I teach chemistry (among other subjects, but this is a chemistry story, because after all, when you're attracted to someone, it's because the chemistry is good, eh?) and today we were working a stoichiometry problem involving a reaction that produced a gas. Sounds intriguing, no?
This is the problem:
Amundsen practically taunted Scott to a race to the pole after he (Amundsen) had more than adequately prepared his expedition. Scott, who was in New Zealand when he received the challenge, hurriedly got his group and supplies together. Unfortunately, Amundsen not only beat Scott's group to the South Pole, he left a letter for Scott to deliver to the Norwegian king. Insult to injury, and all that.
Faced with evidence of their defeat, Scott and his group began the long trudge back to base at McMurdo Sound. Long, as in 350 miles. The men were on short rations and struggled to make it from cache to cache of food stored on the journey south. One of the men fell and his injury slowed their progress even more. This slower pace meant they were still far from the home base when the Antarctic winter set in with a fury. All during this journey, Scott was writing in a journal and also penning letters to his wife, so when the first blizzard of winter set in, Scott wrote of the valor of the injured man (Titus Oates) who struggled to his feet in their little tent and said, "I am just going outside now. I may be some time." He never returned; he had sacrificed himself that the others might have a chance at survival.
But the sacrifice was in vain; the men were starving and did not have the energy to complete the journey. Their bodies were recovered eight months later. Some of Scott's last written words were: "Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman!" I managed to read all of that tale with no emotion. But I had forgotten about the last few lines.
When the expedition was found, they had been carrying along with them over 35 pounds of rocks and fossil specimens that helped geologists and naturalists understand the age and history of that remote, unforgiving place. They were starving, dying, and yet they did not leave behind the precious cargo that would increase the store of scientific knowledge in the world. I choked up and my eyes moistened (and it was obvious what was happening). How can you not get a little misty-eyed in the face of such sacrifice, even if it were 100 years ago?
I have two students in that class who are from Vietnam and Taiwan. They also cried a little, but then they stayed after class to confess they had only understood a bit of the story and wondered why I was crying. I explained to them that the story was really about the unselfish acts of people who sacrificed themselves for the greater good. When they truly understood what I was talking about, the tears were real. Love, sacrifice and empathy are part of the universal language just as much as music or mathematics.
This is the problem:
In 1897 the Swedish explorer Andreé tried to reach the North Pole in a balloon. The balloon was filled with hydrogen gas. The hydrogen gas was prepared from iron splints and diluted sulfuric acid. The reaction is
Fe(s) + H2SO4 --> FeSO4(aq) + H2(g)
The volume of the balloon was 4800 m3 and the loss of hydrogen gas during filling was estimated at 20%. What mass of iron splints and 98% (by mass) H2SO4 were needed to ensure the complete filling of the balloon? Assume a temperature of 0 °C, a pressure of 1 atm during filling, and 100% yield.We solved the problem, but the polar exploration triggered the memory of one of my favorite stories in the book, Scientific Anecdotes. Because this was my first hour pre-AP chemistry class, and I would not have a 5th hour today due to a pep assembly, I felt I could be a bit more relaxed in our curricular pursuits. So I asked the students if they would like to hear a story about a brave group of explorers of the South Pole. Of course they would (if it meant we would just lay off the stoichiometry for a few precious moments). So I proceded to read the tale of Robert Scott and his tragic expedition that had attempted to beat Roald Amundsen to the pole.
Amundsen practically taunted Scott to a race to the pole after he (Amundsen) had more than adequately prepared his expedition. Scott, who was in New Zealand when he received the challenge, hurriedly got his group and supplies together. Unfortunately, Amundsen not only beat Scott's group to the South Pole, he left a letter for Scott to deliver to the Norwegian king. Insult to injury, and all that.
Faced with evidence of their defeat, Scott and his group began the long trudge back to base at McMurdo Sound. Long, as in 350 miles. The men were on short rations and struggled to make it from cache to cache of food stored on the journey south. One of the men fell and his injury slowed their progress even more. This slower pace meant they were still far from the home base when the Antarctic winter set in with a fury. All during this journey, Scott was writing in a journal and also penning letters to his wife, so when the first blizzard of winter set in, Scott wrote of the valor of the injured man (Titus Oates) who struggled to his feet in their little tent and said, "I am just going outside now. I may be some time." He never returned; he had sacrificed himself that the others might have a chance at survival.
But the sacrifice was in vain; the men were starving and did not have the energy to complete the journey. Their bodies were recovered eight months later. Some of Scott's last written words were: "Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman!" I managed to read all of that tale with no emotion. But I had forgotten about the last few lines.
When the expedition was found, they had been carrying along with them over 35 pounds of rocks and fossil specimens that helped geologists and naturalists understand the age and history of that remote, unforgiving place. They were starving, dying, and yet they did not leave behind the precious cargo that would increase the store of scientific knowledge in the world. I choked up and my eyes moistened (and it was obvious what was happening). How can you not get a little misty-eyed in the face of such sacrifice, even if it were 100 years ago?
I have two students in that class who are from Vietnam and Taiwan. They also cried a little, but then they stayed after class to confess they had only understood a bit of the story and wondered why I was crying. I explained to them that the story was really about the unselfish acts of people who sacrificed themselves for the greater good. When they truly understood what I was talking about, the tears were real. Love, sacrifice and empathy are part of the universal language just as much as music or mathematics.
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| Even in this photo with all members of the party alive, you can see the toll the extreme conditions were taking. |
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