Producers: Coast Learning Systems

This lesson continues the discussion of acids and bases started in Lesson 6. You will learn how to identify the difference between acids, bases, and salts, including their structure, formula, physical properties, and the substances they interact with. You will also learn about integral role of neutralization reactions as well as hydrogen and water. You will then learn the importance of knowing the difference between dangerous and safe acids and bases. Your perception of weak and strong will be altered along the way, and you will finish this lesson with a better awareness of how to safely handle these substances that are everywhere around you.

This lesson sheds light on the amazing world of batteries. Did you ever wonder why some batteries can be recharged while others are simply thrown away? What about why some rechargeable batteries should be completely discharged before recharging while other rechargeable batteries can be used with no such concern? What is the reasoning for the various shapes and sizes of batteries? Despite the fact there are many different batteries and uses for batteries, they all share some common components. This lesson will introduce you to these components and help you better understand the workings behind the batteries from the past, present and even the future.

Nuclear energy has been a controversial topic for decades, and this lesson will equip you with the necessary knowledge to join any conversation about the topic. You will begin by analyzing nuclear reactions so you can identify what is occurring at the atomic level. You then will use this information to explore why nuclear reactions are so energetic as well as build awareness around the differences between the three types of nuclear reactions. Finally, you will dive into the benefits and risks of nuclear energy to help you solidify your own position on its use or misuse. As energy needs continue to increase, nuclear energy will continue to be at the center of the discussion in the United States as well as around the world.

In this lesson, you learn a great deal about the depth to which chemistry explains every part and process related to the human body. As you know, chemistry often deals with small, almost invisible substances, and in this lesson you will focus on the cell. You will also explore in detail how much our body is affected by the various sources of energy you eat, such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. As you will discover, your body and your health are not solely determined by how much you exercise and what you eat. Genetics, in the form of DNA, helps explain who you are and even who you may become, including the types of diseases you may inherit that have afflicted the people you are related to. Why are fats not all bad? Why should you not cut out carbohydrates completely, even when on a diet? How can a disease from your grandfather pass on to you? You will find answers to all these questions and more in the final lesson of this chemistry course.

This lesson provides a real-world look at the role of mixtures and solutions in our lives. You will begin by exploring the different types of mixtures and their characteristics. Then you will move on to learn about a special type of mixture called a solution. Although you have heard the term solution many times before, you will be surprised by how prominent solutions are in society and the many forms they take. You will explore real-world examples of solutions, including what constitutes a solution, the role certain properties play in how they function and are used, as well as ways to measure and talk about solutions. From reading labels in the food and drinks you consume, to the cleaning solutions you use around the house, to the varied strengths of the medicines you take, solutions are all around.

This lesson adds additional detail to what you already learned regarding what factors must be present for reactions to occur. In earlier lessons, you learned why certain substances react while others do not. In this lesson, you learn how successful reactions occur and why they occur at different rates. The factors (or variables) you learn about in this lesson can be applied to all of the millions of reactions that are occurring around you right now. The video explains these factors using the air we breathe as an example and the textbook provides many other real-world applications of this information. Think about the world around you as you review this lesson.

This lesson focuses on the role energy plays in the reactions that go on around us and inside us every day. You will also learn that we do not know as much about energy as you might think. We know it exists and the impact it has on our world, but explaining what energy really is continues to baffle scientists. Nevertheless, it is crucial to understand the types of energy that exist and how they influence our world.

This lesson brings to life the amazing physical changes that are going on around us every day. From making coffee, to melting butter, to seeing condensation on your car in the morning, the chemistry of state or phase transitions is amazing to observe and understand. You will use a lot of what you already learned in previous lessons as you explore how substances behave differently as they change states (gas, liquid, solid). Although kinetic energy is the key ingredient that drives all these changes, there are other laws and forces that explain why substances behave differently when energy is applied. Molecules are always moving and this lesson will help explain the impact of that movement on you and how you interact with the world around you.

In Lesson 2, you were introduced to the two types of chemical bonds: ionic and covalent. In this lesson, you will dive deeper into the ionic compounds. You will quickly realize that ionic compounds are everywhere: they are found in foods, beverages, medications, and household products and play an important role in your health. As you will learn, some ions are good for you while others can be hazardous to your health. You will continue to use the periodic table to guide your understanding of ionic bonds, but you will also being learning about some bonds that don’t follow some of the rules you have learned about so far. Moreover, you will start to explore some more complex bonds in which compounds form in different ratios to help fulfill the octet rule. You will also learn some naming conventions for ionic compounds, which will be very helpful as you explore the world of this diverse group of compounds.

While covalent compounds, also called molecular compounds, only consist of the 16 nonmetals you see on the right side of the periodic table, they make up the most diverse and flexible types of interactions. You first learned about molecular compounds along with ionic compounds in Lesson 3. In that same lesson, you learned more about the ionic bonds that develop when electrons are transferred between elements. Now in Lesson 4, you will focus on molecular bonds and the compounds they form. You will learn the role that shape plays in determining the chemical and physically properties of molecules and the compounds they form, why they are so flexible in their interactions, and how we are striving to manipulate the properties of these compounds to improve our lives-both inside and outside our bodies.