Unit 2 Reflection

Unit 2 Reflection

In this unit, we learned about the Chemistry of life. We learned about the basic living things in life like atoms and molecules, neutrons, electrons, and protons. We learned that they are used to make elements. We learned about the types of bonds, Ionic and Covelent bonds. Ionic bonds are bonds formed when an atom gains or looses an electron. Covelent bonds are bonds that are electrons shared between atoms. We learned about the uses of water. Water is great for making solutions. It can be mixed with many other solutions. Water is considered a solvent since its a substance for substrate to dissolve in. We learned a lot about acids and bases. Acids tastes sour, corrosive, becomes less acidic when mixed and is attracted to bases. Bases tastes bitter, slippery, and can become less basic when mixed with acids. Acids are  Acids, bases, and pH can be measured and scaled. Acids and bases can be identified by a scale. 7 is neutral, 0-7 is acidic, and 8-14 is base. 

 We learned about proteins and sugars. We learned that there are sweet and plain sugars and good and bad sugars that are used in many food products that are sold in stores. We did a lab about testing sweet and plain sugar by tasting them. This was a fun experience to taste different types of sugars and knowing how sweet or plain they are. We did another lab about making cheese. We added milk and products that create cheese to a test tube. We then shook the test tubes and put them in our armpits for a long time till our test tube created curds for cheese. This was fun to learn how to create cheese by using milk and other products. We also watch a video about the making of cheese in factories and stores. It was fascinating to see the many varieties of cheese and how the experts make it. 

My favorite part about this unit was learning about miniature biology. We learned about the 4 macromolecules, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins. We learned about the structure and function of each macromolecule. Each macromolecule are included in many food products that we eat mostly on a daily basis. Enzymes was a important part of this unit as we learned about the structure of protein and enzymes. We learned about the factors that affect enzymes which includes, pH and temperature and denature. There are 4 types of structure in proteins and enzyme structure, Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, and Quaternary. These all involves amino acids to create bonds.