The Mad Scientist teaches: Chemistry

Book excerpt: Chemistry is the study of matter in the form of atoms, molecules, and the interactions that happen between them called chemical reactions. In its vast sense, chemistry is actually the science of all the available materials that make up the world around you. This includes all ‘matter’ that you can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch! Matter is everything that has mass and occupies space and all matter is composed out of the basic building blocks we call ‘atoms’. Understanding how to predict and explain how matter change when they react to form new substances, is what chemistry and chemists are all about! The 50 projects contained in this science experiment e-book cover a wide range of Chemistry topics; from Chemical reactions to Elements & Compounds… there are even experiments on chemical power and endothermic reactions all designed for young students from grade 1 to 8! With this book, you are sure to find a project that interests you. When you are interested in a certain science topic, you will have more fun, and learn more, too! With the help of this book, you will construct many weird, wonderful and wacky experiments that you can have hours of fun with! Amongst many others, you will use chromatography to predict the ‘fall’ colour of a green leaf tree, make your own stalactites to learn about evaporation, make glue, toothpaste and caramel to experiment with chemical reactions, and use various substances to test if a substance is an acid or base! Other fun experiments include: growing your own crystals on a piece of string, testing for the presence of iron in breakfast cereals, writing secret messages to your friends with your own invisible ink, using iodine to test for the presence of starch in foods, making a detector to predict the possibility of rain, making an exothermic reaction with vinegar & steel wool, using chemistry to make your dull coins shine, electro-plating a nail, making a ‘lava lamp’ with oil & water, making a fluid for copying newsprint to blank sheets of paper, making paper, snuffing out a candle by ‘pouring’ carbon dioxide gas over it, Testing how much Vitamin C is contained in various fruit juices and many, many more! When making these gadgets, you’ll discover that science is a part of every object in our daily lives, and who knows, maybe someday you will become a famous inventor too! Science can be real simple and is actually only about understanding the world you live in! Science certainly does not need to be complicated formulas, heavy text books and geeky guys in white lab coats with thick glasses. Science experiments are an awesome part of science that allows you to engage in cool and exciting hands on learning experiences that you are sure to enjoy and remember! By working through the science experiments in this book, you will learn about science in the best possible way – by doing things yourself. Designed with safety in mind, most of the items you will need for the experiments, such as jars, aluminium foil, scissors and sticky tape, you can find around your home. Others, such as magnets, lenses or a compass, you will be able to buy quite cheaply at a hobby shop or hardware store.