1. Acids and Bases Acids and Bases and Bears oh my.

2. Ions Water molecules sometimes break up. When water breaks apart one Hydrogen loses it’s electron and goes off by its self, leaving the Oxygen with a Hydrogen and an extra electron. H 2 O -> H + + OH -

3. Ions Because the Single Hydrogen no longer shares that electron is becomes positively charged. He is now called a Hydrogen Ion.

4. Ions The Oxygen and Hydrogen now have an extra electron and become negatively charged. They are now called a Hydroxide Ion.

5. Acid Any substance that has extra Hydrogen Ions is an acid. The more Hydrogen Ions the more acidic.

6. Basis When a substance has extra hydroxide ions (OH - ) then it is a base. The more hydroxide ions the more basic. (Bases can also be called Alkaline)

7. pH Scale The pH scale was created to better compare the relative concentration of Hydrogen ions. pH stands for partial Hydrogen. The scale ranges from 0 to 14 and each step is a multiple of 10. The scale is logarithmic.

9. pH Example: Urine generally has a pH of 6 where as water has a pH of 7. This means that Urine has 10 times more Hydrogen Ions than water.

10. pH A pH of 7 is considered neutral. This means that there as many Hydrogen ions as there are hydroxide ions. They balance each other out.

11. Homeostasis Living things can only survive in specific levels of pH. Homeostasis means to keep things the same or balanced. To help control the pH a chemical substance can be created called a Buffer. Buffers help by neutralizing either acids or basis.