Vincent Summers, Author at Quirky Science

18Feb 2013 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

Control Language and You Control the Masses

Language

[caption id="attachment_3361" align="alignright" width="480"] George Orwell & 1984[/caption] Control language. Control the truth. The famous book entitled 1984 gave birth to the expression “Big Brother is Watching.” What that means is, government is watching you as a citizen. It has the goal of catching you engaging in or fomenting some action it labels seditious. More than a saying, the quote sums up the fearful premise assumed by the more paranoid segment of Society. They fear their freedom to do whatever they may wish may be at risk. However, is the idea without merit? Consider the following premise1 that might add to the aura of a government run amok. Consider the possibility of absolute control of the spoken and written word. Control language and you control the masses! Language and Lingo…

07Feb 2013 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Decarboxylation of Carboxylic Acids Useful in Synthesis

Chemistry

For one reason or another, it may be desirable to remove a carboxylic acid group (–COOH) from a molecule. This process is called, logically, decarboxylation. It may be the carboxylic group was previously introduced to guide some of steps in a synthesis. What? A Simple Example Consider the simple hexagonal ring, aromatic compound benzene, C6H6. From the top and clockwise, let's number the carbon atoms, one through six. If we wish to attach a group synthetically to the ring, how do we determine the ring carbon to which it will attach? It's simple. They're all identical. Whichever carbon atom it does attach to becomes the number one carbon atom! But say we want to attach another group to the No. 2 carbon atom. Well, in this situation, the carbon atoms…

04Feb 2013 by Vincent Summers 2 Comments

Epoxide Ring Preparation by Oxidation of Alkenes

Chemistry

How many have purchased a 2-tube pack of epoxy at their local hardware or grocery store? It’s a routine item we use to repair a variety of objects. But what is it that makes epoxy glue so strong? Its name gives it away. Epoxy glues use epoxy compounds. Epoxides. What is an epoxide? It’s Simple? Yes An epoxide is a molecule with a tiny 3-member ring in its structure. One atom is oxygen. Two are carbon. The epoxy link is illustrated in Figure 1. R₁, R₂, R₃, and R₄ are pendant groups. How is such a 3-member ring created? Often by the oxidation of an alkene. The reader may appreciate an example.1 Propene Let's try the oxidation of propene, CH3CH=CH2.2 What would be a suitable oxidizing agent for the reaction?…

21Jan 2013 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Vorticella – a Living Spring

Biology

Among microscopic aquatic creatures, it is the most bizarre. Vorticella looks like an upside down bell attached to a pull rope. That pull rope is actually a fibril or stalk called a myoneme,1 which has, running down its middle, an internal organelle. This spasmoneme contracts into a spring or corkscrew shape, as seen in the video below. Why is Vorticella of Interest Scientists are not ashamed to learn from the lowly creature. The contraction and elongation of its stalk appears to depend on the binding and re-release of calcium ions by the protein spasmin. What makes this of special interest is no ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is necessary to achieve the task, though ordinarily, it plays a vital role in muscle function. High Tech Plumbing? Curiously, it has been suggested this…

27Dec 2012 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

Forming Nitrogen Heterocycles from Aliphatic Amino Acids

Chemistry

How are nitrogen heterocycles formed from aromatic amines? Aliphatic hydrocarbons¹ take a number of forms. The simplest is written CH₃(CH₂)nCH₃, where n is a positive integer.² Replace a hydrogen atom at one end of the chain with a carboxylic acid group (-COOH) and a hydrogen atom at the other end with an amino group (-NH₂), and you have a straight chain amino acid. For instance, choose n = 3. That gives the molecule HOOC-CH₂-CH₂-CH₂-CH₂-NH₂ Its name is 5-aminopentanoic acid or 5-aminovaleric acid. Cyclization Under the right conditions, this species can be cyclized to form an amine salt. The salt is then converted to a cyclic amide, a delta lactam. The lactam is next reduced to the amine piperidine. The overall process is illustrated in Fig. 1. Nitrogen Heterocycles A cyclic…

26Dec 2012 by Vincent Summers 2 Comments

Organic Chemistry: Pericyclic Reactions

Chemistry

In chemistry, many reactions are simple, intuitive, and straight forward. Others can fool the uninformed. Organic pericyclic reactions are included among the latter. To illustrate this, we consider two reactions. The first is a simple esterification reaction, leading to the obvious product. The second is a pericyclic reaction. The Esterification Reacting an alcohol with a carboxylic acid generally produces a simple ester. So in the presence of a dehydrating agent, one can react ethyl alcohol with acetic acid, to get the ester ethyl acetate plus water. CH₃COOH + HO-C₂H₅ → CH₃COO-C₂H₅ + H₂O Organic Pericyclic Reactions CH₃-CH=CH-CH=CH-CH=CH-CH₃ → two possible ring structures The illustration in Fig. 1 shows a straight chain organic hydrocarbon converting into one of two cyclic structures, depending upon the source of energy. The input energy, whether heat…

14Dec 2012 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Aromatic Tropylium Ion

Chemistry

[caption id="attachment_20212" align="alignright" width="440"] Aromatic tropylium cation[/caption] Aromatics are separate category of organic compounds. Often aromatic compounds are electrically neutral. However, a few do carry a charge. They are ions.¹ In fact many aromatic ions would not be aromatic if they lost their charge. We will consider the aromatic tropylium cation in this article. Three Carbon Atoms The smallest aromatic ion is the cyclopropenyl cation. The neutral cyclopropene molecule possesses 4 π-electrons. That is not an aromatic number. By making it a cation, it loses 2 of them, meeting the qualification for aromatic compounds.¹ [caption id="attachment_16191" align="alignright" width="240"] Spacefill Model.[/caption] Four Carbon Atoms On the basis of π-electron count alone, one might suppose a cyclobutadienyl di-anion or a cyclobutadienyl di-cation, would display aromaticity. That is not the case. There are…

03Dec 2012 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Why Balloons Blow Up Round

Physics

[caption id="attachment_13619" align="alignright" width="440"] Balloons.[/caption] When you blow up latex balloons and build up some pressure in them, unless they are especially made to become some other shape, they tends toward roundness—they assume a spherical shape. Balloons blow up round! Why does it do that? Let’s look at the simple math and physics of the thing. Stretching Requires Force Take an ordinary piece of burst balloon and pull on it with your fingers. It takes a definite force to accomplish that, doesn’t it? And the task becomes more difficult the more you stretch it. We call the exertion “force.” It takes force to stretch the rubber. Since the required force becomes greater the more you stretch the skin of balloons, it is clear the more air you blow into them,…

03Dec 2012 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Why are Some Bananas Sweeter than Others

Food

Some bananas are sweeter than others. How is that? Having purchased the golden fruit many times, I asked myself, why are some bananas sweeter than others? You pick up a bunch of small, curly, bright yellow fruits.¹ You take them home. On the way, you remove the one with the label. You peel it most of the way down. With a few quick bites, you finish it off. You go shopping again. Displayed are large, straight bananas. You note some bananas are sweeter, while others are starchier. Banana Varieties Each variety of banana is grown for a specific end use. Some (plantains) are fried in a skillet. They are starchy. Others are raised for sweetness and aroma. Those are called dessert bananas. The most popular form of dessert banana is…

16Nov 2012 by Vincent Summers 4 Comments

Where Does Light Go? Why is the Universe Dark?

Astronomy

[caption id="attachment_3236" align="alignright" width="480"] The Andromeda Galaxy (M31)[/caption] Where does light emitted from a flashlight go? On a universal scale, what happens to all the light? If Space is not infinite, goes the line of incorrect reasoning, then all the light that has ever been radiated by stars and galaxies should make the Universe a blindingly bright place. Hence, the universe, based on this reasoning, must be infinite. But, if the Universe is not infinite, the light should bounce back and forth, building up. Most scientists consider the universe to be expanding, yet not infinite. So where does all the light go? First, let's discuss what light actually is. What Is It? Light is a form of energy that radiates outward — radiant energy. Radiant energy can be readily absorbed,…