Life Induced Chirality
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Graduated cylinder
I WENT IN THE GRADUATED CYLINDER TAG AND I CANT STOp LAGHIGn
I love this polymer! It makes cooking a breeze. Seriously, this compound is the greatest thing since sliced bread, if sliced bread happened to be one the slipperiest things known to mankind.
Teflon, or polytetrafluoroethylene if you like tongue twisters, is one of the products whose existance was due to an accident.
Back in the late 30’s, a DuPont chemist was trying to figure out why a gas canister containing tetrafluoroethylene gas suddenly lost pressure. After basically saying “screw it” the scientist cut a hole in the cylinder and found that the gas had polymerized to form what we now know as Teflon.
Teflon’s properties are due to several reasons. First of all, Teflon is stable because of the incredible strength of the carbon-fluorine bond. Since fluorine is electronegative, it creates a partial positive on the carbon and partial negative on the fluorine which further increases the bond’s strength. The “non-stick” properties are caused by the fact that high strength carbon-fluorine bonds do not like to be broken. At. All. In order for something to stick, it has to form at least a transiently stable bond. But since the carbon is is shielded by the fluorines, good luck getting anything to happen. Even the fluorines themselves do not want to bond. Heck, its even resistant to Van der Waals forces.
The only downside to Teflon is that its very very easy to scratch. Since Teflon doesn’t like to stick to practically anything, it can be very easy to remove from the pan itself. Basically this means that you can’t use any sharp/metal utensils on it. I already ruined two sauteing pans because of that of very reason. So be careful by fellow chefs.
Great post!
Science, You’ve Done It!
We are a mighty species. MIT researchers have developed a nanomaterial coating for ketchup bottles (and other hard to pour substances) that solves one of mankind’s most immense problems: How do you get the stuff out of the bottle??
Behold LiquiGlide, and glance into the future of condiments.
No 57’s were tapped in the making of this video.
(via Co.Exist)
300 notes (via shychemist & jtotheizzoe)
Bridge to Abstract Math….
Taking it in the summer as a 5 week course, 5 days a week, 2 hours a day. It will be my only class. Any advice on what to expect and how to prepare will be appreciated :)
I absoloutely love calculus so I’m afraid this is going to be completely out of my comfort zone. I’m scurred.
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When you meet this coquette, you are likely to become enchanted, for she casts a spell better than Merlin. However her love affairs have a touch of the casual, and even when she becomes deeply involved or marries there will be as much friendly feeling as heavy-breathing passion.
Many men who…
