The Importance of Chemistry in Daily Life Most people have chosen to write their essay about how chemistry

has played an important role in everyday life. I have chosen to ask, how doesnt it play a role in everyday life? The simple fact is that chemistry plays an important role in every persons daily activities from the moment were born. So what role does chemistry really play in everyday life? Well, this involvement usually begins first thing each morning. Most people wake up to an alarm or radio. These common household items contain batteries, which make them very chemically dependent. These batteries contain positive and negative electrodes. The positive electrode consists of a carbon rod surrounded by a mixture of carbon and manganese dioxide. The negative electrode is made of zinc. Chemistry plays an important role in the discovery and understanding of materials contained in these and many other common household items. Things like household cleaners and water purification systems are vitally dependent on chemistry. Without chemistry something as simple as scrubbing a toilet without fear of severe burns or small explosions might not be possible. Next, though it isnt widely known, chemistry is also heavily involved with the manufacturing of things such as makeup and soap. Each time you bathe you are witnessing chemistry at work. Chemicals such as cetyl alcohol and propylene glycol are typical ingredients in the soap used to wash your hair and skin. Without chemistry, these materials (or combinations of these materials) might be hazardous or might not exist. The chemical coloring agents used in makeup and nail polish would not be possible without an understanding of the chemicals involved. Almost anything you do during the course of a normal day involves chemistry in some way. The gas and tires in cars we drive, the makeup we put on our faces, the soaps and cleaners used everyday, burning wood or other fossil fuels, chemistry is all around you each and every day. The associations are practically limitless. So, as you go about your daily activities, remember to thank chemistry. As my teacher always says, remember, "CHEMISTRY IS LIFE!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Importance of Chemistry in Daily Life Most people have chosen to write their essay about how chemistry has played an important role in everyday life. The simple fact is that chemistry plays an important role in every persons daily activities from the moment were born. So what role does chemistry really plays in everyday life This involvement usually be!ins first thin! each mornin!. Most people wa"e up to an alarm or radio. These common household items contain batteries# which ma"e them very chemically dependent. These batteries contain positive and ne!ative electrodes. The positive electrode consists of a carbon rod surrounded by a mi$ture of carbon and man!anese dio$ide. The ne!ative electrode is made of %inc. Chemistry plays an important role in the discovery and understandin! of materials contained in these and many other common household items. Thin!s li"e household cleaners and water purification systems are vitally dependent on chemistry. &ithout chemistry somethin! as simple as scrubbin! a toilet without fear of severe burns or small e$plosions mi!ht not be possible.

'e$t# thou!h it isnt widely "nown# chemistry is also heavily involved with the manufacturin! of thin!s such as ma"eup and soap. (ach time we bathe we are witnessin! chemistry at wor". Chemicals such as cetyl alcohol and propylene !lycol are typical in!redients in the soap used to wash our hair and s"in. &ithout chemistry# these materials )or combinations of these materials* mi!ht be ha%ardous or mi!ht not e$ist. The chemical colourin! a!ents used in ma"eup and nail polish would not be possible without an understandin! of the chemicals involved. +lmost anythin! we do durin! the course of a normal day involves chemistry in some way. The !as and tires in cars we drive# the ma"eup we put on our faces# the soaps and cleaners used everyday# burnin! wood or other fossil fuels# chemistry is all around us each and every day. The associations are practically limitless. So# as we !o about our daily activities# remember to than" chemistry. +s my teacher always says# remember# ,C-(MIST./ IS LI0(1, Importance of chemistry Chemistry has a reputation for bein! a complicated and borin! science# but for the most part# that reputation is undeserved. 0irewor"s and e$plosions are based on chemistry# so it2s definitely not a borin! science. If we ta"e classes in chemistry# we2ll apply math and lo!ic# which can ma"e studyin! chemistry a challen!e if we are wea" in those areas. -owever# anyone can understand the basics of how thin!s wor"... and that2s the study of chemistry. In a nutshell# the importance of chemistry is that it e$plains the world around us. Chemistry e$plains how food chan!es as we coo" it# how it rots# how to preserve food# how our body uses the food we eat# and how in!redients interact to ma"e food. 3art of the importance of chemistry is it e$plains how cleanin! wor"s. &e use chemistry to help decide what cleaner is best for dishes# laundry and our home. &e use chemistry when we use bleaches and disinfectants and even ordinary soap and water. -ow do they wor" That2s chemistry1 &e need to understand basic chemistry so we can understand how vitamins# supplements# and dru!s can help or harm us. 3art of the importance of chemistry lies in developin! and testin! new medical treatments and medicines. Chemistry is at the heart of environmental issues. &hat ma"es one chemical a nutrient and another chemical a pollutant -ow can we clean up the environment &hat processes can produce the thin!s we need without harmin! the environment In this lens I2d li"e to tal" you about the Chemistry of daily life. Chemistry is an e$citin! e$perimental science which lets us to understand our world and ma"es our life easier. +s you will read in the followin! articles# chemistry is in our everyday life4 in our body# at home# in the nature... in every second of our lives1 If any of you have a 5uestion about the chemistry of your everyday life# please feel free to contact me# and I will publish here the answers to those that may be interestin! for most of the people. I invite you also to leave a comment in my !uestboo" below. Than" you very much to the S5uidoo staff for selectin! this lens on +pril 67th as the 2lens of the day2# I feel honoured1 I invite you also to visit my other lens4 Spain in depth# and my website. Than" you1 8reetin!s from Spain#

Silvia -ow soap cleans There are substances which can be dissolved in water )salt for e$ample*# and others that can2t )for e$ample oil*. &ater and oil don2t mi$ to!ether# so if we try to clean an oily stain from a cloth or from the s"in# water is not enou!h. &e need soap. Soap is formed by molecules with a ,head, which li"es water )hydrophilic* and a lon! chain which hates it )hydrophobic*. 9ecause of this dualism# soap molecules act li"e a diplomat# improvin! the relationship between water and oil. -ow &hen soap is added to the water# the hydrophilic heads of its molecules stay into the water )they li"e it1*# while the lon! hydrophobic chains :oin the oil particles and remain inwards )escapin! from the water*. In that way# they form circular !roups named micellas# with the oily material absorbed inside and trapped. +n emulsion of oil in water is then formed# this means that the oil particles become suspended and dispersed into the water. Thus# those oil particles are liberated from the cloth or the s"in# and the emulsion is ta"en away with the rinsin!. In summary# soap cleans by actin! as an emulsifier. It allows oil and water to mi$ so that oily !rime can be removed durin! rinsin!.There are more thin!s involved in this process# such as for instance chan!es in the superficial tension of water# but this is the !eneral idea. ;e!etables and colours - 3art < &hite li!ht from the sun contains all the wavelen!ths# but when it impacts on an ob:ect some of its wavelen!hts are absorbed and some reflected. +n ob:ect is coloured because of the li!ht that it reflects. 0or e$ample red ob:ects reflect 2red2 li!ht# which is li!ht with a lon! wavelen!th. Many ve!etables and fruits are stron!ly coloured because they contain an especial "ind of chemical compounds named carotenoids. These compounds have an area called choromophore# which absorbs and !ives off particular wavelen!ths of li!ht# !eneratin! the colour that we then perceive. The chromophore is formed by a se5uence of linear carbon-carbon double bonds )represented as C=C*# much stron!er than simple bonds )represented as C-C*# so the atoms remain closer to each other. In !eneral# it2s necessary at least seven linear con:u!ated double bonds for a carotenoid to produce a colour. 9esides# the bi!!er the number of bonds con:u!ated# the bi!!er the wavelen!th of the li!ht absorbed and also the more red the ve!etable# as you can see in this picture of the li!ht spectrum4 The tomato is red because of the carotenoid lycopene# which contains << con:u!ated carbon-carbon double bonds. /ou can count these bonds in the picture below# they are selected in red )the atom carbons are omitted# only the bonds are shown*. This compound is !enerated by the plant to protect itself from the air o$idation. So it2s a !ood antio$idant useful for us too# protectin! our cells a!ainst the action of free radicals )potent o$idants*# which are one of the main responsibles of cardiovascular diseases# cancer and a!in!.

)See the continuation in 3art 6 below* ;e!etables and colour - 3art 6 The pi!ment present in carrots is the betacarotene# with > linear con:u!ated double bonds# less than in lycopene so they are no red but oran!e )smaller wavelen!th than red# chec" it in the spectrum picture*. This compound is also a potent antio$idant and besides it2s transformed in our body into vitamin +# very important for the maintenance of healthy s"in# !ood vision and a robust inmune system. Spinachs# parsley and plants in !eneral are !reen because they contain chlorophyll# a pi!ment which enables the plant to carry on photosynthesis# transformin! solar ener!y and carbon dio$ide into chemical ener!y in the form of carbohydrates and o$y!en. This is a process essential for life. +s you can see in the pic below# the structure of chlorophyll is very complicated# so let2s simpy say that it contains a bi! rin! with a ma!nesium atom in the center. Curiously# the structure of hemo!lobine )the carrier of o$y!en in our blood* is pretty similar to chlorophyll# thou!h it has an atom of iron instead of ma!nesium in its center. The chlorophyll mas"s the other colours in ve!etables and as its amount decreases the rest of colours become evident. This e$plains for e$ample why tomatoes are initially !reen and then become red when they ripen. the science of matter? the branch of the natural sciences dealin! with the composition of substances and their properties and reactions actually chemistry is the study of behaviour of matter with its surroundin!s which comprises of other elements and compounds. 0rom the food that sustain our lives to various ob:ects that have built up our physical culture# everythin! is made up of matter. The human body itself is a mi$ture of matter of differin! types. The humans who used materials obtained from nature for centuries# later made new materials out of these to suit their needs. 'ow the humans have thousand of materials for their use - both natural and human made. The ability that humans ac5uired to ma"e new materials from natural materials is the basis of human pro!ress. &hen the structure of the material world and the nature of physical and chemical chan!es in them were studied# humans were able to ma"e new materials and to control their different properties. The development of chemistry made this pro!ress possible. The contribution of chemistry to fields li"e# a!riculture# industries# health care# food industry# habitat# transport and research has been invaluable. Throu!h chemical processes that scientists develop chemistry comes up every day with answers to ever increasin! human needs.