Chemistry week 3

1. The Transitional Metal I chose is Chromium. It's symbol is Cr and it's atomic number is 24. So it has 24 electron and 24 protons. It's atomic mass is 52. So it has 28 protons. It is a very shinny grey, brittle metal with a high melting point. The electric configuration for chromium is 4S1, 3D5. Chromium oxide was first used in the Qin Dynasty to coat weapons for war. Nearly all chromium is extracted from chromite. Chromium is known for it's strong magnetic properties. Chromium compounds are found in the environment and it is the 22nd most abundant element.

2. Neptune's Medicine Chest
I really liked the article on Bill Fenical and thought it sounded like it could have a lot of promise. The ocean takes up a much bigger portion of the world then land does. So I think it we should definitely be looking for organisms to research in the ocean. The ocean has a lot of mystery to it, so we should see what it has to offer. It also seems like Fenical has already has some success, which shows the ocean does have things to offer. I also like Fenical determination and how he is training so many people. When he is gone it looks like his work will be continued.

3. I read the article "Avoiding Waste: Atom Economy". It was a little hard to understand but the basic concept was that green chemistry wants to reduce the amount of pollution created in chemical processes. Then it explained about an equation called the atom economy which is a ratio that lets us know the percent of the reactant's atom that goes into the desired product. That is a little over my head but I always like to hear about people making effort to go more green. I think trying to go more green in Chemistry is a good idea since a lot of chemicals can be let off during reactions.

Chemistry Week 2

1. I chose the element Magnesium, Mg. It's atomic number is 12. So it has 12 protons and 12 electrons. Its atomic mass is 24, so it has 12 protons. Magnesium is naturally present in our body, in foods, added to foods and in some medicines. It is a cofactor in over 300 enzyme systems and involved in many chemical reactions in the body. Studies show that the average person does not ingest enough calcium daily. Magnesium can be found in many foods. There are also many supplements out there with magnesium in them. Studies showed that people that take Mg supplements suffer less from Mg deficiency then people who do not take them. The groups most at risk for suffering from Mg deficiency are people with gastrointestinal diseases, people with type II diabetes, people who abuse alcohol and older adults. I copies and pasted the link below where I got this info if anyone wants to look at it.

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/


2. I liked the lecture and learning further about elements and the periodic table. I was disturbed by some of the articles we read though involving the chemical leaks into water. I think this kind of thing is so sad and happens way too much today. Companies are more worried about making money then the people using their products. This company was more concerned about making money and covering up the leak then the people drinking the water. I do not understand how these people sleep at night. This could possibly have some serious consequences for some people. I do not think there is any excuse. I would rather lose my job and be broke then put anyone else's life at risk!

3. The link I looked at was the elements, compounds and mixture link. This gave me a clear description of the differences between elements compounds and links. It also gave me a clear picture on the difference between a atom and molecule.

My Bio

My name is Claire Soper. I was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona. I came to California to attend Saint Mary's College where I played on the tennis team and graduated with a bachelor in Kinesiology. After graduating I took a job at a near Country Club coaching tennis and running the junior program. I was unhappy with this job and felt like I had a bigger calling. Looking into other careers I found TCM. I had been receiving TCM treatment for years but had not known it was Chinese Medicine. I was receiving a type of acupressure treatment that had helped me a lot. He has cured me from so many different things! I want to do something that I have personal experience that I know works and I know this works. I am very excited about this new life experience I have just started!

Quiz Answers

1.
A. Burning wood is a chemical change

B. Crushing a rock is a physical change

C. I put dissolving sugar in water as a chemical change but the answer showed it to be a physical change

D. I put the rusting of iron as a physical change but the answer showed it as a chemical change

2.
A. I put milk as a pure substance because I thought when it comes from a cow it would be pure.  But the answer showed it as a mixture

B. Salt is a mixture

C. I put sugar as a mixture but the correct answer is that it is typically a pure substance

D. I put steel as a pure substance but the answer showed it is a mixture of iron and carbon

3. I put a cup of black coffee is considered to be a homogeneous and a pure substance but the answer showed black coffee considered to be homogeneous but not pure

4. I put the boiling of water is considered to be a physical change and the temperature at which water boils is considered a chemical property but the answer said the boiling of water is a physical change but the boiling point is not a chemical property.

Bionics and Biophysical Future

Would you support the development of a “bionic” person?

I completely support the development of a bionic person. I can’t imagine having to live life without arms, or legs or being paralyzed. I think if bionic body parts could be created and give these people back their body parts or ability to move that would be such an outstanding accomplishment. I really hope one day this can be accomplished and that the bionic parts are very advanced. This would make people with these limitations able to do so much more. It would give them their lives back to some extend. It would take away a lot of pain for the disabled and the hurting family members. Horrible sudden accidents where someone loses a limb or gets paralyzed would not be as tragic if we had an answer like this. Also people that are paralyzed or have lost limbs have been waiting long enough for a solution. It is time we give them one.

What is your opinion of the issues raised in “How EEG Devices Will Read Your Brain Waves And Change Your World?

I think that this is a concerning issue. Low says, that he only wants his EEG device to be used for medical purposes but yet it is being made available to anyone. There are also EEG devices being made for video games. I think this can become dangerous. This is another example of how our information can be given away without our knowledge or consent. In my opinion sometimes our advancement in technology can be too much and have consequences. This is an extreme example of this. I think this could have extreme consequences. This type of program should not be made available to just anyone but yet that is what is happening. 

Energy Medicine and Energy Fields

Acupuncture as effective energy medicine

I think acupuncture is an effective energy medicine. It has positive results but the methods cannot be fully proved. We can try to explain them but it does not go past that. We do not have a machine to show that the chi in the meridians is in a balanced flow. So people have to believe in something that they cannot be showed results on paper. This is hard for people that have been raised in Western belief. It can be especially hard for Western doctors. For me I have personal experience that Eastern Medicine works. In fact it is the only method I use when I start to get physical pain from my very physically demanding job. But if it were not for that experience I would probably be skeptical myself.

What conclusions can you draw from Kirlian photography?

The conclusion that I can draw from Kirlian photography is that these photographs are picking up on some type of energy. It seems like there are different energies that the photographs are picking up. But like acupuncture and other aspects of biophysics it has it critics. I was very intrigued when I read about the healers photographed while performing healing and there were flares of light streaming from their fingertips. This shows me that they are giving off a healing energy from their hands. I think there is really something to this energy stuff. I am interested in the future to see if they start using this type of photography in the medical fields. If it could be used in more cases instead of things like x-rays and CAT scans I believe this could be a big medical advancement.

Human intent as it affects health

I believe human intent has a big affect on a clients health. When the practitioner believes he can heal his patient and that is his passion and goal he has a much better chance of healing. When someone truly believes they can do something they usually can accomplish it. I remember when I used to play tennis. I was very confident. There were many times I went into a match and I had already decided that I was going to win. I could feel it. My intention was to win and I had already made up my mind. I can tell you that when I had this attitude I very very rarely lost. If a doctor has this type of belief that he can heal I think he will have better results. Also when you really want to heal and that is your intention I think you put a positive energy into it and that helps also. I also think when your intention is to heal you will put in that extra effort for you patient. 

Biophysics Week #1

I know I am a living system because…

I can think of many reasons I am a living system. First of all I am able to reproduce and I was reproduced by my mother. From when I was first born to now my features have constantly been changing, I have been growing. I breath and I move. As a living being I need water and food to survive and keep living.

Biophysics and Oriental Medicine

One correlation that I can see between biophysics and oriental medicine is the application of many different theories. In biophysics there are many different departments and they are not inclusive. Each individual department chooses how much mixing they would like between departments. I can see this similarity in TCM. There are many different routes each practitioner can go and it is the practitioners choice on which routes they would like to mix or use. I see more freedom in both biophysics and oriental medicine to choose your way of practice then in Western practice. I believe that having this freedom there is much more possibility for success. 

Physics Week 9

My E-Prime Day

I opened my eyes and stepped out of bed at 6:15 AM on Monday morning in California time. I believe I then walked to the kitchen and ate my breakfast. After breakfast I undressed from the clothes I slept in and dressed myself in the clothes I was going to work in. I drove my car to work. At work I believe I taught tennis for 8 hours. When I had completed my last lesson by teaching the client for a full hour I appeared to look tired to others. The way I felt was tired. When I left work I drove home and ate dinner. I believe I talked on the phone and watched television that night.

Synthesizing my view of Physics with my own practice of medicine

Physics to me seemed very complex and many concepts were hard to understand. Physics did seem a lot different then the Western view though. The Western view is much more straightforward and their solutions are limited. In Physics like I feel in Eastern medicine there is a lot more room for questioning, looking at different approaches and trying different methods. Physics is always trying to look for different theories. Eastern medicine is the same way. If one method does not work we try to find a method that does work.