Living green versus Planet Green. •  Plants found to have a secret social life.
Take those photos knowing the photographer's rights.
No sex, please, we’re bdelloid rotifers.
Climate change hits southern Europe. •  Dark energy propels the expansion of our universe.
Put a little science in your life. Synsepalum dulcificum, or miracle fruit, contains a protein that binds taste buds and makes acidic foods taste sweet. •  A rational energy plan would put a floor on gas prices.
Some carbon nanotubes may pose asbestos-like health risks. •  The walrus is smart, friendly and playful. How wise is a gas-tax holiday? •  HP's memristor is a new memory design.
Iran reveals how they separate ²³⁵U from ²³⁸U. Harvard psychologist studies what really makes us happy. Recent DNA analysis confirms that birds descended from certain dinosaurs. Solar thermal power plants omit batteries by storing thermal energy in salt.
An estimated 30 million people participated in Saturday's Earth Hour •  Scientists confirm runners high caused by endorphins.
Arlington National Cemetery, Memorial Day weekend, 2007.
The new Encyclopedia of Life aims to cover all 1.8 million known species. •  French chemists have created a self-healing rubber by replacing large molecules with small molecules held together with H-bonds.
Moko, a New Zealand dolphin, rescued two beached whales by guiding them out to sea.
The USGS reports on emerging contaminants while test results show San Francisco has the best tap water.
Occasionally mrgaston.com's host machine changes, resulting in an IP address change. If this happens, and your mrgaston bookmark doesn't work, type "mrgaston.com" into your browser and then update the bookmark.
Hydroelectric power without dams. See OpenHydro's tidal system and GCK's helical turbine. •  Glutamate is the focus of new research on the treatment of schizophrenia. Muscle fatigure, wrongly attributed to lactic acid buildup, now thought caused by muscles that leak calcium.
Soon you may climb like Spiderman with UC Berkeley's gecko adhesive or get your genome sequenced for $1k from a Bay-area company.
Research a candidate's voting records at votesmart.org and get campaign finance data at opensecrets.org. Are SUVs safer than cars? While waiting for climate change to change your mood(Wired), is the evidence exaggerated (NYT)? Carbon tax? Carbon cap? Now comes carbon cap and dividend which would rebate to all citizens the proceeds from carbon-permit auctions. Caleb Crain ponders what happens should people stop reading.

PEW research says many ignore their digital footprints. The NYTimes warns doing this could come back to haunt you. PopSci and the Guardian report that San Jose-based Nanosolar may soon offer solar energy at near-coal prices. Tropical Disease in Italy Could tropical diseases be coming our way? Science cafes combine science with socializing. Coming: sudden oak death, Jan 8 at Café Scientifique in Menlo Park.

Wikipedia has a very readable summary of the history of chemistry. Both Honda and GM are testing hydrogen powered autos.
Are we approaching a shortage in internet capacity?

Plastic-making insects + nanotechnology equals strong yet biodegradable plastics. Read summary or the Cornell U. paper.

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Girls Sweep Science
4 Dec
In the Siemens Math, Science, and Technology Competition for High School Students, girls swept the individual and team categories, winning as much as $100,000 in scholarships.

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2007 Chemistry Nobel
16 Oct
The 2007 Nobel Prize in chemistry went to a German scientist who studied chemical reactions on solid surfaces.

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2007 Physics Nobel
16 Oct
The 2007 Nobel Prize in physics went to French and German scientists who's work on magnetic storage made devices such as the iPod possible.

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Westmont Space Elevator
11 Oct
A team of Westmont students is competing in the Space Elevator Challenge, to be held Oct 19-21 in Salt Lake City.

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Read Label Before Use
1 Oct
A Panamanian man read a toothpaste label and set off a world-wide scandal.

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Morality and Evolution
18 Sep
Could morality have an evolutionary basis?

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The Matrix
15 Aug
A philosopher discusses the probability of living in a computer simulation.

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Water, friend or foe?
13 Aug
Marketers have long spread its positive buzz, but too much dihydrogen monoxide can be dangerous to your health.

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Truffle Oil
17 May
The organic compound 2,4-dithiapentane, when mixed with oil, costs about $1/ounce. It is often used as a substitute for real truffles, which can cost as much as $60/ounce.

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Poisoned Medicines
6 May
The organic compound glycerol, HOCH₂CH(OH)CH₂OH, a common ingredient in medicines, was replaced with the cheaper diethylene glycol, HOCH₂CH₂OCH₂CH₂OH, a poison.

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Pet Food Risks
2 May
What risks are there to eating food laden with melamine, a simple organic molecule linked to recent pet deaths.

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Dogs Wag Left/Right
24 Apr
Brain asymmetry is revealed in the direction a dog wags its tail.

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Molecular Chicken Wire
10 Apr
Graphene, a one-atom-thick sheet of carbon, is the latest craze in materials science.

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Sweetner vs. Sweetner
6 Apr
Equal and Splenda argue over their relationships to sugar.

Have a good summer vacation!

Thurs 12 Jun

Return Your Textbook

Mon 9 Jun
Please return your textbook on the day of the chemistry final. You will receive a book bill for $70 if the book is not returned by Thursday, June 12.

Final Exam

Mon 2 June
The chemistry final exam is comprehensive: you are responsible for all material covered in the course. While we review in class over the next few periods, you will also benefit if you pull out your textbook and read and summarize, starting with atomic structure (chapter 4), electronic structure (chapter 5), and the periodic table (period 6). Other tools to help you study include the review guide #1 (distributed 5/28), review guide #2 (5/30), and a study guide (6/3). Be sure to bring a calculator to class on exam day. Not having a calculator is no excuse for missing problems.
 Seniors take the chemistry final on Thursday June 5.
 Non seniors take the chemistry final on either Tuesday, June 10 (periods 1 and 2) or Wednesday, June 11 (period 3).

Unit Exam

Mon 5 May
The next unit exam is Wednesday, May 7. This exam will focus on solutions, rates and equilibrium, and gases, though knowledge of material covered earlier -- especially stoichiometry and the mole -- is assumed. Here is a review guide with sample problems. (pdf) Answers will be posted later.

Big Quiz Study Guide

Mon 31 Mar
Wednesday's big quiz covers the gas laws and solutions (with an emphasis on the latter). Be able to work problems with any of the gas laws, and work solutions problems like those on the worksheet.

Gases (chapt 13.1, 14)	Solutions (chapt 16.1-2)
Kinetic molecular theory Combined gas law Ideal gas law Dalton's law Graham's law STP Celsius and Kelvin Absolute zero	Solute, solvent Concentration Molarity Percent by mass ppm, ppb Dilutions with M1V1 = M2V2

CO₂ plus Baking Soda Lab

Fri 21 Mar
You do NOT need to write a complete lab report. For full credit on the lab all you need to hand in is the following:

• Pre lab, signed by me
• On your own paper:
  • Table of qualitative data
  • Analysis and conclusions questions

Test Corrections: Reactions & Stoichiometry Exam

Thurs 13 Mar
Test corrections will be extended to the middle of next week. See me for details.

Santa Clara Summer Engineering Program

Tues 11 Mar
Santa Clara University is sponsoring a summer engineering program for high school students. Application deadline is April 2. Follow the link for more information.

Reactions & Stoichiometry Exam

Tues 26 Feb
Thursday's exam is on chapters 11 and 12. Go to the handouts page to view/download the study guide with practice problems and answers to the math problems.

Stoichiometry Problems

Thurs 7 Feb
Answers to the problems in the stoichiometry worksheet are on page three of the downloadable worksheet. Go to the handouts page to view/download the pdf.

Quiz Thurs 7 Feb

Tues 5 Feb
Next class will have a small quiz on net ionic equations, reaction types, and activity series.

Final Grades Posted

Fri 25 Jan
Final grades are now posted in Aeries.

Final Exam Schedule

Thurs 17 Jan
Finals begin at 8:00 AM each day next week.

Tues Jan 22	Period 1 Period 2	8:00 - 10:00 10:20-12:20
Wed Jan 23	Period 3 Period 5	8:00 - 10:00 10:20-12:20
Thurs Jan 24	Period 6 Period 7	8:00 - 10:00 10:20-12:20

Final Exam

Wed 16 Jan
Check the calendar for a final exam study guide.
To help you study you may develop a handwritten, single-page, single-sided cheat sheet which you can use during the exam. To write this, review your class notes, worksheets, textbook, and the study guide. Distill your notes, then organize your thoughts into 1 page (8½ x 11 inch) that you can bring to the exam. This cheat sheet:
• must be handwritten
• single sided
• will be handed in as part of the exam

Quantities Exam Retake

Thurs 10 Jan
If you don't like your grade on the quantities exam (21 December) then plan on taking the retake on Monday the 14^th -- be sure you bring a calculator to class.
If you do not plan on taking the retake, please bring something to study in class.

AP Night Feb 7

Mon 7 Jan
If you are thinking of taking an AP class next year, be sure to mark your calendar for AP night, which will be Thursday Feb 7, from 7 to 8PM.

Storm News

Sun 6 Jan
Until electricity is restored at my house, updates to this site will be infrequent. Be sure to check assignments posted on the board in class.

Quantities Exam

Mon 17 Dec
Friday's exam will cover chapter 10. Specifically: the mole, molar mass, Avogadro's number, mass-mole-particles conversions, empirical formula, molecular formula, terms such as hydrate and anhydrous, and percent composition
A review guide, with sample questions and answers, is available via the calendar or the handouts page. We will cover molar volume when we cover the gas laws. You may turn in chapter 10 homework for 5% extra credit but note that you must show your work for full credit.

Mole Airlines Error

Wed 5 Dec
The formula given for curare on the handout, C₄₀H₄₄N₄₀, is wrong. It should be C₄₀H₄₄N₄O.

Chemical Nomenclature for Food Labels

Sat 10 Nov
A number of students found odd chemical nomenclature on food labels (trisodium phosphate, for example as opposed to just sodium phosphate). It appears that the manufacturers are using the nomenclature used by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Unit Exam Study Guide

Fri 16 Nov
To help you prepare for tuesday's unit exam on ionic bonding, covalent bonding, and names and formulas there are review guide questions (pdf) and review guide answers(pdf). And here, for your studying pleasure, is a list of common anions and cations (pdf). See reference sheets for periodic tables and other handouts.

Next Unit Exam

Sat 10 Nov
The next unit exam will be on ionic bonding (chapter 7), covalent bonding (chapter 8), and names and formulas (chapter 9), and I expect it will be on Tuesday November 20, the last day of classes before the thanksgiving holiday.

Unit Exam Test Corrections

Sat 27 Oct
Test corrections will be held in tutorial the week of Monday, October 29 to Friday, November 2.

Thursday's Unit Exam

Tue 16 Oct
Thursday's unit exam covers everything we have discussed so far in the course. Expect questions on measurement, atomic structure (chapter 4), electron configuration (chapter 5) and the periodic table (chapter 6). Here is the unit exam review guide which also includes the most commonly missed questions from the last two quizzes.
Also due on Thursday:
- My Element Name (project)
- Periodic trends graphing activity (in-class assignment)
- Textbook questions packet (optional)

Lab Reports & Turnitin

Sat 6 Oct
If you forgot to submit your computer-written lab report to turnitin.com, expect to see a big hit on your progress report grade. To get credit for your report, submit it to turnitin.com and then inform me, so I can adjust your grade.

Electron Configuration Tutorials

Fri 28 Sept
Check out David's Whizzy Periodic Table for a cool tutorial on the electron configurations of the elements in the first four periods of the periodic table. When you click on an element the electrons and their sublevels appear. Note the black bar in the middle; as you change between elements the faint color bands change. This is the visual spectra for that element -- the element's fingerprint -- and the colored lines correspond to electron transitions for that element.
Also check out the tutorials at WW Norton, especially the last one, at the "view tutorial" link to the right of Section 3.10.

Lab Reports

Wed 19 Sept
Lab reports can be handwritten in ink or written with a computer. The rubric is here or see the rubric for download (pdf). If you use a computer, you must submit an electronic copy to turnitin.com plus a hardcopy (i.e. paper copy) to your teacher. Class IDs and passwords for turnitin.com are as follows:

Class	Class ID	Password	Assignment
Chemistry Period 1	2015163	gaston	Lab: Separation of a Mixture
Chemistry Period 2	2015243	gaston	Lab: Separation of a Mixture
Chemistry Period 3	2015250	gaston	Lab: Separation of a Mixture

Measurements Quiz Grade

Tues 18 Sept
Grades for last Wednesday's quiz retake are now posted in Aeries.
If you missed the first big measurements quiz, you may still take a retake. Please see me to sign up for a date for the retake, which will be given during tutorial Sept 24-28.
All retakes must be completed by Sept 28. There will be no time extensions.

Pre Lab

Fri 14 Sept
Due Tuesday: write or draw your procedure for separating and then measuring a mixture of the following:

• NaCl (sodium chloride) - dissolves in water
• Aquarium rocks - sink
• Perlite (naturally occurring siliceous rock) - floats
• C₆H₅COOH (benzoic acid) - dissolves in ethanol (CH₃CH₂OH)

You will have available water, ethanol, filters, hot plate, heat lamp, electronic balance, and assorted glassware.

Safety Contract & Quiz

Fri 14 Sept
A signed safety contract and safety quiz are required to do Tuesday's lab.

Big Measurements Quiz Retakes

Mon 10 Sept
If you are not satisfied with your grade on the big measurements quiz, come prepared to take a second quiz over the same material (but not the same quiz) on Wednesday, the 12^th. I will record the higher of the two grades. If you are happy with your current grade please bring something to study during class.

Homework Packets

Thurs 6 Sept
You may, for extra credit, hand in a packet containing uncollected textbook homework problems and class notes on the day of a unit exam. Notes and homework must be handwritten and complete -- partial packets earn zero points. Packets must be labeled (name, date, period, chapter, page, problem number, etc.), neat, and in chronological order. Chemistry extra credit is rare and never accepted late.

Big Math Quiz

Tues 4 Sept
Please bring a calculator to class on Thursday and be prepared for a big math quiz.

Welcome to Chemistry

Tues 28 Aug
To familiarize yourself with the upcoming semester, please review the green sheet, which will be handed out the first week of classes. You may also download it by selecting the link on the left side of this page.
To view the course calendar, select the link for your class on the left side of this page. The calendar will be updated regularly to include all class work and assignments.
A summary of assignments can be seen by selecting the link for your class on the left side of this page.
Follow the Grading link on the left for a description of lab procedures (Grading > Lab Procedures) and lab report expectations (Grading > Lab Reports).
Please report any broken links that you find in this site.

Top 10 Reasons to Take Chemistry!

Tues 28 Aug

10. It's fun to say "Erlenmeyer"
9. If your parents ground you, dissolve their car!
8. Mr. Gaston's Vindaloo Recipe :-)
7. Colleges like it more than "Basket weaving 101"
6. It makes you look smart, like what's his name, that physics dude in the wheelchair
5. Find out what's in your school lunch
4. You don't have to mess with dead things like in Biology.
3. Goggles, Goggles, Goggles!
2. You don't have to get all sweaty like you do in P.E.
1. Many major corporations are now asking applicants to balance equations

File Formats

Tues 28 Aug
I typically post worksheets and other supplemental documents in Adobe (.pdf) format. If you cannot read Adobe files please download the latest (free) Adobe reader.

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