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Showing posts from 2012

Why do we smell when we sweat?

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Why do we smell when we sweat? Sweating can be quite annoying especially since it tends to leave a big wet patch either on your back or under your arms. It makes it especially worse when your sweat tends to smell really foul. Although the bad news is that there is no way to prevent it, the good news is that you can at least tackle it. Why do we sweat? Sweating or perspiration is our body's natural way of cooling us down. We may feel the heat more when we sweat but the truth is that the body is cooling itself by releasing all the built in heat. Our body needs to maintain a normal temperature of 98.6 Fahrenheit failing which we are likely to suffer a heart stroke. Sweat is released through small holes known as pores in our skin. When sweat comes in contact with the atmosphere, it evaporates leaving a cool feeling behind. Sweat is almost made of water with small amounts of chemicals like ammonia, urea, sugar and body salts like sodium . Our body has approxima

How to make fake snow?

How to Make Fake Snow! Missing out on white Christmas because you live in a country where there is no snow? Well, here's a solution! You can make your own Fake Snow! What is Fake Snow? Fake snow looks very similar to the actual snow and is non-toxic in nature. It is made out of polymer and gives you a cool feel when you touch it, just like real snow. The ingredients and procedure to prepare fake snow are simple. Things that you need to make fake snow: a) Common polymer or sodium polyacrylate b) Water You will find sodium polyacrylate or common polymer in disposable diapers or as crystals in your garden as it helps in keeping the soil of the garden moist. Here is how you make it: To prepare fake snow, all you have to do is add water to sodium polyacrylate or common polymer. It will take the form of a gel . Keep adding water till it is completely moist. The more water you add, the slushier the gel of sodium polyacrylate or common polymer will b

Gift a Handmade Perfume

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 Gift a Handmade Perfume Choosing the right gift requires a lot of thought. But when you make a gift on your own, the effort immediately makes the other person feel special! Here is a simple way to make your very own handmade perfume to gift to a loved one! You will need: a) Essential oils like jojoba oil or almond oil b) Ethanol or vodka as alcohol c) Distilled water d) Coffee filter e) Dark coloured glass bottle. The essential oils form the base of your perfume and are known as the notes of the perfume. The base notes are the ones that stay longer on your skin. The middle notes evaporate a little quickly and the top notes will evaporate first. Bridge notes are the intermediate ones and help in tying the scent together. Here are the essential oils that have different notes you can choose from: Base notes: cedar wood, cinnamon, patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla, moss, lichen, fern Middle notes: clove, geranium, lemongrass, neroli, nutmeg, ylang

Why are tomatoes red?

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Why are tomatoes red? Tomatoes are a significant ingredient in several food preparations. Whether they are used in a sauce, solid, puree or gravy form, tomatoes are a delicious and juicy treat. When tomatoes are raw, they are green in colour. However, the moment they start ripening they change colour and turn red. Have you ever wondered why this happens? Let us find out... What renders the red colour to tomatoes? Tomatoes have the chlorophyll pigment when they are raw and hence they are green in colour. As they start ripening, the pigment lycopene becomes dominant and this is why tomatoes turn red. Lycopene is a carotenoid and belongs to the same family as beta-carotene . It is a powerful antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals; especially those derived from oxygen. It is highly unsaturated hydrocarbon and contains 11 conjugated and 2 unconjugated double bonds making it longer than any other carotenoid. Lycopene obtained from plants tends to exist in a

How do rechargeable batteries work?

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How do rechargeable batteries work? A rechargeable battery is a battery that can be recharged and used many times. It is also known as a 'storage battery' as it has the ability to accumulate and store energy. A rechargeable battery is also known as a 'secondary cell' . Gone are the days when we had to buy new batteries every time it stopped working. Any photographer will agree that rechargeable batteries are definitely a better and cheaper option than disposable batteries. Not to mention how they help save our planet! Let's find out how rechargeable batteries work. The function of rechargeable batteries Batteries have two electrodes; an anode, which is the negative end and a cathode, which is the positive end. Together, the anode and the cathode are called the electrodes. Every battery is made of chemicals and metals such as nickel, mercury and lead acid. In between the battery's two electrodes, an electrical current runs which is primaril

How is chemistry related to fats in your body?

 How is chemistry related to fats in your body? Most of us are health conscious. Almost every celebrity, magazine, newspaper or television channel are promoting fitness by losing fat and keeping our weight in check. But did you know there is a link between chemistry and fats in our body? Lipids? What are they? The modern obsession with fats and cholesterol is due to a greater understanding of the role of a group of bio-chemicals known as Lipids . Fats and oils are one type of lipids that are triglyceride molecules and are based on glycerol, which is an organic molecule made up of a chain of three carbon atoms with a hydroxyl (OH) group. Each hydroxyl group in glycerol connects to a long chain molecule known as a fatty acid. This results in a three-tailed molecule, which is called as a triglyceride . During the formation of triglycerides, the resultant fat molecules are totally hydrophobic, i.e. they do not dissolve in water. The human body stores these fats becau

Why water and oil do not mix?

Why Oil and Water do not mix? Every noticed that if you apply oil on your hand and wash it under water, the water doesn't stick to your hand? Or how when a drop of oil falls in a glass of water, it floats on the surface instead of mixing? There is a perfectly good explanation for this. It all comes down to chemistry! All About Polarity... Water is a polar molecule and this is a key reason why water and oil do not mix. Wondering what polarity is? Polarity is when one end is positively charged while the other end is negatively charged. Each water molecule is made of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. But the atoms are not arranged in a line. The two hydrogen atoms cling to one side of the oxygen atom making the molecule look something like a Mickey Mouse head. The electrons in the molecule spend more time on the oxygen side of the molecule, giving this side a negative charge and the hydrogen side a positive charge. Only other polar molecules can dissolve in w

Why coffee keeps you awake?

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Why coffee keeps you awake? It is well-known that the effect of coffee on mood is related to its content in caffeine (you can see its pic on the right) But why caffeine has such a strong effect on us? Caffeine operates using the same mechanisms of amphetamines, cocaine, and heroin to stimulate the brain, though with milder effects. It manipulates the same channels as the other drugs, and that is one of the things that gives caffeine its addictive qualities. There is a chemical in our brain called adenosine , that binds to certain receptors and slows down nerve cell activity when we are sleeping. To a nerve cell, caffeine looks like adenosine and it binds to the adenosine receptors. However, as it's not really adenosine, it doesn't slow down the cell's activity like adenosine would. So the cell cannot "see" adenosine anymore because caffeine has taken up all the receptors adenosine binds to. Then, instead of slowing down because of the adenos

Why the sky is blue?

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Why the sky is blue? We all can look up to the sky and see its beautiful blue colour. Why is it blue, and not red, or white for instance? As I commented in the "Vegetables post", an object is coloured because of the light that it reflects. The white light from the sun contains all the wavelengths, but when it impacts on an object some of its wavelengths are absorbed and some reflected. For example blue objects reflect 'blue' light, which is light with a pretty short wavelength. There is a phenomena named Rayleigh scattering , that consists on the scattering of light by particles much smaller than its wavelength. This effect is especially strong when light passes through gases. Each of the wavelengths of light suffers a different scattering when it encounters the gas particles that form the atmosphere (nitrogen, oxygen...). This effect is more prominent in the case of short light wavelengths, that are the blue end of the visible spectrum, so the

Coefficient of restitution

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Hi buddies check out .. Coefficient of restitution Analysis It is 1 for elastic collision It is 0 for perfectly inelastic collision It is less than 1 (<1 ) for inelastic collision

Collisions1

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Check out buddies collisions elastic and  inelastic collisions One dimensional collisions Two dimensional collisions ..? Read it useful information ......

A little poll

A little poll a%3A3%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22options%22%3Bs%3A372%3A%22879f210a2feabd9c0b2b511797c2c1ef%2CYes%26%2344%3B+chemistry+is+damaging+for+the+environment.+Better+get+rid+of+it%21%2Cf95416be075d45a893b1c594966f1d65%2CYes%26%2344%3B+but+we+would+need+other+alternatives+that+we+don%27t+currently+have.%2Cb5b1be97d4974a6c3a6d35df4c881791%2CNo%26%2344%3B+chemistry+makes+our+life+easier.%2Cf003f8ae90e5e1d2f2a9931a50732849%2CNo%26%2344%3B+without+chemistry+there+wouldn%27t+be+life.%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22period%22%3Bs%3A2%3A%2260%22%3Bs%3A8%3A%22question%22%3Bs%3A41%3A%22Would+you+like+a+world+without+chemistry%3F%22%3B%7D Would you like a world without chemistry? Yes, chemistry is damaging for the environment. Better get rid of it! Yes, but we would need other alternatives that we don't currently have. No, chemistry makes our life easier. No, without chemistry there wouldn't be life. Vote

How to make invisible ink at home?

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How to make invisible ink at home? This is a funny experiment to do with kids at home. You can play with your kids at home making invisible ink with basic products that you have in the kitchen. There are many methods to make invisible ink. These are some of the easiest ones: 1) Lemon juice method - Ingredients : just lemon juice. Write your message on a piece of paper with a brush or tootpick embedded in lemon juice. Let it dry completely. To read the message heat the paper for a while (for instance hold it close to a light bulb) until the words become visible. Warning: do not hold paper too close to the heat and be careful not to let it get too hot! - Chemical explanation : Lemon juice is a mild acid that weakens the paper upon contact. So when you heat the paper the part with the juice burns before the rest making your message visible. 2) Baking soda method - Ingredients : baking soda and water in same amount (for instance 30 mL of each). Mix them and use a too

Why do onions make you cry?

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Why do onions make you cry? Who has never cried while cutting an onion? (well, apart from those who have never cut one hehehe). This is a little explanation in easy terms. Inside the onion cells there are some chemical compounds that contain sulfur. When you cut an onion its cells are broken and those chemical compounds then undergo a reaction that transforms them into a more volatile sulfured products, which are released into the air. These sulfured compounds react with the moisture in your eyes forming sulfuric acid, which produces a burning sensation. The nerve endings in your eyes are very sensitive and so they pick up on this irritation. The brain reacts by telling your tear ducts to produce more water, to dilute the irritating acid. So you cry to keep your eyes protected from the acid. There are some tricks to make onion-dicing less problematic: - Chop the onion under cold water . The volatile sulfured compounds will be released but then they react with the w

Why meals are cooked faster in a pressure cooker?

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Why meals are cooked faster in a pressure cooker? A pressure cooker is like any other pot but with a more elaborated lid that seals the pot completely. When you heat water inside the pot it boils and the steam cannot escape, so it remains inside and starts to build up pressure. Under pressure, cooking temperatures raise much higher than under normal conditions (higher than the boiling point of water, that is 100ºC), so then the food is cooked much faster. Cooking times can be reduced by a factor of three or four. Besides cooking faster, this method retains more nutrients present in the food than other methods. And did you know that a pressure cooker is often used by mountain climbers? Without it, water boils off before reaching 100ºC because of the lower atmospheric pressure at high altitudes, leaving the food improperly cooked.

Vegetables and colour

Vegetables and colour The pigment present in carrots is the betacarotene, with 9 linear conjugated double bonds, less than in lycopene so they are no red but orange (smaller wavelength than red, check it in the spectrum picture). This compound is also a potent antioxidant and besides it's transformed in our body into vitamin A, very important for the maintenance of healthy skin, good vision and a robust inmune system. Spinachs, parsley and plants in general are green because they contain chlorophyll, a pigment which enables the plant to carry on photosynthesis, transforming solar energy and carbon dioxide into chemical energy in the form of carbohydrates and oxygen. This is a process essential for life. As you can see in the pic below, the structure of chlorophyll is very complicated, so let's simpy say that it contains a big ring with a magnesium atom in the center. Curiously, the structure of hemoglobine (the carrier of oxygen in our blood) is pretty s

Chemistry of everyday life

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In this lens I'd like to talk you about the Chemistry of daily life. Chemistry is an exciting experimental science which lets us to understand our world and makes our life easier. As you will read in the following articles, chemistry is in our everyday life: in our body, at home, in the nature... in every second of our lives! Vegetables and colours - Part 1 White light from the sun contains all the wavelengths, but when it impacts on an object some of its wavelenghts are absorbed and some reflected. An object is coloured because of the light that it reflects. For example red objects reflect 'red' light, which is light with a long wavelength. Many vegetables and fruits are strongly coloured because they contain an especial kind of chemical compounds named carotenoids . These compounds have an area called choromophore , which absorbs and gives off particular wavelengths of light, generating the colour that we then perceive. The chromophore is formed by

Chemistry of everyday life

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In this lens I'd like to talk you about the Chemistry of daily life. Chemistry is an exciting experimental science which lets us to understand our world and makes our life easier. As you will read in the following articles, chemistry is in our everyday life: in our body, at home, in the nature... in every second of our lives! How soap cleans? There are substances which can be dissolved in water (salt for example), and others that can't (for example oil). Water and oil don't mix together, so if we try to clean an oily stain from a cloth or from the skin, water is not enough. We need soap. Soap is formed by molecules with a "head" which likes water (hydrophilic) and a long chain which hates it (hydrophobic) . Because of this dualism, soap molecules act like a diplomat, improving the relationship between water and oil. How? When soap is added to the water, the hydrophilic heads of its molecules stay into the water (they like it!), while the l

Daily life - chemicals- effects

Chemicals in our daily lives effect of those chemicals
Chemicals in our daily life
Periodic properties
Periodic properties
Check out buddies regarding periodic properties
Hey buddies if you want some different information regarding structure of atom just check out this link

How DVDs and CDs store data?

Do you want to know how DVDs and CDs store data ? Then read it buddies.. Earlier, we used to use video tapes to watch movies and cassettes to listen to music. However, times have changed! We now have compact discs or CDs, DVDs and such devices, as we fondly call them, to replace the cassettes and video tapes. As the name suggests, compact discs and Digital Versatile Disc are easy to handle and compact. They occupy very less place at our household and have better storage capacity. Let us find out how these DVDs and CDs store data and how they operate.... Everyday Chemistry - How DVDs and CDs Store Data? Our parents used videotapes to watch movies and cassettes to listen to music but now, times have changed! We use compact discs, more commonly known as CDs as they are easy to handle and compact. They occupy very less place and have better storage capacity. What are CDs and DVDs? Compact discs (CDs) and Digital Versatile Disc (DVDs) use two main methods to store dat

Can you drink too much of water?

Can we drink too much of water? Is it suggestible or not? Drinking excess of water causes good health or not? Want to know all these facts then click on me....

What is organic chemistry.?

Outline of organic chemistry Do you want to know what is organic chemistry and what  you can do with this branch of chemistry? Then click it ....
Outline of chemistry Branches of chemistry

No Chemistry- No world

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Isn't it pals ..? Without chemistry can you imagine the world
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where ...? this is the answer for that question...
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damn... i lost the electron

History - Chemistry

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History of Chemistry Alchemy to Chemistry From fire to Atomism check out alchemos... Check out this video chemos....
Welcome Chemos.... Warm welcome
hybridization

Welcome friends...!!!!

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Hi friends i would like to provide all the content related to chemistry in a single blog. Here i 'm going to provide you with the useful content as much as i can..? Your suggestions and comments are always welcome in this regard.... Expecting your wonderful support in this work.. Yours admin Suresh Check out this blog for content related to NCERT Chemistry for 11 and 12 students.... Chem NCERT
Hi Chem people Welcome to Chem Adda.. Warm Welcome...