Here are some songs to help you learn the periodic table. Hope you like them, though they may get stuck in your head.
If you like chemistry, than you'll be excited to hear that I'm starting a unit on it! I'll be doing a series called "Meet the Elements", and today is the first post. The star element: potassium. If you’re looking for potassium, you’ll find it in the fourth period and the first family of the periodic table, in the metals section. The box will be labeled with a 19 in the corner, which is the atomic number; a K in the center, which is potassium’s symbol; and a 39.098 at the bottom, which is the atomic mass.
If you were to, somehow, look at the atoms in potassium, you would find 19 protons and 20 neutrons in the nucleus. Circling around the nucleus, you would find 19 small electrons, located on different paths called energy shells- 2 on the first shell, 8 on the second shell, 8 on the third shell, and 1 on the last shell, called the valence electron. The element potassium is a silver-whitish, soft metal that oxidizes when exposed to air. Its melting point is 63°C or 145°F, which is very low for a metal; you could hold it over the flame of a candle and it would melt. Potassium’s boiling point is 770°C or 1,420°F. Potassium is less dense than water, so it would float in water, but I wouldn’t recommend testing that; potassium is very active and reacts violently with water. As a pure element, potassium has few uses. But its compounds, specifically potassium chloride, are used often in fertilizers. Other potassium compounds are used in products such as baking powders, soft drinks, fire extinguishers, explosives, fireworks, matches, dyes, rocket fuel, detergents, and liquid soaps. We had a hurricane family reunion the other day- me, Hugo, Andrew, and a bunch of others. It was nice catching up, and you know what? There are some new additions to the family! Meet my cousin, Joaquin. He formed on September 27, and headed toward the Bahamas, strengthening into a Category 4. After bombarding the Bahamas for a few days, Joaquin went northeast past the Bermuda, and finally dissolved on October 7. Joaquin was almost a Category 5- just 2 mph short, can you believe that? His 155 mph were so close to making the next category. The Bahamas suffered a hard hit from Joaquin. Flooding, storm surges, heavy, heavy rainfall, a total blackout in some places. 85% of the homes were destroyed in one area. Needless to say, Joaquin left a big impact on them. Definitely not going to be outdone is my little (or should I say, big) sister, Patricia, who's already claimed the title of "The Strongest Hurricane Ever Recorded". Seriously, don't pick a fight with her. At 6:15, just this evening, Patricia made landfall on the Pacific coast of Mexico, blasting 165 mph winds. Just a few hours ago, Patricia was even stronger, but she weakened to 190 mph winds and 235 mph gusts before touching down. She landed 55 miles north-west of Manzanillo, the largest container port. This Category 5 hurricane is causing extreme damage; its strength might fluctuate, but it will remain a deadly Category 5 through landfall, making it the first Cat. 5 threat to North America since Hurricane Felix. No other hurricane is as deadly as Patricia; Camille comes closest, followed by Andrew, Katrina, as well as others. I might do another post on Hurricane Patricia soon. Until then!
Sources: http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/23/americas/hurricane-patricia/ http://www.weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/hurricane-patricia-mexico-coast http://www.weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/hurricane-joaquin-bahamas-atlantic-east-coast-bermuda-2015 Sorry it's been a while, faithful readers. I'll be posting weekly from now on, especially since I have lots more to write about. It's old news by now, but liquid water has been discovered on Mars! On September 28, 2015, NASA confirmed the evidence that there is liquid water on Mars. You'd been holding out on us, Mars! Before that day, scientists knew there was frozen water in the caps, but now there is evidence of liquid water. This is an important step for a few reasons: first, if we were to ever colonize Mars, liquid water would mean a greater chance of survival, and second, liquid water is one of the best things to support life, which we have been searching for. The streaks above are evidence of the discovery; NASA scientists say these streaks, called recurring slope lineae, are caused recently flowing water. Scientists have also found hydrated salts on the slopes, adding more proof to the discovery. How? The salts would lower the freezing point, just like salt on sidewalks on Earth. This would allow ice to melt and flow more quickly. These slopes have been found to flow and ebb over time; they darken and flow in warm seasons, but fade away in cooler seasons.
Now that we've found liquid water on Mars, who knows? There might be life somewhere... Sources: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-confirms-evidence-that-liquid-water-flows-on-today-s-mars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Mars |
AuthorHello! I am Katrina, a science enthusiast, who also enjoys art, reading, and tennis. Archives
June 2016
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