Monday, September 8, 2008

September 8th-9th--Safety, Scientific Method and Observations

Today we took care of some business--went over the rubrics for homework, lab reports and our notebook check. These rubrics are available on the class website.

We then went over safety equipment. A copy of the class notes are at the end of this blog entry.

After safety we discussed observations and then did an activity called 'What's in the Box'. We used observation skills to describe many different items.

Finally we discussed the scientific method (can be found on pages 138-141 in our textbook) then reviewed the take twenty homework.

Safety Notes

Know where the safety equipment is located.

Eyewash Station
Safety Shower
Fire blanket
Fire extinguisher
First Aid Kit
Emergency cut off switches.

Keep the equipment clear!

Know where to go during a fire or evacuation drill’

Know your personal gear—gloves, goggles

Be personally safe:

Long hair tied back during labs
No long flowing clothes during labs—they could knock things over or catch on fire
When working with electricity or heat—no dangling jewelry—it gets hot!
No eating or drinking in the lab—no gum, candy. Never drink out of the lab glassware and don’t taste the chemicals.

In the lab:

Always label your experiments—and always read the labels!

When heating test tubes—point them away from everyone. Hold test tubes with test tube clamps. Hot test tubes go in the wooden racks.

When heating beakers—use the beaker tongs.

Never grab glassware without making sure it is cool—use the back of your hand—place it near the glass. If it is hot you will feel the heat on the back of your hand.

If you break or spill something—tell the teacher—don’t try to clean it up yourself.

When smelling chemicals—waft the aroma to your nose—do not stick your nose in a test tube or beaker.

Don’t touch electrical appliances with wet hands.

Don’t reach across a hot plate to turn it off.

Unplug hot plates when not using them.

Pour powders and liquids at arms length—not under your nose!

When finished with an experiment—clean up. Return excess materials to the teacher.

Finally—wash your hands after labs!

Lab equipment

We went over the beaker, the Erlenmeyer flask, the test tube and the graduated cylinder. Know how to read a graduated cylinder and know what the meniscus is. Know how to use the Graduated Cylinder.

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