Campus View with Garden

Chemistry

Chemistry is Fascinating!

Image of an Atom
A generic photo of an atom (NOT drawn to scale)

Did you know that an atom is about 99.999999999% EMPTY space?

It was calculated, by the Institute of Physics in the UK, that if you removed the empty space of the atoms of ALL HUMAN BEINGS, you could fit the ENTIRE HUMAN RACE inside of a SUGAR CUBE! Or better yet, you could fit millions of people inside of a GRAIN OF SAND!

A Sugar Cube
An image of a 1cm sugar cube.

Can we build human shaped molecules?

Yes we can! A team from Rice University have made organic molecules for fun which resemble us. They have named the structure “NanoKid” and published their results in the Journal of Organic Chemistry. They even made versions of NanoKid which resemble a scholar and a baker!

An Organic Molecule in the Shape of a Human Stick Figure.
An organic molecule in the shape of a human stick figure. This molecule was made by researchers at Rice University.&

Have you ever wondered what gives fireworks their vibrant colors? Well.... it’s your lucky day!

Colored Fireworks
Here you can see a photo of five differently colored fireworks next to the corresponding element that creates the distinct color for each firework. The colors shown are Yellow (Sodium), green (Barium), red (Strontium), blue (Copper), and white(Titanium). 

Now for a small challenge

Can you name which elements are liquid at room temperature? I’ll give you a hint, there are ONLY 2!

A Clock Ilustration
A photo of a cartoon alarm clock ringing.

YOU GUESSED IT! The only pure elemental compounds (which are, compounds made of atoms of only one element) that are liquid at room temperature are Bromine (fuming orange liquid), and mercury (a liquid metal).

An Image of Liquid Mercury and Bromine

An image of liquid Mercury (on the left) and Bromine (on the right). Mercury is a shiny silver liquid at room temperature. Bromine is a dark brown fuming liquid at room temperature.

I hope at least one or two of these facts surprised and reminded you how FUN and interesting chemistry can be!