Foundations of Chemistry

General Chemistry

Why Study Chemistry?

• Chemistry in Biblical Focus• We cannot properly study chemistry unless we approach it from a

Christian perspective• The Bible confronts humans with a which brings

chemistry into focus and as a sign to the Creator• A

• Declaring the Glory of God• “For him [God], and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom

be glory for ever. Amen” • The world around us is constantly pointing to an all-powerful Creator

and though the study of chemistry we can find God’s fingerprint on everything around us

Why Study Chemistry?• Genesis and a Proper View of Chemistry• We are the only creation made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27)• God deserves our total devotion because He is God, our Maker, Master, and

Savior• The reveals why God made humans. (Gen. 1:26, 28)

• Chemistry allows Christians to practice dominion over science• is scientific activity that exercises dominion for the

glory of God and the benefit of other humans

Why Study Chemistry• Science as Modeling• Science does not establish truth or depict reality absolutely, but

• Scientific models are

• Models are constructed to help scientists produce workable, useful answers to the questions scientists ask and help us live in this world, not know this world• All models have a degree of uncertainty but be relied

upon for absolute truth• Science cannot “prove” anything in this world. However we use science to

support existing theories of the universe

Why Study Chemistry?• Confronting Error• Studying chemistry exposes error in false worldviews. All humans approach

situations with based on their worldview• Presupposition-

• Example: Have you talked to Hans? The presupposition is

• Naturalistic worldview assumes that

• is the extreme faith in reason and science • is based on the teachings of the Christian

Scriptures. Human reason and scientific research are not irrelevant or necessarily wrong, but they are not a sufficient foundation for knowledge

Why Study Chemistry?• Chemistry and Your Life Choices• Some careers may require some knowledge of chemistry:

…..oh and Chemistry teachers need a little knowledge of it too (just not that much)• Much of the field of chemistry is dominated by

• The field of chemistry needs devoted Christians to show love and glorify God with their studies

Why Study Chemistry?• Chemistry in Your life (continued)• You may never pursue a career in chemistry but the things you learn here can help

you in numerous areas of your life outside of this classroom

What Is Chemistry• Chemistry is

• Matter is anything that takes up space and has mass

• Chemistry developed as a during Old Testament times• Metallurgy-the science of obtaining metals from their ores• Apothecary-

• The Greeks desired more than practical skills and were the first to introduce an organized approach to chemistry• Alchemists pursued the field to

• Modern chemistry relied on and the advances made during this period has changed chemistry forever and relied on the scientific method

What is Chemistry?

• Inorganic-

• -study of compounds containing carbon, most commonly in all living things

• Biochemistry-

• Nuclear-

• -foundational theories of chemistry that allow detailed study of interactions between substances and the accompanying energy changes

• -techniques used in all branches of chemistry to discover what substances are in a sample and determine how much of each component it contains

What Do Chemists Do?• Science is

• explores natural products and processes for specific applications

• probes nature simply to learn new things about the universe we live in

What Do Chemists Do?

• Scientific questions can be answered through which are gained through taste, touch, hearing, seeing, and smelling. • The problem with observations is that humans are rarely completely objective

and are affected by personal inclinations or other biases (human’s sinful nature)• data describes observations using numerical

data,• data describes observations using non-

numerical data and can include observations such as the texture, color, and runniness of a sample of lava

What Do Chemists Do?• Reasoning

• proceeds from general statements to a specific conclusion. • Uses assumptions called which when arranged correctly lead in a step-like pattern

to a conclusion• Example: “All matter is made of atoms. The air is matter. Therefore, the air is made of atoms”

• proceeds from known data to an unknown general conclusion.• Uses specific facts or data to draw general conclusions. Conclusions are probable on the basis of the

evidence under consideration

• Examples:• When potassium chloride, sodium chloride, or calcium chloride is mixed in water, it dissolves readily.

Because magnesium chloride and barium chloride are similar salts, they also should dissolve in water.• Any substance that floats on top of water has a lower density than water. Vegetable oil floats on top

of water. Therefore, vegetable oil is less dense than water

What Do Chemists Do?

• An experiment is a

• have only one condition that is varied at a time to isolate and measure its effect on the outcome• Empirical data • A is a simple, reasonable, testable statement that tries to

predict the results of an experiment from the information available about a specific scientific problem• A natural experiment is one that the conditions cannot be controlled

What Do Chemists Do?

• A scientific is an idea that a scientist has discovered and tested which consistently explains a certain phenomenon• Can be thought of a scientific models

• A scientific is a statement which describes observations made under many different conditions as a recognizable, repeating pattern in nature

Recognize a problem

Make a hypothesis

Make observations

to test the hypothesis

Organize and

analyze data

Verify the hypothesis