The project was proposed as a way to learn about different types of reactions, and how they all fit together. It was very open ended, as we could choose any existing game, or make our own. We chose to adapt the game of battleship, adding many reactions and other feates. They are described below.
Reactants
Reactants are the items that react in a chemical reaction. Put on the left side of a chemical equation, the compounds, ions, elements, etc. are the inputs to the entire process. Identifying the reactants in an equation helps define what the reaction will do. The reactants in our reactions are described in our information sheet.
Products
Products are the items that are produced by the chemical reaction. Often put on the right of the right side of the equation, the products can often be identified from the products. The products in our reactions are described in our information sheet.
Subatomic Particles
The three subatomic particles that were covered in our lessons were the proton, neutron, and electron. They each are related to each other, but have distinct characteristics. The proton has a positive charge, and is located in the nucleus. The number of protons determines which element it is. Neutrons are also located in the nucleus, but have a neutral charge. The number of neutrons determines the isotope of the element. While both neutrons and protons have a mass of 1 AMU (atomic mass unit), electrons have an almost negligible mass. Located in clouds around the nucleus, electrons can react and bind with other electrons. They have a charge of minus one, to balance out the protonś charge.
Ions
A charged atom or molecule. An anion has a negative charge, a cation has a positive charge. This occurs when there is an imbalance of protons and electrons.
Types of Reactions
Refer to our reaction information above. The double displacement reactions were our shots and materials, either red or blue. The synthesis reaction was our magnesium destroyer. The zinc in our single replacement reaction was our observation balloon.
Chemical Equations
Chemical reaction equations describe reactions. More specifically, they describe the reactants on the left side, the catalyst, and the products on the right. According to the Law of Conservation of Mass, the two sides must be equal. This means that molecules cannot leave the reaction. Refer to our chemical equations above.
States of Matter
Solid, liquid, and gas states are self explanatory. Aq, or aqueous, describes a solid dissolved in a solution.
Reflection
This project was the first one in my Junior year, taking all the stress and pressure along with it. This forced us to be at our best with the little time that we had for this project. This was one of our strengths. We planned out what we had to have for our project well in advance, writing it down so that all members could see it. We, for the most part, stuck to it. Another strength that we demonstrated is our thinking of play-ability. We thought through what our project would have to do, and designed it with the end goal in mind.
There were some hiccups along the way. While we we did stick to our schedule, at some times this necessitated cutting some corners. Our board was not as developed as we would have liked, and we did not have a chance to run through the game once before our presentation. We needed to use our time more efficiently, a frequent problem in our projects. Another thing which we should have done better was to run through our presentation before hand. While all our content was there, it was not as smooth as it could have been. A higher level of focus on the presentation will help.
There were some hiccups along the way. While we we did stick to our schedule, at some times this necessitated cutting some corners. Our board was not as developed as we would have liked, and we did not have a chance to run through the game once before our presentation. We needed to use our time more efficiently, a frequent problem in our projects. Another thing which we should have done better was to run through our presentation before hand. While all our content was there, it was not as smooth as it could have been. A higher level of focus on the presentation will help.