Academic Team Science

Beta Decay

Radioactive decay where a nucleus lies outside the valley of stability and transforms a neutron into a proton or vice versa, which increases the stability of the atom and emits a beta particle. Also emits a neutrino.

Beta-Positive decay

A type of beta decay in which a proton is converted into a neutron, which emits a positron and a neutrino. Used in PET scans.

Pauli Exclusion Principle

No two particles may have the same set of quantum numbers and thus be in the same quantum state.

Principal Quantum Number (n)

Identifies which electron shell an electron is in.

Angular Momentum Quantum Number (L)

Also known as the Azimuthal quantum number, determines shape and is expressed as n-1

Magnetic Quantum Number (mL)

Defines orientation of an orbital in 3d space, expressed as ±L

Electron Spin Quantum Number (m_s)

Describes spin of electrons and is either +1/2 or -1/2

Democritus

Described atoms as “atmos,” meaning uncuttable.

John Dalton

Gave the idea of elements and compounds as materials only composed of one thing, gave principles for them.

J.J. Thomson

Created the plum pudding model of an atom, where electrons where stuck in a positively charged mass. Used a cathode ray tube for his experiment.

Ernest Rutherford

Discovered the nucleus of an atom with his gold foil experiment.

James Chadwick

Verified the existence of the Neutron.

Niels Bohr

Was a founding member of CERN, created the idea of energy levels within an atom.

Alpha Decay

Emits high-energy helium atoms when the electromagnetic force overpowers the strong nuclear force.

Aufbau Principle

Electrons will fill the lowest orbitals first.

Antimatter

Particles with the same mass but different charges as normal matter. Paul Dirac proposed these to fill holes in a sea of electrons.

Feynman-Stueckelberg interpretation

Antimatter is normal matter moving through time differently.

Cherenkov radiation

Charged particle moves faster relative to light in a medium, emits a blue glow.

Bremsstrahlung Radiation

Radiation given off when particles deflect off each other, common in X-rays.

Arrhenius Definition-

Any substance that forms hydronium in water is an acid, and any substance that forms hydroxide is a base. Fails to account for non-aqueous solutions, however.

Bronsted-Lowry definition

Any substance that easily donates a proton is an acid and any substance that accepts electrons easily is a base. Allows for conjugate pairs, but does not account for molecules with no Hydrogen.

Lewis Definition

Any substance that readily accepts an electron pair is an acid, and any that donates an electron pair is a base. Examples include BF₃.

Conjugate pairs

After an acid-base reaction under the bronsted-lowry defintion, these are formed. The acidic type accepts a proton while the basic type donates one.

Salts

Results of partial or complete neutralization between an acid and a base. Acidic or alkaline types can be created depending on the strength of the acid and base.

Buffers

Solution consisting of a weak acid and its conjugate strong base OR a weak base and its strong conjugate acid added to water. Resists change in pH.

Le Chatellier’s principle

Describes how buffers function. When a strong acid is added to a weak acid buffer, the conjugate base will take the H⁺ ions dissolving from the strong acid, resulting in low change in pH.

Polyprotic Acids

Each molecule of these releases more than one H⁺ ions when dissolved in water. Examples are H₂SO₄ (a strong version), carbonic acid and phosphoric acid.

Molarity

Moles of solute per liters of whole solution

Molality

Moles of solute per kilogram of solvent- directly compares the 2.

Normality

Gram equivalents of solute per liter of solution.

Group 1, ammonium, Nitrates and acetates

Which compunds are soluble with NO exceptions?

Halogens and Sulfates

Compounds containing these are generally soluble with few exceptions.

Silver, Lead and Mercury (PMS)

Solubility exceptions for halogens

Calcium, Strontium, Barium and Lead (CaStro Bar)

Solubility exceptions for Sulfates

Boyle’s Law

P₁V₁ = P₂V₂

Charles’ Law

V₁/T₁=V₂/T₂

Gay Lussac’s law

P₁/T₁=P₂/T₂

Azeotrope

Mixture of liquids with the same boiling point.

Neutronium

Neutron Star material. Forms when electrons and protons are combined as a result of gravity of a collapsing star above 1.44 solar masses.

Avogadro’s Law

V₁/n₁=V₂/n₂ Can be combined with other laws to create the ideal gas law

Gibbs Free Energy

measures the maximum amount of work in a thermodynamic system with constant temperature and pressure. ΔG=ΔH-TΔS. If ΔG is negative the reaction will be spontaneous. Helps explain the biological process of coupled reactions being more spontaneous and thus more efficient than their uncoupled counterparts.

Graham’s Law of Effusion

Describes movement of gas through a small hole. R₁/R₂=sqrt(M₂/M₁). The more massive a particle the slower it will effuse.

Allotropes

Different arrangements of elements, such as Diamond and graphite being these of Carbon.

Isomers

Different arrangements of atoms and functional groups within a compound.

Enantiomers

Exhibit Chirality where mirror images are non-superimposable. Come in levorotatory and dextrorotory varieties. All amino acids in proteins are always levorotatory. These are chemically the same but behave differently because structure determines function.

Basidiomycota

Have club-shaped reproductive structures and include common mushrooms

Ascomycota

Include sac-shaped reproductive structures and include truffles, morels and penicillin.

Mycelium

Large body of fungi.

Hyphae

Connect Mycelium together. Can be septate or aseptate.

Virus

A Nucleic acid incased in a protein capsid. Can be Helical, Polyhedral, spherical or complex. Many have Phospholipid casings to avoid detection.

Gram negative/ positive bacteria

Have thin/ thick walls that will be dyed different colors during a gram test.

Lytic Cycle

The “life” cycle of a virus.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

An incurable prion disease that results in death, appears in forms like Kuru and mad cow disease.

Tobacco mosaic virus

First ever identified virus, appears as spots on plant leaves, Helical

Tetanus

Bacterial disease that causes lockjaw.

Tuberculosis

Used to be called consumption. Destroys the lining of the lungs.

Botulism

Type of food poisoning.

Epstein-Barr Virus

Causes mononucleosis.

Chicken pox

Caused by the varicella zoster virus.

Retrovirus

DNA viruses, use reverse transcriptase to integrate their DNA into host DNA, where that DNA is called the provirus.

Rhinovirus

RNA viruses, sends its genetic material into the cell to be translated.

EPT taxa

3 orders of aquatic invertebrates useful in determining water quality because of their sensitivity to toxins.

Semelparity

Animals reproduce once, have lots of babies, and likely die.

Ideoparity

Animals reproduce many times in their lifespan.

INES Scale

Scale for measuring severity of a nuclear disaster

Three-mile island

nuclear accident in Pennsylvania caused by a stuck release valve, rated a 5 on the INES scale.

Chernobyl

Unqualified engineers were allowed to remove control rods from reactor 4 in this level 7 disaster.

Fukushima

An earthquake and a tsunami crippled the generators in this level 7 disaster where most of the radiation was carried out to sea by winds.

Emerald Ash Borer

A species of Asian beetle that lays its eggs under tree bark, killing trees in the process. Brought into Michigan from Asia accidentally.

Gypsy Moth

Brought to the Americas by an amateur entomologist, defoliates forests in Ohio and Michigan

Chlorofluorocarbons

Molecules that undergo reactions with ozone in the ozone layer, deplete the ozone and allow harmful rays into the earth’s atmosphere.

Montreal protocol of 1987

Banned Chlorofluorocarbons, one of the most successful environmental agreements.

Clathrate G*n Hypothesis

Frozen methane from the ocean floor is heated up by ocean warming, creating a dangerous feedback loop in global warming.

Haber-Bosch Process

Produces ammonia by reacting diatomic nitrogen with an iron or osmium catalyst. Was used to produce explosives and fertilizers.

Bessemer process

Outdated method of steel production replaced by the Linz-Donawitz process

Contact process

produces Sulfuric acid on an industrial scale using platinum or vanadium oxide catalysts.

Frasch process

Extracts sulfur by using superheated water to melt it.

Newton’s second law

Tsiolkovsky rocket equation modifies this law to account for the fuel burned by a rocket.

Newton’s Third Law

Explains the electromagnetic normal force

Newton’s First law

Law of inertia

F_g=G(m₁m₂/r₂)

Law of universal gravitation

6.077 × 10^-11

G, the universal gravity constant

Kepler’s First Law

Law of Ellipses- Planets orbit in ellipticals and their orbital body is at one of two foci of the ellipse.

Kepler’s Second Law

Law of equal areas- the area of a portion of an ellipse that has a point at its focus and a planet moving across the perimeter will be equal given equal amounts of time because planets move faster when closer to their orbital body.

Kepler’s third law

As the radius for the orbit of a planet increases time will also increase. T²=a³.