Flavor Chemist

My podcast is about flavor chemistry and I am presenting that in a talk show. My show is called Jobs in Chemistry an I am interviewing flavor chemist68. I am asking the questions that are on the planning sheet in an exciting way.

Flavor Chemist(pinkbubbles458)

Enormous Jellyfish Swarms in Warming Seas

In Kikonogi, Japan, a giant jellyfish known as the Nomura Jellyfish populates northwest Japan's Wakasa Bay. The jellyfish are dark orange and the size of a small refrigerator. Fisherman are terrified to even go near the water and the jellyfish are killing all the sea bass and mackerel they need as food. Scientists studied that because of the climate change on Earth over the years, 2,000 jellyfish species are spreading out to different seas that used to be cold but are changing. Taiichiro Hamano, 67 said, "Once considered a rarity occurring every 40 years, they are now an almost annual occurrences along several thousand miles of Japanese coast and far beyond Japan." Jellyfish keep getting caught in fishing nets and kill all the fish around them with their venomous stingers. This is bad because fishers need fish to make money and feed their families. A bigger problem is that the waters are warming. This is bad because jellyfish and other warm water predators are coming to (used to be) cold waters. What we need to do is help the waters that need to be cold, stay cold is to recycle, never throw any garbage in the ocean, and always be aware that we are killing the earth every time we leave the water running or a light on. This way, we can keep jellyfish where they need to be and not over-populated. I believe that these jellyfish are really dangerous and it would be scary to find them in our ocean. I also want to help those fisherman that need to get mackerel and sea bass for money and food. PLease help our world and be aware of our world at risk. We shouldn't have to kill these jellyfish but we can help them stay where they need to be.

Url and Picture:http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575292,00.html?sPage=fnc/scitech/naturalscience

Density of Liquids

On October 15th and 16th, we did a lab testing the different densities of certain liquids. My group and I worked really hard on this lab and got accurate results. Our experiment told us to make a procedure and a data table. There was five unknown liquid solutions and we had to figure out the really dense liquids and the not so dense liquids. To figure that we out, we had to find the mass and volume because mass/volume = density. Then we had to pour the liquids with the most density in the bottom up to the liquids with the least density. At the end of the experiment, if we did it right, the liquids would be all layered. My groups cup of liquids turned out really great. You are probably wondering how we measured the liquids. It's impossible to find the mass liquids without a container. So, what we did is measure the mass of the graduated cylinder (what we also measured the amount of liquid in) and then measured the mass of the graduated cylinder and the liquid together. After that, we subtracted the graduated cylinder to find the mass of only the liquid. When we were done with the experiment, we wrote out a procedure for step-by-step directions. Then we drew out the data table. As well as learning about the different types of densities, I also got to learn and practice more about lab safety and I got to have fun.

Picture: http://www.scholarchemistry.com/images/9598000WebF.jpg

Houseplants Make Air Healthier

On September 8th 2009 Dennis Decoteau from Penn State's Department of Horticulture did an experiment showing that houseplants in the house can help the ozone and the air stay clean. All over the world people need houseplants and if they do, we can save the environment. The ozone layer protects us from harmful UV (Ultra Violet) rays and if we keep it clean, we can have a safer, cleaner Earth. For Decoteau's experiment, he placed a snake plant, a spider plant and a golden pothos into a greenhouse chamber to tell weather it helps the ozone layer or not. The experiment showed that some plants help the ozone better than others. Houseplants also help people become happier. 82% of the participants that have plants at work or at home feel happier or "content. My opinion on this subject is that I think that we should all have houseplants in our house because it will help the whole world!

Source: http://www.livescience.com/environment/090908-plants-clean-air.html

Structure of the Earth: Plasticity Lab

We did a lab that showed how the Earth's structure works and how the Mantle has the property of plasticity. Cornstarch also has the property of plasticity. The mixture of cornstarch and water is related to the Earths's mantle because they both have the property of plasticity meaning it is a liquid but sometimes acts like a solid. Just like the mantle, cornstarch has the property of plasticity, which when you add compression, heat, and energy, turns into a solid. The mantle is what holds the Earth together. The compression in the mixture of cornstarch and water is my hands compressing together. In the mantle, the compression is from the earth's core and crust compression together. The heat in the mixture is from my body heat and the heat in the mantle is from the magma from the core and the mantle itself. The energy from the mixture is from my hands moving creating energy and the energy from the mantle is from the tectonic plates moving and the energy from the sun.

October Sky

We watched a movie on May 14th called "October Sky" about a boy named Homer Hickman who liked to build rockets but he lived in a coal mining town where most people were cold miners. His dad wanted him to be a coal miner and he didn't like him building rockets. In the end, the dad did accept his son's rocket building and Homer and his friends won the National Science Fair. This movie has to do with science, math, and character education. Rockets were the main subject in the movie because the boys had to figure out how they could make the rocket fly farther and not hit anything. To solve their problem, they used undiluted alcohol which evaporates quickly. Also, in coal mines there are some dangers involving health dangers and the way they need to be careful in the mines. Health dangers involve black lung disease and cancer. You have to be careful in mines because the rock on top can easily fall on you if you don't know how to mine coal. The character education part of the movie is how Homer made Quinten a little more popular. Homer is also showing assertion to his dad because he wanted to do his own thing while his dad wanted him to work in the coal mine. Homer's dad showed cooperation when he let his son build rockets and he was proud of him too! The boys showed self-control when every time their rocket didn't work they tried to improve it and do better next time. The other boys showed empathy toward Quinten because they realized how it felt to be made fun of. This movie has plenty of information and it is a great movie. So grab some popcorn and a drink and watch the great movie, "October Sky."

October Sky

Response: Turner's Syndrome

I recently read about a sad disease called Turner's Syndrome. Women are the only ones who can get this disease and the symptoms are:

• Folded skin near the neck
• Shorter than average women
• Swelling on hands and feet
• Life is shorter

I still have some questions though. Why does Turner's syndrome only happen to women? Also, is it possible that treatment can help you overcome this disease fully? This disease is not good because you can easily tell if someone has Turner's and women might not want to go out in public. People need to find a cure for Turner's because it might become worse over the years and effect more people. I think this disease is terrible because it risks peoples lives and makes them suffer for the short lives that they have. I do not personally know anybody with Turner's Syndrome but, hopefully they will find a cure for this painful and horrific disease. I got this information from: http://textqueen96.blogspot.com/

Fragile X Syndrome

The topic I researched was Fragile X Syndrome. This was discovered in the late 1970's. The symptoms of this disease is:

• Inherited mental impairment
• "Autistic like" behavior
  
• Delay in speech or language development
• Characteristics of unusual physical or behavioral features
• Can be passed on in a family

There is no specific treatment for Fragile X Syndrome but they are working on making one. There is also no evidence that Fragile X Syndrome causes death. The disease is common. 1 out of 3,600 males have Fragile X Syndrome and 1 out of 6,000 females have Fragile X Syndrome in the world. Males are more vulnerable to get the disease because their immune system cannot protect the disease as well as females can . Whats happening to the inside of the cell with the genes that causes Fragile X Syndrome is that the mutation of the cell turns off and causes the cell to have less of the certain protein which causes the cell to trigger Fragile X Syndrome. There still needs to be more research for this disease because there is no cure yet even if we understand it very well. I feel very strongly about this disease because it is very easy to inherit it. Many people have Fragile X and do not do good in school or in life in general because of their disease. It is possible for a whole family to have Fragile X Syndrome and it's very hard to live a normal life if the disease is serious. For more information on Fragile X Syndrome click here.

My Roller Coaster Website

The Spine Cracker

Ocean City Wants Security Cameras in Stores

After a vandalism spree the month before, store owners would like to have security cameras in most stores on the boardwalk. The vandalism damaged a lot of stores and store owners would not like that to happen again. The only problem with the security cameras is that the city doesn't have enough money. The city council president said "the cameras could make sense in a time when the city can't afford to have as many police officers on the street." This is true but in my opinion, it's much safer to have police officers than more security cameras because officers can catch the people who vandalize the stores. Also, Wildwood would want to have cameras installed but they have enough money and Ocean City doesn't have enough money. The cost of the installation is going to cost $380,000.

I found my article at:
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2009/02/store_owners_in_ocean_city_wan.html
I found my pictures at:
http://www.worldofstock.com/slides/TAC1053.jpg
http://blog.lib.umm.edu/wilper/informationcentral/SecurityCameras.jpg

Mom of Octuplets Is Obsessed With Kids

On January 31, 2009 Nadya Suleman, at the age of 33, gave birth to eight children. Her mother, Angela Suleman, agrees that Nadya is obsessed with children.  She is not married and has had an in vitro fertilization which is a Pre-Embryo Transfer. Nadya at first wanted to be a kindergarten teacher but instead she had octuplets.  She also has six other children from the age of 2-7 years old.  So, in total that is 14 children and a full house.  Nadya lives with her mother and every day is an adventure for her mom and her dad.  Nadya's mom has a lot of stress in her daily life because she has to watch the children while Nadya goes to work. The delivery was very painful and had a team of forty-six physicians assisting in the delivery. Doctors don't know how she can handle  8 children of the same age and be able to maintain her own life. This is a journey that will take a lot of effort.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090131/ap_on_re_us/octuplets

Blast kills 24 people in Pakistan

On February 5th, 2009 there was a blasting in Pakistan that interrupted a mosque procession.  This blast happened to kill at least 24 people and keep about 50 people wounded.  Police and rescue operators were all over the place and taking people in and to the nearest hospital.  Over 600 people crowded to see what was going on. The bombing took place in the district of Dera Ghazi Khan.  No one knows exactly how it happened but it was from an explosive device.  Many people dreaded this day and still wonder how it happened.  In my opinion, this was a very sad thing that happened in Pakistan when all people were doing was praying and minding their own business. I didn't like how they killed and wounded innocent peoples lives.

Facebook turns five years old!

Facebook started by a student who wanted to stay in touch wiht her friends. Now, facebook is five years old and is a billion dollar buisness. Mark Zuckerberg was 19 when he started this website and in a day, more than 1,000 people from Harvard signed up. Five years later, over 150 million users have signed up for what Zuckerberg wanted to be a way to stay conected with his friends. 15 million people are on Facebook every day, 5,000 friends and have about 850 millon pictures. But the average amount of people have about 120 friends. Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionare because of this website. Five years later, it is standing strong and better than ever!

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/TECH/02/04/facebook.anniversary/index.html

The Labs of Reflection and Refraction

Last week, we were learning about reflection and refraction. We had about 14 labs to do that had to do with those principles. First, I'm going to give you the defintions of reflection and refracton. Reflection is the return of light, heat, sound, etc., after striking a surface. Refraction is the change of direction of a ray of light, sound, heat, or the like, in passing from one medium into another. We had labs set up around the room and we had partners. The packet that we got told you that you had to observe whats happening at each lab and if its representing reflection or refraction. Some of the labs had to do with mirrors, spoons, oil, soap, bubbles,flashlights and projectors. It was fun to relax but also learn something at the same time. I had so much fun doing these labs and i'd love to do it more often.

2008 Presidential Inauguration

On Tuesday, January 20th, 2009, many people witnessed history. Barack Obama was going to be the President of the United States. Two million people were actually there, at the capitol, but many were at home watching all over the world! After President Obama said his oath, he made a great speech about how he will help CHANGE the United States. To top it off, at the end of the night, President Barack Obama and his first lady, Michelle Obama danced until their feet fell off. What an amazing day!

In his speech, President Obama celebrated with the newest generation known as Millenials; people born between 1982-2003. He described this group as being the most politically active in recent recent years. He also decribed the future of our country entering the next "civic" era. He said he depends on the American people to bring forth a positive change for our country. According to President Obama, “it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies.”

http://news.google.com/news?btcid=6fc9e1a54d2188a6

When Obama took his oath he said, “That I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully.” The word “faithfully” is supposed to be said between “will” and “execute.” What they did about that is they made him say the oath again, the day after the Inauguration in the afternoon. Chief Justice Roberts was the one to say the oath again to him as he did it the day before. At the Inauguration, there was millions of people to wittness his oath of office but att his "Take 2" there was only nine people to wittness it. Four aides, four reporters and the White House photographer. This time he did it right!

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/us/politics/22oath.html?_r=1

I think this was a very historical day. I wittnessed the first African American as president to prove that everyone is free! I still don't get exactly everything he said in his speech but, I know that he was determined to change and make sure this country stays on track. He is someone to look up to and he is a great man. Lets just see how he does as the 44th President of the United States.