CHEMISTRY!!  What is it?? Why are we here??

“are all chemicals bad?”  No, but some can be dangerous  Chemicals are everywhere  Which brings us to…

What is Chemistry?  the study of matter and the changes that it undergoes. What is Matter?  anything that has mass and takes up space What is Mass?  a measurement of the amount of matter in an object

Mass verses Weight  They are related, but what’s the difference?  Mass is universal, weight depends on gravity  Weight = mass times the gravitational pull

Branches of Chemistry  Organic  Inorganic  Analytical  Physical  Biochemical

Organic AAAArea of Emphasis Most carbon-containing chemicals EEEExamples: Pharmaceuticals Plastics

Inorganic AAAArea of Emphasis In general, matter that does not contain carbon EEEExamples: Minerals Metals and nonmetals Semi-conductors

Analytical AAAArea of Emphasis Components and composition of substances EEEExamples: Food Nutrients Quality Control

Physical AAAArea of Emphasis The behavior and changes of matter and the related energy changes EEEExamples: Reaction Rates Reaction Mechanisms

Biochemical AAAArea of Emphasis Matter and processes of living organisms EEEExamples: Metabolism Fermentation

Next, the Scientific Method

Why do we have the scientific method? Gives us logical steps to follow to assist us in answering a question.

What are the “steps”?  Observe and Develop a question  Conduct background research and observe  Form a hypothesis and observe  Observe and Test using an experiment  Make observations and collect data  Analyze your results  Observe and Draw conclusions  Report results and test again

5 EASY steps  1. State the problem (ask a question)  2. Come up with a hypothesis Must be testable Must be testable Must be in “if / then” format Must be in “if / then” format  3. Experiment  4. Collect and Analyze Data  5. Form conclusions (reflect back to your hypothesis!!!!!)

Parts of an experiment Some Vocab 

Independent Variable  P  Part of the experiment that the scientist changes   What is being tested   There is only one independent variable at a time.

Dependent Variable P Part of the experiment that changes because of the independent variable

Control P Part of the experiment that does not receive the independent variable

Constants P Part of the experiment that remain the same for every part of the experiment

Types of Data  Quantitative Data that is numerical in nature Data that is numerical in nature  Qualitative Data that is descriptive in nature Data that is descriptive in nature

An example experiment  A person wants to test whether music can help make plants grow. The person plants several seeds from the same batch into identical flower pots with identical potting soil, watering schedule and light supply. One flower pot is isolated from the sound supply, while the other pots are subjected to various types of music. After 1 month, the “healthiness” of each plant is measured.