More Goals for EM Forces

I have already posted an explanation of goals 1-8. Now, goals from 9-21 follows:

EM9: I can describe the properties and interactions of magnets.

A magnet is a material made of pure iron, nickel, cobalt, or materials that contains iron, nickel, or cobalt that is able to attract or repel them. Magnets interact in a simple way. To understand, you need to know the definition of a magnetic pole, which is the two ends of a magnet, no matter its shape. Therefore, magnetic poles that are alike repel each other, differently from unlike magnetic poles, which attract each other.

EM10: I can describe how the magnetic domains are arranged in a magnetic/non-magnetic material.

A magnetic domain is an area within a magnetic material (iron, nickel, cobalt) which has a magnetization within range. This means that all atoms will be lined up in the same direction. The direction that domains point determines if the material is or isn't magnetized.

Observe:

. Non magnetized material: magnetic domains point in random directions.

. Magnetized material: magnetic domains point in the same direction.

EM11: I can explain the connection between electricity and magnetism (electromagnetism).

Electromagnetism is the relationship between electricity and magnetism. What produces a magnetic field is an electric current. The force of a magnet when near a conductor can create also create current.
Watch an explanation o electromagnetic waves in the video that follows:
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/science/electromagnetism-videos-playlist.htm#video-27962

EM12: I can outline the difference between DC/AC current and its uses.

AC stands for alternating current, as DC stands for direct current. In an alternating current, charges flow back and forth in a circuit, differently from a direct current where charges in only one direction. There is a major advantage in an alternating current: the voltage can be raised with ease to a higher or lower voltage. This means that electrical energy can be sent over huge distances with high voltage. With that, the voltage can be reduced to a securer level for its daily use.

Did you know: when Thomas Edison opened a generating plant in New York, he used direct current. New York had an area of 2.6 square kilometers served by generators. 

EM 13: I can explain why the Earth behaves like a magnet and the consequences of it.

The earth was found to be a magnet in the late 1500s, when an English physician called Sir William Gilbert became interested in compasses. He affirmed that a compass always points in the same direction. He guessed that because he believed that the Earth acted like an enormous magnet. He was right. 


Just like a normal magnet, the Earth has a magnetic field surrounding it and two magnetic poles. Within the earth as a magnet, there is a term called magnetic declination, which is the angle between north and geographic north, which is where the needle in the compass points.

EM 14: I can explain the importance of grounding wires and using fuses/circuit breakers.

A grounding wire is a common use in household electric circuits. A low enough resistance is guaranteed once the path goes through a fuse in case of fault of energy. A fuse/circuit breaker is a material wrapped around with a piece of metal string. A grounding wire also protects against electrical shock. When too much voltage is used at the same source, a fuse comes into play. The excess of energy wasted goes to the fuse, which causes the metal string to melt. The disadvantage of fuse is that it needs to be replaced once the metal string is wasted and totally melted. It can be easily replaced (no hard work).

EM15: I can explain how an electromagnet works and cite applications for them.

An electromagnet is a solenoid with a ferromagnetic core. In an electromagnet, magnetic field is produced by both the current in the wire and the core that is magnetized. Electromagnets can be turned on and off and they are extremely powerful magnets. Maybe you won't notice, but you use an electromagnet every day. Every time you hit the doorbell you are activating and electromagnet. Because such materials as tapes of all kinds, computer hard drives, credit cards, and even doorbells use electromagnets.
Observe the animation for a better understanding:

EM16: I can explain how a simple motor works (parts and function).

Parts of the motor:

Battery: The battery is a material that starts the current, which flows through the brushes.

Armature: the armature will interact with the permanent magnet and become an electromagnet. It is the ferromagnetic material of the motor.

Commutator: The function of the commutator is to stop the current as it spins together with the armature.

The steps of the how a simple motor works follows:

1.) There is not a magnetic field to interact with the permanent magnet around the armature. The domains in the armature are not aligned for that reason.

2.) The battery is the material that starts the current through the brushes, armature, and the commutator, returning through the other side of the battery.

3.) A magnetic field is then created around the armature as the current makes the domains align.

4.) Now, both magnetic fields align (from the armature and from the permanent magnet). But when this happens, the current stops because the circuit gets opened. This happens because a space is created in the commutator.

5.) Because it is stopped, the armature will continue to rotate, and a bit later, the brushes will have contact with the commutator again, by closing the circuit and making the same process restart.

EM17: I can describe how a generator and a transformer work.

Generators have the exact opposite job of a motor. A generator uses motion to create and electric current. An AC (Alternating Current) is induced by a moving magnet. The AC (Alternating Current) and the DC (Direct Current) are almost the same. The only difference is that the AC Generator has a slip ring instead of a commutator. The generator works in a simple way: When the crank is turned, the armature spins in the magnetic field; one side of the armature moves up while the other moves down (this movement created a current). But this current is happening in opposite direction in the two sides of the armature. Once the armature is half turned, each side reverses their direction as the current changes direction as well. The final result of all this will be an alternating current.

EM18: I can explain the importance of transformers to power grids.

At home, office, etc. there can't be a very high voltage because an explosion could occur or the appliances would be severely damaged. Therefore, you don't lose too much energy when it is in form of heat (job of transformer). This is why transformers are important to power grids.

EM19: I can explain methods of power production and distribution.

The methods of power production and distribution were worked in our science class with a partner and it follows:

. Nuclear Energy: Chemical --> Thermal --> Mechanical --> Electrical

. Solar Energy: Electromagnetic --> Electrical

. Geothermal Energy: Thermal --> Mechanical --> Electrical

. Hydroelectric Energy: Mechanical --> Electrical

. Wind Energy: Mechanical --> Electrical ::: (oposite from hydroelectric energy).

. Bio Mass: Chemical --> Thermal --> Mechanical --> Electrical

. Fossil Fuels: Chemical --> Electrical

EM20: I can describe the differences of 110v/220v and main advantages and disadvantages of each.

There is a bigger advantage on 110v over 220v. Observe:

.110:

Advantages:

. Less dangerous if a problem occurs.

. Most materials/appliances are 110v.

Disadvantages:

. More energy is lost in form of heat.

.220:

Advantages:

.Lose less energy in form of heat. (opposite from the disadvantage in 110v).

Disadvantages:

. More dangerous if a problem occurs.

EM21: I can describe the advantages and disadvantages of electrical energy.

There are much more advantages in electrical energy than disdvantages. Observe:

Advantages:

. Easy to be transported

. Easy to be converted to another form of energy.

. Easy to be controlled.

Disadvantages:

. May come from a polluting source.

*A good website to study all of these concepts in a simulation follows:
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/faraday

The First 2 Weeks of Int. Science III

The frist 2 weeks of science class have been really busy. We were still in vacations and we had already received an e-mail from our teacher, Ms. Fernanda. The e-mail requested that we created a motor. I tried different types of motors by searching on YouTube: World's Simplest Motor. The search opened up an excessive number of results. After trying various times, I finally found a way of making my motor work. The materials I used were simply:

• AA Battery
• Wire
• Nail
• Magnet

With these four materials, the motor worked perfectly. The magnet attracted to the battery, and the nail to the magnet, forming a kind of a pyramid. On the top of the battery, I had hold of the wire with my hand, and the other end of the wire would slightly touch the nail, making it spin, and completing the world's simplest motor.

If you are curious on knowing how it works, access the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2f6RD1hT6Q

In that week, groups of three people were created to discuss and create a poster to teach the class about electricity and magnetism. My group was Caio Maksoud, Arthur Nasinbene, and myself. Each group had different topics, and ours was about Ohm's Law. Ohm's Law "solves many problems" in electricity and magnetism, especially by knowing the formula, which is: Resistance = Voltage/Current OR Voltage = Resistance x Current. After all, our presentation came out great, and I guess our friends learned a lot from us, just as we learned a lot from them, because every one received a blue paper, and a green paper, which we had to divide into 8 sections. Each section represented a topic.

With the 8 sections complete, we gathered the information to create a quiz on electricity and magnetism. Everyone had to create a quiz with 10 questions, and the questions couldn't involve definitions.

The 8 topics were:

1. How electric charges interact.
2. How charges can be transferred between materials.
3. How an electrical current is produced.
4. Comparison of conductors and insulators.
5. How resistance affects current.
6. Ohm's Law (Resistance, Current, and Voltage).
7. Building series and parallel circuits and describing its parts.
8. Relationship between power, voltage, and current.

Out of the 8 topics, the one that I know and understand the most is topic number 6, Ohm's Law, which was my topic. The one that I need the most help is how charges can be transferred between materials, but now I understand everything.

Ms. Fernanda couldn't come that day, and the substitute teacher couldn't help us, so the quiz wasn't perfect. She gave us the news that we had to recreate it in Google Form. I took my quiz home and reviewed the questions and answers. I did it again and it came out pretty well. If you are curious about it, you can access it by clicking on the link on my previous post. It is a multiple choice quiz. Please leave your name and the grade you thought you got out of ten in the bottom of the quiz.

During this week, we had to majorly understand how electromagnets work, and the explanation follows: as we know, an electric current produces a magnetic field. With that comes electromagnetism, which is the relationship between electricity and magnetism. You can't see electromagnetism to observe the effects on objects, but you can use a battery, wire, and paper clips. In fact, we did that in class some days before creating our motor. An electromagnet is simply a solenoid with a ferromagnetic core. A solenoid is a coil of wire with a current.

(Most of the information in this explanation were taken from our science book "Electricity and Magnetism").

With all the understanding we then had from electricity and magnetism, it was time for the assessment. We were given the assessment on Wednesday, and I thought I did very well. I just got confused when calculating some numbers (formulas confuse me). But everything was great and my grade was a 5. Now my average is a B-... BETTER THAN EVER!

Evaluating myself this week: I think I worked pretty well this week. I got all of my homework done and turned in on time. I also collaborated a lot with my group when creating the Ohm's Law poster (I wrote everything that is on the poster). To get better, I think I just have to concentrate more in class. Because it is the last class of the day I am a little tired. Not just me but mostly everyone, but I just have to deal with it, because it is going to be like this for the rest of my school years.

Electricity and Magnetism Quiz

Check out the quiz I created on Electricity and Magnetism.

The link follows:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dDdmVms5bTdFbzd0X19XNmE1RjE1aHc6MQ#gid=0

Cells Unit Assessment: Our Past 3 Weeks...

For the past three weeks, our science classes have been very difficult and many things were going on. We have been studying many different things, but everything related to the same topic: cells. We have visited osmosis, diffusion, passive and active transport, cells and its organelles, cell respiration, photosynthesis, and nutrients.

To explain everything we learned, we had to create a project, where we worked for a company called Zoinks, and we had to advertise what the company did, and it was all about what we learned in the past three weeks. We had many options to chose to advertise, for example: board games, stories, iPod apps, etc. I decided to do a brochure because I thought that when doing a brochure I could put more ideas in my project and possibly get a better grade. My brochure had about 10 pages and I not only explained in words, but also in images.

My goal was simple, and it was to persuade the reader to be interested in my brochure, and I made it colorful, interesting, and used a great amount of images. I planned to do a bigger brochure, but I decided not to for the fact that it could be boring and no readers would be interested in reading it.

In everything we do we have problems to deal with, and my problem was finalizing my project. When I finished it, it was Sunday night and my printer was broken. My only solution was to e-mail the project to my father, so that on Monday he would print it at his job and give it to me so I could hand it in.

For the reason that my project was a brochure, I had no way to publish on my blog, therefore, it can be examined and read in paper. It is now with Ms. Fernanda, our 9th grade Integrated Science teacher.

Evaluating myself, I think I deserve a 7 in this project, because I did everything that was mandatory and I wrote more than I should. I also used images and examples, and my project has the information required to reach an A+.

Egg Lab: Osmosis & Diffusion

For three days, our science class made a project for the deep study of osmosis and diffusion. In that study, we were regarded to make an experiment with two eggs. We left the eggs inside the vinegar for 24 hours, so that the shell could come off without ripping the cell membrane of the egg, which would be important in our experiment. On the next day, we chose two solutions to make the experiment, and my group, which was: Emyr, Jae Won, and myself, chose alcohol and corn syrup as solutions. We chose corn syrup and alcohol as solutions because it is completely different liquids, so it would be a good way to compare our results.

For the completion of the experiment, we needed the following materials:

• 2 fresh eggs in their shells
• 100 mL graduated cylinder
• Balance
• Water
• Ruler and String
• Vinegar

The possible solutions for the completion of the experiments are:

• Corn Syrup (50% diluted)
• Alcohol
• Distilled Water
• Salty Water (10% and 20%)

Our prediction was quite simple and accurate. We predicted that the egg with alcohol solution would dilute more than the egg with corn syrup because alcohol has more chemical materials which would make the egg dilute even more. On the other hand, corn syrup is a solution with less chemicals and more sugar, which wouldn't make the egg dilute as much as the egg in the solution with alcohol. As a group, we also predicted that the yolk of the egg in the alcohol solution would be harder and smaller than the egg in the corn syrup solution because of its chemicals, which would harm the egg entirely.

Once the egg's shell came out, we weighed the egg, we measures its circumference, and added 80 mL of our solution for the next 3 days and we recorded it. Once finishing recording for the 3 days, we got the results from another group in our classroom and made an average of each recorded data. The reason we got an average is because maybe we did the experiment wrong, so with the results of other groups would get us a more accurate data table. The results are shown as it follows:

Once we finished recording the results, we also made a graph for a clearer view of the data:

The result is also shown in a 3D graph for a better notion:

Once we finished recording the results, we had an analyzed conclusion. The egg in the alcohol solution is a perfect example of osmosis, because many particles came up together and made that the egg's size and shape would be smaller. Also, the egg became harder as molecules gathered in the same area. The egg in corn syrup solution is a perfect example of diffusion, because molecules mix and the egg does not have a severe decrease in size or shape. With that said, water is part of that process because it is expanded and the yolk has now less water.

The following pictures were taken after breaking both eggs in half. Compare:

"Ribosomes Speech"

Captain Arthur,

as a crew member of your boat, I would like to inform you about all of my features in the cell that can work most importantly in the body. Ribosomes are present in every kind of cell, such as prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells; both animal and plant cells. Ribosomes can be called the constructors of our body. When you need to make proteins, you look for me. I connect one amino acid at a time creating long chains. I am found in many places around the cell. You might find me floating in the cytoplasm. When I'm floating, I make proteins that will be used inside of the cell. I can also be found in the endoplasmic reticulum. Endoplasmic reticulum with me attached is called rough endoplasmic reticulum. I may look bumpy under a microscope. Those attached ribosomes make proteins that will be used inside the cell and proteins made for export out of the cell.

I really look forward to be a crew member of the boat, where I will be very effective in my work.

Sincerely,
Ribosome

"What Kind of Cell Would I Like To Be?"

The cell that I would like to be would be an eukaryotic cell because it is a much more complex cell, and for me it's the egg that is most effective in our body. The eukaryotic cell has 10 major organelles: vacuole, golgi, chloroplast, lysosome, mitochondria, ribosome, cell wall, cell membrane, nucleus, and nucleolus. Another important member of the eukaryote family is the plant cell. It's function is essentially the same as other eukaryotic cells, but there are three unique structures which set them apart. Plastids, cell walls, and vacuoles are present only in plant cells.

Interesting Fact: Eu = “true”, karyon = “nucleus” AND Pro = “before”, karyon = “nucleus”