Why Is Milk White?: & 200 Other Curious Chemistry Questions (2013)

Why Is Milk White?: & 200 Other Curious Chemistry Questions (2013)

Preface

1. People and Animals

Can chemicals cause mutations in animals?

What happens if you breathe in smoke or carbon dioxide?

What does biology have to do with chemistry?

PROJECT: SMOKING HANDS

What does physiology have to do with chemistry?

How do we have hair?

Why are boys usually taller than girls?

Why do people use lotion as a moisturizer?

What kinds of chemicals do athletes drink before they do a race?

How has chemistry helped our health?

How is the human body related to chemistry?

Why does Benadryl make you sleepy?

Why do some people have dark skin and other people have light skin?

2. Plants

Do we get chemicals from plants?

Why do we use plants?

Why are there so many colors of plants?

How does sunlight make plants turn green?

What makes leaves change colors?

Why are some plants glossy?

What is herbicide?

3. Household Chemistry

How does soap work?

Where does soap come from?

Why is shaving cream foamy?

What chemicals in washing soap make it clean your clothes?

Why do we use chemicals as cleaning supplies?

How do they make shampoo in different colors?

Why is conditioner always white?

How do they make shampoo and conditioner in fragrant smells?

PROJECT: PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY

What does glass have to do with chemistry?

PROJECT: SILICON BOUNCY BALL

What is toothpaste made from?

What are shoes made from?

What is in deodorant?

Why is lipstick so glossy?

How do people make lipstick different colors?

How does Drano get rid of sink clogs?

How does hairspray get out of the can?

How does superglue work?

How does hair dye work?

What is ammonia and how does it work?

What is antifreeze?

Why do you need antifreeze in your car?

Why does salt water make metal rust faster?

How do water filters work?

How do water softeners work, and why do you need them?

What chemicals does hairspray have?

How does hairspray keep your hair stiffened?

Why is hair gel so slimy?

How does hair gel work?

How does Biosilk keep your hair smooth?

Why are there so many chemicals in makeup?

What happens if chemicals get in your lungs?

What is shoe polish made of?

How does face paint stay moist?

How does Shout work?

4. Health and Safety

Why do people need to wear goggles while they are doing experiments?

Why does Bactine sting when you spray it on a cut?

How does soap get germs off you?

Are there chemicals in toothpaste that can hurt you?

Why do your eyes hurt when you get out of the pool because you weren’t wearing goggles?

How do face wipes take away zits?

How can Zanfel soap get off poison oak?

How does sunblock protect your skin from getting sunburned?

How do you get sunburned when it is cloudy?

How do you get a tan?

Why does hydrogen peroxide bubble up when you put it on your cut?

Why does cough syrup have a strong taste, and how does it make you stop coughing?

Why are some medicines liquid and some medicines pills?

How do Band-Aids stick to your skin?

What are some chemicals that make people crazy?

What happens if you breathe in hairspray?

Why do people use hydrogen peroxide for mouth rinse?

What happens when you swallow hydrogen peroxide?

How does hydrogen peroxide bleach your hair?

What are the chemicals in spit?

What do the chemicals in spit do?

What common chemicals shouldn’t be mixed together?

5. Things That Catch Fire or Go Bang

How do explosives work?

How do you make explosives?

What types of chemicals are in gunpowder?

Is there chemistry in guns?

What happens if you breathe in gunpowder?

What makes a firework explode?

How are fireworks made?

Why are explosives so loud?

How are explosives different from grenades?

What do cap guns have in them that make them explode?

What makes flames turn colors?

How do we make different colored fireworks?

What is plasma?

How do you make a volcano with chemicals?

PROJECT: MAKING OXYGEN

6. Things That Stink

Why do things stink?

Why do skunks smell bad?

What is the chemical reaction that makes your feet smell?

What is the chemical reaction that makes your breath smell?

Why does nail polish smell so strong?

Why do some glues smell strong?

What chemicals make perfume?

Why do some plants smell and others don’t?

7. Color

Why are there so many colors in the world?

How do you make a fluorescent light?

How do people make different nail polish colors?

Why are so many powders white?

Why is the sky blue?

Why is water clear?

Why is grass green?

How do you make colored milk?

What makes disappearing ink disappear?

Why is butter yellow?

How can you whiten your teeth with hydrogen peroxide?

How does bleach work?

PROECT: COLOR BLOSSOMS

8. Chemistry in the World

Why is there salt in the ocean?

What happens when you play with liquid nitrogen?

Why do some chemicals stain your hands?

What happens when you put your hand in an acid?

What happens when you put a leaf in an acid?

What do electrons do?

How do we get electricity?

How do you use chemistry to make a battery?

How do solar panels work?

How does a Van de Graaff generator work?

What does water have to do with chemistry?

What are atoms?

What chemicals do you find in everyday life?

What does the periodic table of elements have to do with chemistry?

How do elements get their names?

How does gas cook our food and heat our homes?

Why is lotion so oily?

Why does air leak out of a balloon?

What makes an acid not good?

PROJECT: BUTANE BALLOON

What is matter?

What do gluons have to do with chemistry?

What is hydrogen sulfate?

What is the strongest kind of acid?

What does hydrogen chloride do?

Why does snow melt?

Why do people put salt on icy roads?

Why does ice float?

How is organic chemistry different from regular chemistry?

What is biochemistry?

How many types of chemistry are there?

Why are there so many varieties in chemistry?

What are chemical bonds?

How many types of bonds are in chemistry?

How long has chemistry been around?

Can you change lead into gold?

What is the difference between radiation and radioactivity?

How do they make petroleum into jelly?

Why do chemicals foam up?

What is hydrogen peroxide?

What is a soda can made out of?

What is the difference between Fahrenheit and Celsius?

What makes bridges so strong?

Why do some things dissolve in water and others don’t?

What is plastic made of?

PROJECT: EXTRACTING IODINE

PROJECT: FUN WITH BORON

9. Chemists

What are some things chemists do?

How do people today use chemistry and science in their jobs?

How are chemists different from and similar to scientists?

PROJECT: LATENT FINGERPRINTS

How is physics different from chemistry?

How are technology and chemistry different and alike?

What does math have to do with chemistry?

What chemicals would you see if you were in a chemistry lab?

PROJECT: COPPER CATALYST

Why are chemists so serious about their work?

How do you use chemistry in a pharmacy?

PROJECT: HOLLOW PENNIES

How do doctors use chemistry in their work?

How is chemistry used in cooking?

10. Food

Why are some foods made with chemicals?

Why do we need calcium?

Why do we need to eat food?

How does chemistry keep your food safe?

Why does adding oils to cooking water keep it from boiling over?

Why do onions make you cry?

How do you make rock candy?

Why does salt have a texture?

Why is chocolate a solid?

Why is peanut butter creamy?

Are there chemicals in artificial flavors?

What makes soda so fizzy?

PROJECT: DANCING RAISINS

Why do people tap on soda cans before they open them?

What are all of the chemicals in soda?

Does bottled water go bad?

What makes cookies rise?

Why does a white of an egg turn white when you cook it?

Why does jelly feel squishy?

How does a fruit get ripe?

Why is honey so sticky?

Why does butter melt?

How do you make fake butter?

What gives people energy?

Why do some medicines have flavor and others don’t?

Why is bubble gum stretchy?

Why is there salt in almost everything you eat?

Why does sugar make you hyper?

Why do you get cavities when you eat too much sugar?


Glossary