Physical Science

Whether you grew up on a farm or in the city, at one time or another we’ve all had an up close and personal experience with diesel. Providing economical, reliable power delivery, diesel has powered much of the freedom of…
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Is dust beautiful and shiny? Of course not. How about the red sunsets and the colors of the rainbow and yes, even the stars themselves? Aren’t those beautiful? Of course. Those two questions and answers explain that beauty is truly…
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Chemistry as we know it today originated from early studies of alchemy and magic. Similar to modern day chemists, alchemists tried to change a certain substance into another; in this case it is gold. Alchemists also searched for secrets to…
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Rosetta is a European space probe which has been sent to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko, where it will eventually attempt to deploy a special lander. It is named after the Rosetta Stone. The European Space Agency has a long history of work…
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Falling stars and shooting stars, while related, are actually mutually exclusive phenomena. The subtle yet distinct difference relates to the origins and  velocity of the object, its visual effect when encountering Earth’s atmosphere and its ultimate disposition. In both cases,…
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Helium is the second most abundant gas in the universe, contributing to up to 25% of the universe’s elemental mass. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that this unreactive gas plays a vital role not only in our daily lives,…
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Chemical reactivity, especially in biochemical processes, is often related to the three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in the molecule relative to one another. Methods of describing and predicting the shape of a chemical substance are very important components of many introductory…
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Are there aliens on earth right now?  Have you looked in your pantry?   Why not?  Have you seen photos of James Carville? Or what about some of the Jersey Shore reality shows, can they be a product of earth intelligence?…
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Copper electroplating is the process of adding a thin layer of copper to a metal base part using an electric current.  Copper is often plated over other metals to improve electrical conductivity or appearance.  Due to the high cost of…
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How to Calculate the Concentration of a Chemical Solution Ways to calculate a concentration of a chemical solution depend on the purpose for which the the calculation is necessary. As an example, a chemist might be interested in knowing a…
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