Cosmic Chemistry

What We Did

Kinesthetic: Nathaniel made a stop motion video illustrating the processes of nuclear fission, nuclear decay, and nuclear fusion.

Verbal: Josh wrote a podcast script explaining the Big Bang, evidence for it, and how it impacts us today. Both Nathaniel and I played roles in this podcast.

Visual: I created an infographic that outlined the process of nuclear fusion in stars, how elements are formed, and how radiation is released.

What We Learned

Nuclear Fission: Nuclear fission is the process in which an element splits into two or more particles. The resulting particles must have the same number of protons, neutrons, and electrons as the original element.

Nuclear Fusion: Nuclear Fusion is the process where two or more particles fuse into an element. The number of protons, neutrons, and electrons must be the same on both sides of the equation.

Nuclear Decay: Nuclear decay is the natural process where elements lose energy through radiation. The most prominent examples of radioactive decay are gamma decay, beta decay, and alpha decay. Less prominent examples are neutron emission, and electron capture.

Big Bang: The theory that states that the universe emerged from a single point, with all mass pushed outwards. In this theory the universe is still expanding today.

Evidence of Big Bang: Redshift, cosmic microwave background radiation, and the elemental composition of the universe are the three pieces of evidence used to justify the big bang theory. Redshift refers to the change in light measured over time by the Hubble telescope. Because of this change, it is fair to say that planets are moving away from us. CMB radiation is heat left by the big bang in the form of microwaves that are still dissipating. Finally the elemental composition of the universe is almost entirely helium and hydrogen, which supports the idea that all other elements are fundamentally made of these components.

Nuclear Fusion in Stars: Nuclear fusion occurs in stars due to the tremendous amount of gravity forcing alpha particles, beta particles, and elements towards one another, thus creating new elements. It is important to mention that the size and mass of a star determines how many elements can be formed by it.

How Elements are Formed in Stars: Elements form through nuclear fusion in stars.

Why Radiation is Released from Stars: Radiation is released from stars both through radioactive decay, and the energy used to fuse elements.

Stop Motion: Nathaniel is incredibly good at stop motion, and deserves a 4 on this, and all other, assignments.

Adobe Illustrator: I used Adobe Illustrator to design my infographic, which I have used in the past, but I'd never had a chance to combine so many skills such as gradients, layout, colors, and opacity.

What Skills I Acquired

I improved on my skills in Illustrator, and condensing information. I had never used Adobe Illustrator in an academic situation before, so I was pleased to find that I was able to use its features to create a compelling graphic. I also improved at condensing information, because I found a lot of complex discussion on this topic online, and I was able to parse through the parts that I did and did not need. It was a successful endeavor in the end.