
Fall is creeping into my part of the world; harvest is in full swing and my thoughts are turning now to large dinners with ham, turkey and all the fixings. Of course, one of the things I am most thankful for after such a meal is catalysts.
The term catalyst is commonly used as an expression to identify a person or moment that started an event. In my world, it is a substance that helps speeds things up without being used up. Continue reading
Have you ever uttered or heard the phrase: Are we there yet? or How much longer? Does this prompt flashbacks of your last family vacation!? We are constantly interested in time, and how fast things happen. Chemists are no different, we merely change the phrasing to: Is it done yet, and how much longer? Continue reading
It is a known fact that water and electricity should not be used at the same time but have you ever wondered why? Were you ever told that you could be electrocuted while showering or bathing, during an electric storm? Can an electric current really flow through water? Continue reading
There is one substance today that still has the power to amaze and entertain me as it did as a child. I never lose a chance to sing its praises and or to expound on its powerful chemical characteristics to all my students, young and old alike. Continue reading
Chemistry would be a whole lot simpler if all the reactions would just make their expected products (or even some by-products) and then be done. Reactants and products have a mind of their own though and are influenced by temperature, concentration, some even by the weather (pressure)! Worse, some products can’t seem to make up their mind and turn back into reactants. Continue reading