromagnetic energy is energy of radiation. "When Maxwell’s TV is on it emits low levels of radiation or electromagnetic energy. Electromagnetic energy is basically defined as one of the four “fundamental interactions of nature” to quote Wikipedia. Electromagnetic energy is the energy of radiation, and deals with electric and magnetic fields. Electromagnetic energy is the energy that holds the very bonds inside of atoms together. Without it Maxwell would cease to exist." (Taken from my test question from this week.)

5. What is the energy of electrons moving from one place to another? Please give an example. The energy of traveling electrons is electricity! When Maxwell turns on the TV he is presenting an example of electrical energy. (Taken from my test question from this week.)

Objective 4: State Changes

1. How does the thermal energy of particles at a warmer temperature compare to the thermal energy of particles at a cooler temperature? On a warm day the thermal energy from the sun heats the air particles and makes the them become very hyper, while when it is a cool day the particles are slower because they have less thermal energy generated by the sun. Note that thermal energy is measured (like temperature) in the average.

2. Why does ice cream melt on a warm summer day? Ice cream melts on a warm summer day because: solidified ice cream matter absorbs some of the air's thermal energy and its particles become a bit more "hyper." This causes the state of matter to change from a solid to a liquid in the heat, and if you observed it long enough as a puddle on the sidewalk, you'd see that it would then vaporize and become a gas.

3. What does the melting point of particles have to do with vibrating particles? Particles vibrate and are "hyper" when they have melted and then vaporized, becoming gases.

4. When does condensation occur? Condensation occurs when the air particles on the outside of a glass are cooler than the substance within the glass (or vice versa); this creates water droplets to form on the outside of the glass.

5. Sublimation results under which conditions? If the triple point pressure is higher than atmospheric, then it is solid ---> gas. If the triple poiint pressure is less than atmospheric

pressure, then the reaction is solid ---> liquid ---> gas.

Objective 5: Boyle’s Law (Click Here for More Info)

1. What relationship is described by Boyle’s Law? Boyle's law states that when pressure increases, volume decreases; when volume increases pressure decreases. I look at it like a giant see-saw, with P on one side and V on the other. When one goes up in the air the other has no choice but to fall to earth. This law is called an inverse relationship.

2. Why do scientists only HALF fill high-altitude balloons? Scientists fill atomospheric balloons only half way because when they go farther up in the atomosphere the presure on the inside of the ballon increases. If scientists were to fill them up all the way- they'd pop before they gathered any information.

See my Friday the 12th test for further details on why they expand.

3. What is the formula for Boyle’s Law? Boyle's formula is: PV=K.

4. How does Boyle’s Law apply to physicians? One example of this applying to physicians is when they take blood pressure. We've all had them do it to us once or twice - so we all know what happens. They put a cuff on your arm and squeeze the pump- expanding the volume of the cuff and applying a greater amount of presure to your arm. So as the volume of the cuff goes up the amount of preasure on your arm goes up and vice versa.

5. SCUBA divers rely on Boyle’s Law for what purposes? As SACUBA divers (like my dad!) go father under water the amount of preasure on them increases. It is important for them to have commpressed air tanks because of this. The deeper they go the less "air" there is in their tanks. This is important because if they do not regulate and watch their "presure dials" carefully they could drown.

Objective 6: Charles’ Law (Click Here for More Info)

1. What is Charles’ Law? Charle's law states that when volume goes down, temperature goes down and the other way around.

2. As the temperature of a gas increases, the gas molecules move more quickly.

3. Who was the first person to fly in a hydrogen balloon? J.A.C. Charles of course.

4. What happened to Charles’ balloon after his first flight in 1783? When Charles's first hydrogen balloon took flight it stayed up in the air for about an hour- then landed about 15 miles from Paris where a group of terrified peasants attacked it. :D Isn't that a bit odd? They thought it was some kind of evil demon! Latter on King Louis XVI had to create a decree that explained to the peasants what the balloons were and NOT TO ATTACK THEM.

5. What factor is kept unchanged when demonstrating Charles’ Law? In Charles's law pressure must remain constant.

www.worldofteaching.com/powerpoints/chemistry/Charles_%20Law.ppt

Mg's and Jesseca's EPIC Precipitate Experiment Part II

Here is part II to the Epic Precipitate experiment between Copper Sulfate and Sodium Hydroxide vs Silver Nitrate and Sodium Hydroxide...



You are about to see the observation/experiment segments of this experiment. I'm sorry If it's a bit out of order but in Part III you will get to learn about our hypothesis and other info I left out in parts I and II. So here it is:

Below is the Silver Nitrate and Sodium Hydroxide Precipitate experiment about a minute after it was stirred. You can see that the Silver Nitrate dissolved and how it looks to be nothing but harmless water. But also note that drinking it could result in a severe belly ache- and most likely worse consequences.












































To the right you can see the beginning of the Copper Sulfate and Sodium Hydroxide experiment. Look at the odd bubbles at the bottom of the test tube!





























Here's Mr. Harrelson "stirring" the Copper Sulfate and Sodium Hydroxide experiment.






















Above we have Mr. Harrelson closely examining the experiment while Mary Grace and I (out of frame) have our fingers crossed that something will happen in the experiment... We are not very patient.







Above we have the Copper Sulfate and sodium Hydroxide experiment... This is a great picture because you can really see the basic 4 layers in this experiment. First there is the condensed water on the sides of the glass, then you can clearly see the Sodium Hydroxide that turned blue from the Copper Sulfate, next comes the putty-like layer where the two ingredients creates a solid- thus completing the bit of the experiment that give it the name "precipitate" experiment (see part I), and finally we can clearly see the pieces of Copper Sulfate that did not dissolve*.





Below is the Silver Nitrate and Sodium Hydroxide experiment, and while it is not visible in this picture, there were little specs odd some kind of solid forming at the bottom of the test tube. They looked like EXTREMELY fine grains of white/transparent sand.

To the right and below
are the two experiments
beside each other.

To the left you can clearly see the large amount of condensation of the Copper Sulfate and Sodium Hydroxide experiment.

And here you can see the Copper Sulfate and Sodium Hydroxide experiment from and aerial view. Doesn't I appear to be glowing? :)

*Note that we were inspired to do this experiment from this video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAeOP2MfrDY&feature=related

and didn't notice that Silver Nitrate and Copper Sulfate are not normally in liquid form... So while our experiment did create solids, it was technically not two liquids creating a solid and so we failed. :( But in the process we did learn what precipitate experiments are- which is good even though (due to bad planning on our part) we did not execute the experiment properly.

The Lad Report For Mg's and my Precipitate Experiment...

So for our experiment we chose to do it under the category of precipitates.

Precipitates are chemical reactions formed from two liquids taht create a solid. For our experiment we did the chemical reaction between Sodium Hydroxide and Silver Nitrate vs Sodium Hydroxide and Copper Sulfate.

We made two different observations for the two of them (that's implied, sorry if I'm redundant) and we got less-than-satisfactory-results. :(

For the first experiment, (Sodium Hydroxide and Silver Nitrate) when we appied activation energy the Sliver Nitrate desolved, created a puff of gas and turned clear.

The second experiment between Sodium Hydroxide and Copper Sulfate reulted in a concoction with a light blue color, in which part of it became a putty-like-substance.


OK... I know that there are no pictures or any more info other than the basic observation notes, but I'm too lazy to play with my camera card right now- so I'll post more in the morning! Consider this part one of the epic precipitate experiment!

DC photos--- at last!!!

UGH. It is too early!

But we're in the bus, ready to go anyway.

Rest stop!!

Picnic pals...

Steak for only $12.99???

Hmmmmm.

First view of the Washington Monument!

The Washington Monument.

Our class in front of the Washington Monument.

Our class in front of the Einstein Memorial.

Oh no a burning building!

:D

More photos latter.

Look at it! This is a rock squirel. I've named it Rockael :) If you feel so inclined here are two links for info about little guys like Raphael, opps! I mean Rockael.

1. http://www.mnh.si.edu/mna/image_info.cfm?species_id=340
2. http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?recNum=MA0197

Meet the Elements

Check out what I found! It's an element song that doesn't make you head spin!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0zION8xjbM&NR=1&feature=fvwp

Iron

The Natural History Museum's Hall of Meteorites contains around 5,000 specimens of meteorites.

• Meteorites contain iron.
• Iron is a transition metal, and is said to be the most common element on Earth.
• Iron is the 4th most common element in the Earth's crust.
• Iron is the most commonly used metal.
• Iron rusts.
• Pure iron is softer than aluminum, yet it is commonly mixed with other metals to create steel structural supports for buildings.
• Is able to conduct electricity and heat.

Get this: iron is the 6th most abundant element IN THE UNIVERSE.

Now if that doesn't make this element worthy of the title, "incredibly interesting" then allow me to elaborate...

The extensive use of iron lead to an entire era named the "Iron Age." In the Iron age the element becomes more widespread and is used too create nearly everything. (Everything from jewelry to weapons anyway.) My point is that with the use of the very common element Fe humans were able to create things differently thus civilization evolved.

Who knows?! It may be that with a sword made out of iron someone back then carved a path towards the future discovery/creation of the periodic table.

Okay so I'll admit it. That was not very interesting. Truth be told iron really isn't all that interesting. Other than the fact that iron occasionally plummets down from the sky in the form of meteors it's really boring.

Or is it?

I have to say that all of the elements on the periodic table are interesting. There is a sense of mystery behind it all. I believe only time can truly unravel some of the mysteries, for what is a solved answer if it will be proven wrong in time?

So I leave you with a quote from Albert Einstein,

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

Source links:

http://www.facts-about.org.uk/science-element-iron.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron#History

http://www.bu.edu/anep/Ir.html

http://www.amnh.org/ (Note: I lost the exact link due to a computer freeze up, but it came from this website under one of its "subcategories.")

http://thinkexist.com/quotation/imagination_is_more_important_than_knowledge-for/260230.html

Really Awesome NEW Science Technology

Okay so for this Labor Day weekend I went with my mom and brothers to my Grandparent's house on lake Kiowa. While my mom and I were driving home this evening,we heard this awesome interview on NPR about a ground braking new music video that uses Google Earth to take you on an interactive journey to the house you grew up in.

And yes, I said MUSIC VIDEO.

Check it out! It was breath-taking even to me who has only ever lived in two houses in total all my life. It was amazing, spectacular and just plain wicked. Try it for the house you're in now, or make your parents crowd around the computer as they watch the journey with the address of their house from their childhood. This video is awesome: http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/ go to it now, or miss out on an awesome experience.

Thales

Who was Thales?

Thales of Miletus was an ancient philosopher who expanded the way mankind looked on the world by creating science.

What is he known for?

Thales can be called the father of science, for he was the first man to Philosophize without his theories relating back to mythology. It is said that he started the science revolution.

Where did he live?

It is said that he was born in Asia Minor, which is now Turkey.

When did he live?

Thales lived in the 620's BCE to 540's, but it is hard to say exactly.

Atom Size Notes

atom= 10 to the power of -8cm.

protron (mass)= 1amu

neutron (mass)= 1amu

electron (mass)= 1/836 amu----- It would take about 2,000 electrons to equal the same size as a protron or a neutron.



amu= atomic mass unit

Atoms in the Universe

There are 1000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,
000,000,000,000,000,000,000
atoms in the universe.


In other words 10 to the power of 80.

NOTE:
googol= 10 to the power of 100 which is as close as we really come to infinity.
Multiple googlol = googleplex.

Parts of the Atom

Types of Quarks

Atoms Through out the ages

Shroedinger vs Democritus

Long, long ago in ancient Ionia, Greece what is now Turkey there was a man named Democritus. Democritus lived around 430 B.C.E. Back in Ionia many of the wealthy men were philosophisers, and they did many "thought experiments" In one of those many "thought experiments" Democritus decided that matter is made up of pieces, building blocks if you will, that are so small they cannot be cut up into smaller pieces.

The word atom meaning "one of the minute indivisible particles of which according to ancient materialism the universe is composed"* comes from the word atomos meaning uncutable. Democritus was on the right track (which is amazing because this was hundreds and hundreds of years ago) but he was still not entirely accurate. You see elements had not been recognized yet, so atoms were described by what they composed. (i.e. table atom, or tree atom.)

Now let's jump to the 1920s.

Not so long ago a man named Eric Shroedinger was praised by Albert Einstein,

"... the idea of your work springs from true genius... "

Now while that quote may have been aimed towards Shroedinger's work on quantum theory (not on the atom), it was in regard to one man: Eric Shroedinger. Born in the year of 1887 in Vienna, Austria Shroedinger loved mathematics early on.

Note: Eric Shroedinger hated homework, but later went on to win a Nobel Prize.

Shroedinger emphasized the need to focus on exactly where the electrons are located rather than prior examining on how electrons move. He worked with the term superpositioning meaning you can be in multiple places at once and have more than one state at once.

(By "you" I did not mean you as a person. I meant electrons: the extremely small, negatively charged particles that orbit an atom's nucleus. Though it would be totally awesome if you were able to be in multiple places at once!)

Under Shroedinger's use of the scientific method he changed the way we look at atoms today. He developed the brilliant atom model below via mathematics and the scientific method.

I give you a purple cotton candy model of an atom!!!

Shroedinger vs Democritus

The main difference between Scroedinger and Democritus's methods of discovery is the actual method behind each of their scientific practices. While Democritus could have sat in a comfortable armchair by the fire leisurely dreaming up particles that "could not be cut again" Shroedinger was slaving away at a chalkboard in a laboratory, doing mathematics calculations. This shows how far we have come as a scientific society, not to say that there is no imagination or leisurely thinking behind science, there is. But what I am trying to say is that we have set our standards higher, making us overall more accurate. By setting our standards higher we use and develop more modern ways of getting things done and thus our knowlage expands.

Below is the scientific method, the main difference between Shroedinger and Democritus's method. Shroedinger used it while it was long after Democritus's time.

*Taken from: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atom

Researched at site: http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Schrodinger.html

Notes taken in Mr. Harrelson's science class at Spartanburg Day School.