ChemSci Tutor

Best Wishes to my A level Chemistry students receiving their results today.

On Weds 12th August from 6.15 to 8 pm BST there is going to be a total solar eclipse visible in Northern Spain. In the UK and the rest of Europe, there will be a partial eclipse with up to 95% of the sun covered depending on your location. The highest coverage will be in Cornwall.
It is also possible to view the eclipse by livestream from the Royal Observatory Greenwich using the following link https://buff.ly/9RliwH8

What is an eclipse? A total eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly over the Sun and causes a short period of darkness. The safest way to view an eclipse is via a pinhole in a piece of paper and projecting onto paper or a screen. Do NOT look directly at the sun.
Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Partial solar eclipse 2026 LIVE Join the Royal Observatory Greenwich live online to watch the 90% partial solar eclipse visible from the UK

Summer Science Weather 2: How to Make a wind-sock out of plastic.
Wind socks give an idea of the wind direction and speed. The open end points toward where the wind comes from, and the tail points to where the wind is going.
You will need a clean, plastic bottle, a plastic bag and some string.
1. take the plastic bottle and cut a plastic ring across the main part of the bottle. You may need an adult to help.
2. Then take a hole puncher and form 2 holes on opposite sides of the ring.
3. Thread a piece of string through the holes to make a handle. Cut a piece of string that is 3 to 4 times the length of your ring. Thread it through both holes, then tie both ends together to make a handle.
4. Take a plastic carrier bag and draw straight lines about 2.5 cm wide. Cut the strips carefully and tie them round the ring from the bottle. You can use different colours as desired. Tissue paper can also be used, but this will not be waterproof.
5. Hang up your windsock on a hook in your garden and have fun using it!

This idea was taken from WikiHow.

Adapted by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please follow this page for more holiday ideas and stories.

Summer Science Weather: The weather has been in the news over the past few days with record temperatures being reached in the UK. Here are some ideas for you to monitor the weather yourself.
Temperature can be measured using a thermometer. Choose one designed for the house or garden such as the one shown. Temperature readings can be taken in different ways e.g. once an hour to work out the hottest and coolest time of day or measure every day at the same time over several days. Results can be shown in a graph or chart.
Rainfall can be measured using any plastic container placed somewhere where it won't be knocked over. As long as you use the same container each time, the size does not matter. You can either measure the depth of the water using a ruler or pour the water collected into a measuring cylinder to work out the volume collected. Alternatively, the density of water is about 1 g per cubic centimetre. Which means that the weight in grams gives you a value for the volume as well.

Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Photograph 1 public domain Photograph 2 public domain

Summer Science 2: Garden Indicators Both hydrangeas and red cabbage have unusual properties. Hydrangea flowers are blue in acidic soil and pink in alkaline soil. Red cabbage is red or pink in acid solution and yellow or orange in alkaline solution. This means that these plants can be used as indicators to see if other substances are acids (pH less than 7) or alkaline (pH greater than 7). The method is 1.Tear several leaves of red cabbage into small pieces and place into zip-closing plastic bag. 2. Add about a cup of water to the bag. Remove as much air as possible from the bag and seal it.
3. Hold the bag at the top with one hand and squish the leaves in the water with the other hand for a couple of minutes until the water turns a dark blue.
4. Pour the liquid from the plastic bag into a cup. Discard the leaves. The liquid is your red cabbage indicator.
5. Repeat with other flowers and plants, but please make sure that plants used are not poisonous or protected species.
Please handle hydrangea flowers carefully as some people may be allergic.

Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Photograph 1 by Hans on Pixabay Photograph 2 by Mart Production on Pexels

Summer Science week 1: Seashells are a common sight on beaches. There are many different sizes, shapes and colours. The shells shown in photograph 1 are Cockle shells. The shell is the exoskeleton of a creature called a mollusc. The molluscs have no bones so the purpose of the shell is to protect the creature inside. Most shells are made of calcium carbonate. A simple experiment can be used to confirm this. You will need shells, plastic containers e.g. clean yoghurt pots and some white vinegar. First set up your control, this involves placing a shell in water with a teaspoon of table salt added. Label this "sea water". Secondly place a shell in the bottom of another container and add white vinegar to cover it. Calcium carbonate reacts with vinegar producing bubbles of carbon dioxide and the shell dissolves. This reaction is very slow, so the shells need monitoring for several days.
Phorograph 2 shows other shells: a blue mussel shell, a razor shell and a whelk shell.

Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Photograph 1 by Siglinde Luise on Pexels Photograph 2 by Neelam279 on Pixabay

Please note that my regular series on Science Practical Equipment is taking a break for the Summer and will return in September.
Can you name the pieces of equipment shown in the photograph below? You can find the answers by searching earlier posts.

Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow my page for more information and stories.

Photograph from Pixabay

Science Practical Equipment Week 28: The quadrat is commonly used to measure the population of plants or slow moving animals in a given area or habitat. They are usually made from wire, which is often plastic coated to prevent rusting, and typically measure 50 cm by 50 cm. Typical example are shown in the photographs. Some quadrats (photo 1) have subdivisions for more precise sampling.
Quadrats are randomly placed in an area, the sample needs to be large enough for representative results, but not so large that the data is difficult to process.
Quadrats have been used in Ecology teaching since 1918 and are used in set practicals for Biology GCSE.

Written by Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Photograph 1 public domain Photograph 2 by Yohan Euan

How are Exam Grades Decided? Please see the following video. Please note that any marks for Special Consideration are added on independently.

How GCSE and A level grading works Most people have an idea of how A level and GCSE grading works. But...

Magnificent Trees Week 1: A burr or burl (US) is formed when a tree is put under stress, so that the tree trunk deforms into rounded growths as shown in the photograph.
The stresses that cause this include physical damage e.g. caused by animals, infections: bacterial, viral and fungal and environmental factors such as high winds or pollution. The burrs do not usually kill the tree or indicate that it is dead. However if small branches develop burrs they can fall off in high winds due to their larger mass.
Trees most likely to develop burrs include oak, walnut, maple and birch.
Burrs are highly valued by woodworkers due to their complex grain patterns.

Written By Dr Helen Hart ChemSci Tutor Please like or follow this page for more information and stories.

Photograph by Helen Hart