Week 1- by Kevin

Monday, August 31, 2009
Today in class we went over the standard first day things. We received our rules and grading packet that gave an overview of the class and what to expect. We also went over the standard operating procedures (S.O.P.) and chose the keeper of the S.O.P. We went over what things we will need for class as well such as notebooks, a binder to keep handouts and hw, as well as a lab notebook. Books will be kept in the class so we don’t have to lug them around. Sign off sheet was due by Friday. Science research essay due Friday. Finally, we wrote our first entry in our journals (flipside of lab notebook) which included what we learned in class (about 3 sentences) and a question to answer in the next entry.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Today in class we started the class by coloring the periodic table according to what will be useful this year. Then we started on an in-class worksheet that reviewed some of the main topics of last year. Some of the topics discussed included balancing equations, Stoichiometry problems, limiting reactants, and percent yield. Then we received a worksheet that would be our homework due the next day. The worksheet covered the same topics as the in-class worksheet. We also wrote in our journals.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Today in class we started with the new topics for the year. We first went over and handed in our homework. We received our note packet and started the PowerPoint lecture. We first learned about wavelength and frequency and how each are related. Frequency is the number of waves passing a given point per unit of time. The distance between corresponding points on adjacent waves is the wavelength. We also learned about the different types of wavelengths as well as the nature of Energy. We talked about Planck’s constant (6.626 x 10-34 J-s) and how this number is used to compare energy with frequency. We also talked about the topic of photons and what a quanta is. Then we received a worksheet that focused on equations involving energy and frequency. Finally, we wrote in our journals.

Thursday, September 3, 2009
Today in class we continued the notes from Wednesday. We started by discussing about how each element has its own unique line spectrum. We also discussed the findings of Niels Bohr. Then we discussed the wave nature of matter and learned an equation of wavelength equaling Planck’s constant divided by mass (velocity). Then we wrote in our journals.

Friday, September 4, 2009
Today in class we started with our research presentations that were assigned Monday. We then continued on with our notes and discussed the Uncertainty Principle which states that it is impossible to know position and how fast a particle is going. We also learned about Quantum numbers and the 4 different types of quantum mechanics numbers (n, l, and m sub1 were the only 3 discussed today). We then wrote in journals.