Pique the Geek: Chirality
Written by Translator on October 19, 2008 – 7:07 pm -Crossposted at Dailykos.com
Chirality comes from the Greek root ?????, meaning “hand”. Most people outside of us chemistry wanks do not know that many organic molecules have the property of “handedness”, meaning that they come in two varieties, a “right-handed” and a “left-handed” one. Actually, it is bit more complex, and this will become clear in a few paragraphs.
Tags: Chirality, Dailykos.com, Learning, Pique the Geek, Science, Teaching
Posted in Diaries | 9 Comments »
Market Meltdown Diversion - The Daemon Rhum
Written by Translator on September 16, 2008 – 7:57 pm -Crossposted at Dailykos.com
Rhum, or rum, as it is now called, is yet another product devised by humans for getting altered. It is unique to sugar producing regions, and is made by a process very unlike that which is used for whiskey, at least at first.
Tags: Daemon, Demon, Learning, Rhum, Rum, Science, Teaching
Posted in Diaries | No Comments »
Outwit the Nitwit, Volume III - Petroleum
Written by Translator on August 19, 2008 – 6:34 pm -Crossposted at Dailykos.com
The second installation did not go over very well, and I accept the blame for it. It was without structure, and this one will have a bit.
This time there is a topic: petroleum. This is not to say that other questions are not welcome, but the focus of this post is questions regarding that substance.
Tags: Learning, Outwit the Nitwit, Petroleum, Science, Teaching
Posted in Diaries | 14 Comments »
Stump the Chump - a New Series, Volume II
Written by Translator on August 18, 2008 – 8:01 pm -Crossposted at Dailykos.com
Last time was fun for me, and I hope the readers as well. We will try another episode, to see if this is viable.
Please consider this as an open thread for any and all questions related to science and technology. If I do not know an answer, I will say so and ask others in the community with expertise to reply.
As usual, I am dancing naked, and will not look up anything on Wikipedia or in reference books except for the times when some numbers are required, such as the heat of formation of items. Unfortunately, I can not keep all of those figures in my head.
With that said, let us go. Questions, comments, or other? Warmest regards, Doc.
Tags: Chemistry, Learning, Physics, Science, Stump the Chump, Teaching, Technology
Posted in Diaries | 10 Comments »
Phases of Matter V - Gases 1
Written by Translator on June 25, 2008 – 7:29 pm -Crossposted at Dailykos.com
Gases, like liquids are fluids, in that they have no definite shape, but take that shape of their container, be it a balloon, a pressure cylinder, or a gravity envelope. Unlike liquids, gases are not “condensed” in that their molecules have a much greater spacing than that of liquids or solids.
This spacing is on the order of around 1000 times more as a general rule of thumb. This makes it possible to compress gases, using energy to push the molecules closer together. The ramifications of this are huge, from air conditioning to energy transport to solar power storage.
Tags: Boyle's Law, Charles's Law, Combined Gas Law, Gases, Gasses, Gay-Lussac's Law, Ideal Gas Law, Phases of matter, Science, Teaching
Posted in Diaries | 5 Comments »
Something Completely Different and just Fun: Helium
Written by Translator on May 22, 2008 – 12:07 am -Helium is the second lightest element, having two protons and either one or two neutrons in the nucleus. It a noble gas, meaning that it does not form any compounds and is monatomic in the gaseous, liquid, and solid state. It is extremely rare in the atmosphere, because of its low mass and lack of reactivity. It essentially just boils away.
Tags: He, Helium, Science, Teaching
Posted in Diaries | 1 Comment »