MacRitchie Trail

Hi people,

Once again I am back, now telling you guys about my other MacRitchie Trail.

During this MacRitchie Trail, I was a the guide, instead of a participant! During this trail, I had a lot of fun! Now let me tell you guys about what exactly happened throughout this trail.

During this trail, we targeted primary schools students. We mainly target secondary school students from the school, Chestnut Drive Secondary School. They were juniors to us as most of them are in the Secondary 1s. Me and my friend, Andrew Lau, with another Secondary 4 student, Stephen Chow. Each of us took 3 students each. Since me and Andrew is the first time being a guide for this trail, we were rather nervous and excited in a way.

So yeah, It was rather fun interacting with these students and seeing them smile also made us feel happy! So we firstly brought them to the Amenities Centre. Here, we told them about the History of MacRitchie. We asked questions like when was MacRitchie Reservoir completed and why was it named MacRitchie Reservoir. Also here, we asked them about the many uses of MacRitchie Reservoir, for example, Recreation, Tourism, etc.

Next we brought them to the Promenade, where we let them have practicals to test out the water quality of MacRitchie Reservoir. So firstly, each of us took 3 students and we brought them to the side of the reservoir where we slowly dropped a bucket and collected water. After that we used pH pills to test the pH of the water. Next we used the DO (Dissolved Oxygen) pill to test for the amount of Dissolved Oxygen, to see if the water is healthy enough for marine animals to survive inside. Then, we tested the temperature of the water. Next we used the turbidity disc to see if the water was clean. After these sets of tests, we managed to prove that the water was clean in MacRitchie Reservoir and the water is suitable for human consumption and also suitable for marine organisms to survive.

After that we went to the Dam, where we explained to the students the importance of the Dam, and its uses.

We then moved on to the kayak platform, where we saw many people kayaking. On the way to the kayak platform, we saw many people cycling, exercising and also some birds spotters. We also saw a man feeding the marine, and at this point of time, Stephen then explained to the students the consequences of feeding the marine organisms, then went up to the man and stopped him from feeding them any further. When we reached the Kayak Platform, we then told these students why only this part of the reservoir is used for kayaking and why not the other parts too. It was due to the fact that these human activities will affect the water quality, and cause the water quality to deteriorate and make it unsuitable for marine organisms to survive.

We then moved on to our last station of the day, the prunus trail. Along this trail, we explained to the students the ecosystems in MacRitchie Reservoir, and its rich biodiversity. Along this trail, we also got to see monkeys. At that point of time, many of the students then wanted to move towards it and touch it. However, we advised them not to do so, as firstly the monkeys are not as friendly as they think they were. They may scratch these students and since they carry the AIDS bacteria, they may also transmit these diseases to them. Therefore, we only allowed the students to see from a place far enough and not have a close-up view of the monkey.

After this last station, we then brought the students back to the Amenities Centre, where these students gathered and had their refreshments. They also thanked us for our kind and patience in teaching these students. At that point of time, I felt so satisfied, that even me, a Secondary 2 student can teach others and pass on our knowledge to more people benefiting them.

In all, I find that this trail was nice and made me felt satisfied. I strongly appeal to those who have not went to MacRitchie Reservoir before or those who do not know much about MacRitchie Reservoir, to go for this trail as it is really meaningful to see how does Singapore manage its water consumption and that we should care for the environment and do not pollute the water quality.

(Just a side note, after few weeks, the PUB sent us some gifts! That included a "Water Wally" plush toy, a thank you card signed by some the students that we took and also a note book! :D)

Images time!

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 3 Reflection

Hi guys,

Once again, it is another end of term, and I shall bring to you guys, my reflection upon this term.

My grades this term was GREAT! And I really meant GREAT! This term I scored very well! I scored an A1! I was overwhelmed by my grade this term. Finally my efforts have not been in drain! I think that this term was rather easy when compared to the other terms due to the fact that this term was mostly on Physics and Ecology and that the test that was set was also rather easy. Therefore, I feel that that is the main reason why I scored an A1 this term. Another reason may be due to the fact that after my experience in Term 1 and 2, I realised that I have to study really hard in order to get good grades. Hence this term, I studied quite hard for the test, and thus, I manged to score an A1.

This term was not as fun as the previous terms, as this term, we had more of the "teacher to students" lessons, instead of practicals, which were fun. And the practicals that we did this term was also rather boring as compared to Chemistry, where we can interact with the chemicals, and see the result of mixing chemicals around.

In all, I find that this term was rather boring when compared to the other terms. Also I find that this term is rather easy when compared to the other terms, as we studied mostly of Physics and Ecology and, since Physics is rather interlinked with Mathematics, and my Mathematics is rather good, therefore, I think that is the main reason why I managed to score rather well in Mathematics.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 3 Learning Point 2

Hi guys,

I will be now telling you guys about my other learning point in term 3. Throughout this 10 weeks, I also have learnt about Ecology and how organisms interact with each other.

So what is Ecology? Ecology is the study of interaction of organisms in biotic and abiotic environments.

In Ecology, there is always a Ecosystem. In this ecosystem, there will be many communities of organisms and in this communities, there will be many populations and in these populations, there will be many organisms.

In every envionments, there will always be an abiotic environment and a biotic environment. Let me first explain to you guys what is an abiotic environment.

An abiotic environment is the physical factors that affect the ecosystem. In an abiotic environment, the temperature and pH of the environment, amount of oxygen, humidity, amount of water, wave action, wind speed, light intensity, salinity of the water, type of substratum will affect the ecosystem. So how does each point affects the ecosystem?

Temperature and pH:
This factor affects the proper functioning of enzymes, as extreme temperatures and pH will distrupt the hydrophobic*, hydrophilic** and ionic interactions of the enzymes, causing them to lose their shape and functionality.

*hydrophobic: Ability to absorb water
**hydrophilic: Ability to be mixed and dissolved in solutions.

Amount of oxygen: Low oxygen content will result in lower metabolism rate in organisms as oxygen is used for aerobic respiration

Humidity: High humidity will slow down the rate of transpiration in plants, yet, affects the survival of  organisms living in dry and barren land.

Amount of water: The amount of water will affect the number and locations of plants and animals as water is essential in the survival of all organisms.

Wave action: Strong waves will prevent marine organisms from settling down and feeding.

Wind speed: Strong winds may break the stems of some plant species which have weak stems.

Light intensity: Low light intensity will slow down plant growth, however, high light intensity will on the other hand, bleach chlorophyll, causing them to be unable to photosynthesize.

Salinity of water: High salinity will prevent some organisms from being able to take in water, and vice versa, low salinity may also make some organisms take in too much water.

Type of substratum: Different substratum will affect the ability of plants and immobile organisms to anchor themselves.

Therefore, factors in abotic environment will affect the ecosystem.

Now let me move on to biotic environment.

A biotic environment means the biological interactions of organisms that affects the ecosystem in a whole.

So there are abiotic factors, there will also be biotic factors. Let me explain each factor to you guys.

Mutualism is sort of a "win-win" situation, where both organisms benefits from the interaction.

Commensalism is a situation where only one organism benefit and the other do not benefit nor lose anything.

Predation is a situation where one organism benefit and the other lose something.

Competition is a situation where both organisms lose something.

Ammensalism is a situation where one organism lose something and the other remains neutral.

This marks my end of the definition of biotic factors.

In ecosystems there will always be food webs and in each food webs, there will be many food chains. Food chains is the sequence of organisms, starting with a plant and energy will be passed to the other organism when it is eaten. A food web then comprises of many interlinked food chains from the same ecosystem.

Also in ecosystems, there will also be carbon cycles. Carbon is found in ALL living things on Earth. Now you may ask how is carbon found in living things?! Now I will explain this cycle to you guys.

So carbon cycle starts with the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide in the air will allow plants to photosynthesize and produce oxygen needed for aerobic respiration. During aerobic respiration, organisms then respire and produce carbon dioxide. Also when organisms die off, bacteria will decompose them and form fossil fuels which is used by humans for production of many things. During these production, most of them will produce carbon dioxide which will again be taken in by the plants during photosynthesis. Therefore, this forms the carbon cycle where carbon is passed on from one organism to another.

In all, Ecology is a topic that is interesting as it allows us to see how do organisms like us interact with the environment. Just a short summary of this post, in Ecology, there will be ecosystems that branches out to many communites and further branches out to many populations and organisms. Also in all environments, there will always be an abiotic environment and biotic environment and also a carbon cycle.

Reflection:

As stated above, I feel that Ecology is a topic that is very interesting as firstly, it allows us to find out how do we interact with the other organisms and how does interacting with these organisms allows us to stay alive and how do other organisms benefits us and causes us to lose something. Ecology is also easier when compared Physics as I find that most of the information are memorisable and also common sense. It is just the terms that are used in Ecology that is hard for me. In all, I find Ecology easy and interesting.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 3 Learning Points

Hi guys,

Today I will be sharing with you guys my learning points in Term 3. This post will be mainly about what I have learnt in Term 3.

So in through this term, I have been learning Physics, mainly, light, reflection, refraction. So let me explain to you guys now.

So what is light? Let me now define it for you guys. Light is a form of energy that enters our eyes and enables us to see things. Light travels a super speed, at the speed of 3X10^8 meter/sec. It is even faster than the speed of sound. The speed of light therefore allows to see the sun so quickly when it rises. Light is also essential in our lives. It allows us to see things and therefore, interact with them. Without light, the whole world will be in darkness.

So what is reflection? Reflection happens when light strikes on a surface. Reflection happens everywhere, however, reflection does not mean the image reflected can be seen. In reflection, there is always an incident ray and a reflected ray. The incident ray is the ray from the light source whereas the reflected ray is the ray that is reflected. At the point where the incident ray touches the surface, the point will be the point of incidence. Perpendicular to this point and surface, draw a line. The line will be what we call the normal. In between the normal and the incident ray, the angle is called the angle of incidence. The angle of incidence will be equal to the angle of reflection, which is the angle between the normal and the reflected ray.

The diagram will then look something like this

There are also 2 laws of reflection. The 1st law states that the incident and reflected ray and normal all lies on the same plane. The 2nd law of reflection then states that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.

In reflection in a mirror, there is also a law for the image that will form. The image will have the same size as the object itself, is similarly orientated, laterally inverted, is the same distance from the mirror and is virtual. Some of you may start wondering what is a virtual image, why is the image formed behind the mirror?

So let me answer these questions now. Firstly, targeting the question on why the image is formed behind the mirror.

What we mean by the word behind here, is that when you look into the mirror, you seemed to see yourself inside the mirror, and it seems the same distance from you to the mirror and the image to the mirror. So the word behind here does not literally means behind. With this, I shall move on to the next question, why is the image virtual. The image is virtual as "behind" the mirror, there is no light source and therefore, no actual light rays meet at the image position, and hence, the image is virtual.

Now I will move on to refraction. Refraction is rather different to reflection. In refraction, light will pass through from a denser medium to a less dense medium. When this happens, the speed of light changes, and therefore, refraction happens. The light will bend away or towards the normal according to the density of each medium. If light passes from a denser medium to a less dense medium, the light will bend AWAY from the normal. Vice versa, if light passes from a less dense medium to a denser medium, the light will bend TOWARDS the normal. For example, light passes through this order at angle of 30 degree: air, glass, air. The angle of refraction in the glass will be lesser than the angle of incidence. After passing through the glass, the angle of refraction in the air will be larger than the angle of incidence in the glass.

In Conclusion, there are many laws of reflection and refraction and each law will cause a difference in the result. Just a short summary of this post. Angle of incidence is the same of angle of reflection in reflection. Perpendicular to the point of incidence and the surface, is the normal. Refraction happens when light passes through different mediums of different density, which will affect the speed of the light, causing the light to change its angle of refraction.

Reflection on this topic (NOT REFLECTION OF LIGHT):

I feel that this topic is easy yet complicated. Easy as in most of the information are common sense and memorising this topic will allow us to score well in tests. However, the flaw is that it is rather complicated at times. There are many parts that we have to study and we must also be good in math to score well in Physics. Physics and mathematics are interlinked. Therefore, I find this topic easy yet complicated.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 2 Reflections

Hi guys,

Time passes so quickly, and the end of another term have dawned. So this brings me again to my reflection of my grades and the lesson this term.

So this term, I deproved by quite a bit. However as compared to the previous term, I instead felt rather satisfied and contented. This is mostly due to the fact that I did study very hard for this test unlike the previous test where I did not do so. I scored a B4 this term and another reason why I felt satisfied over this term's grades is that, the topics this term were hard, yet I still scored a B4! That is mostly due to my hardwork that I put in this term. If I did not study and slacked like in Term 1, I could have scored grades even worse, for example, C6 or even fail the test! Therefore, I am rather satisfied with this term's grades.

This term, similar to last term was fun yet tough! However the challenge that we have faced in this term made most of us study harder and that brought us to greater heights! Biology was rather hard this term, as most of the information that we have learnt this term seemed strangers to us. Next, we have chemical bondings where we have to know the parts of each chemicals and how does the chemical bonds to form a noble gas.

In all, though this term was hard, I was rather happy and contented with my grades that I have gotten this term. This shows that if one is willing to study, he can also do well in tests, and therefore this serves as a reminder for me to study harder, as I have seen the difference in my grades that I have gotten in Term 1 and this term. I will hence strive to score better in my next test!

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 2 Learning Point 3

Hi people, I am back now telling you guys about sexual reproduction.

Reproduction, as most people know, is giving birth. Reproduction is also split into 2 parts, mainly sexual reproduction and asexual reproduction. Today, I will only be focusing on sexual reproduction.

Having said much, I guess many of you are wondering, what is sexual reproduction.

Sexual reproduction in simpler terms means, a male and a female is needed to fertilise the ovum inside the female reproductive system. And today, I will only focus on Human Sexual Reproduction.

Just to add on for you guys to understand more about reproduction, I shall add on the definition of Asexual Reproduction.

Asexual Reproduction means that the reproduction process only involves a parent. An example of asexual reproduction will be algae.

Now I will move on to my focus of this post, Human reproduction.

Firstly, we have to know the major reproductive parts of both the male and the female. For the males, the reproductive are: Testes, Epididymis, Sperm duct, Seminal Vesicles, Prostate Gland, Cowper's glands and last but not least, the penis. As for the females, the reproductive parts are: Ovary, Oviduct, Vagina and the Uterus.

Now, after we know about the different parts of the human reproductive system, we would need to know the importance of the parts and what does the parts does.

Starting with the male reproductive system, I will firstly explain the testes. So why is the testes so important? The testes are the male's "sperm factory". The testes will constantly produce sperms that are used in the fertilization of the female's ovum. Without the testes, no sperm will be produced, therefore, reproduction will not take place.

Next, I will explain the importance of the epididymis. The epididymis acts as the "storage room" of the male's reproductive system. It temporary stores the sperm and the muscles in the epididymis will then contract and ejaculate sperms. Without the epididymis, sperms cannot be ejaculated, therefore, reproduction also cannot happen.

Next, I will explain the importance of the sperm duct. The sperm duct will transport the sperms from the epididymis to the urethra. Without the sperm duct, sperms also will not be ejaculated and therefore, reproduction also cannot happen.

Now I will move on to the glands. So we have the seminal vesicles, prostate glands and lastly the cowper's glands. So what does each of these glands do? The seminal vesicles will produce seminal fluid that are alkalic and will neutralise acidity in the female reproductive tract. The prostate glands will activate sperms and allow them to swim freely. Lastly, the cowper's glands will nourish the sperms with nutrients, allowing the sperms to be able to stay alive for a long period of time in the female reproductive system. Without these glands, the sperm will not be able to stay alive in the female's reproductive system long enough to fertilise the ovum.

Now I will move on to the last major part in the male reproductive system, the penis. The penis will erect when stimulated and will be the part that is inserted into the female's vagina and deposit the sperms. Without the penis, sperms will not be able to be deposited into the female's reproductive system.

Next, I will go on and explain to you guys the importance of each part in the female reproductive system. So let me start with the ovary. The ovary, similar to the testes of the male reproductive system, acts as a "factory". However, the difference between the ovary and the testes is that the ovary produces ovum MONTHLY. Another difference is that the testes produces sperms in large amounts at once, however the ovary produces the ovum ONE every monthly. Similar to the testes, without the ovaries, no ovum will be produced and therefore, reproduction cannot take place.

Next up, the oviduct. So why is the oviduct so important? The oviduct (a.k.a fallopian tube) will transport the ovum from the ovary to the uterus. The fertilisation of the ovum also takes place here. The fallopian tube is muscular and have strong contractions. Since the ovum is immobile due to its large size, the fallopian tube therefore serves as a "push". The strong contractions will move the ovum to the uterus. Without the fallopian tube, fertilisation cannot take place and the ovum also cannot be transported to the uterus. Hence, reproduction cannot happen.

Next will be the vagina. The vagina will be the place where the sperms are deposited during sexual intercourse. The vagina acts as a "connector" between the male reproductive system and the female reproductive system. Without the vagina, reproduction cannot happen as the sperms are unable to be deposited and the ovum in the female reproductive system cannot be fertilised.

Lastly, I will explain the importance of the uterus. The uterus (a.k.a womb) is the place where the fertilised ovum will develop to form a baby. It is muscular and elastic in order to push the foetus out when giving birth. Without the uterus, the fertilised ovum cannot develop and the foetus cannot be given birth.

In conclusion, this ends off my post on the importance of the major parts of the human reproductive system. There are still many parts that contributes to human reproduction, for example, STI and how it affects the foetus' growth and the human's reproductive system. Just a quick summary of this post, Human reproduction consists of the Male reproductive system, mainly made up of the testes, epididymis, sperm duct, different glands and the penis. There are still some parts that I did not state in this post (for example, the vas deferens) , but these are the major parts of the male reproductive system. Following it is the female reproductive system. The female reproductive system is mainly made up of the ovary, oviduct, vagina and the uterus. The female reproductive system is less complicated as compared to the male reproductive system in all.

Reflection:

I find that Biology, as compared to the other subjects, are much harder. There are many things that we have to study and most of the information cannot be get from just one source. Also the points that we have got to interact recently are strangers to us. For example, in our primary schools, we just got to know the basic parts in the human reproductive system. However, now, we have to learn so much more than most of us have expected and we have to get the information from different sources. However, the easy part of Biology is that we just have to memorise the points and we can score. Most of the stuffs, unlike physics and chemistry, are straightforward. As long we get the points correct, then we can score.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 2 Learning Points 2

Hi all,

Now I will be telling you guys about Acids and Alkalis.

So what are acids and alkaline?

Acids are substances that when dissolved in water, produces hydrogen ions as the only ions that are positive. They are also substance that are under pH of 7

Alkalis on the other hand are metal hydroxide that are soluble in water and produces hydroxide ions. They are also substances that are over the pH of 7.

This doesn't ends the definition of Acids and Alkalis.

Acids and Alkalis are further split into few parts: Strong & weak acids, Strong & weak alkalis.

Strong Acids

Strong acids ionises completely in water to produce Hydrogen ions. The water then contains a very high concentration of ions which will mean the solution is a good conductor of electricity. Some examples will be HydroChloric acid (HCl), Nitric Acid (HNO3).

Weak Acids

Weak acids do not ionise completely in water to produce hydrogen ions. Therefore, the solution will contain low concentration of ions which tells us that the solution is a poor conductor of electricity. Examples of weak acids will be ethanoic acid (CH3COOH) and citric acid (C6H8O7).

Strong Alkalis

Strong alkalis, similar to strong acids, ionises completely in water to form ions. However, instead of hydrogen ions, they form hydroxide ions. An example of strong alkalis will be sodium hydroxide (NaOH).

Weak Alkalis

Similar to the weak acids, weak alkalis do not ionise completely in water to produce hydroxide ions. Examples of weak alkalis will be ammonia (NH3) and pyridine (C5H5N)


So here, I guess some of you may have heard of bases. So what are bases... Bases in simpler terms are substances that form salt and water ONLY when reacted with acids. These substances are the oxides or hydroxides of metal, while on the other hand, alkalis are the hydroxide of metals. However, ALL alkalis are bases BUT not ALL bases are alkalis. So why is this so?

Bases are also known as substances that are able to accept H+ ions. However, that defies the OH- rule of alkalis. But if the base contains OH- ions, the base will also be referred as an alkali. With this, I will give an example of a base that is not an alkali, ammonia (NH3).

Enough said, I will now move on to the next point of acids and bases, how do they react to other substances.

NOTE that the salt I write below is not table salt, sodium chloride.

Acids + bases -> salt + water

Acids + metals -> salt + hydrogen

Acids + carbonates -> salt + water + carbon dioxide

Lastly, before I end off, some of you may ask, how do we differentiate between acids and alkalis and how do we test for them. We can test for acids and alkalis using litmus paper. Litmus paper contains 2 colors, blue and red. The blue paper is treated with a base and the red paper is treated with an acid. Therefore, when used to test for an acid, the blue paper will turn red while the red paper remains red. Vice versa, when used to test for alkalis, the blue paper remains blue while the red paper turns blue. We can also use methyl orange and phenolphthalein to test for strong acids and strong alkalis respectively.

In conclusion, this ends off the topic on acids and bases. Just a quick summary of what I have written. Acids are substances that are lower than pH 7 while bases are higher than pH 7. Alkalis are bases but not all bases are alkalis. Acids will also react with substances to form products.

Reflection:

I feel that this topic is very fun and interesting as most of the time when we are learning this topic, we stayed in the Science Laboratory and we had the first-hand experience of seeing the substances reacting and form products. We also got to taste some acids and alkalis, and feel them. I remember we tasted HCl and it was very sour as well as very spicy. Acids and bases is therefore a very exciting and interesting topic.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 2 Learning Points 1

Hi people,

Once again, I am back with now, what I have learnt during Term 2. So for Term 2, we had learnt about Chemical Bonding, Acids and Alkaline and lastly, Sexual Reproduction.

Here let me explain to you guys what is Chemical Bonding.

As you have read one of my previous posts, where I introduced chemical elements to you all, Chemical Bonding will therefore, mean bonding of difference chemical elements. So how do these chemical elements bond? There are 2 main types of chemical bonding, namely ionic and covalent bonding. Now let me further explain to you guys, what really are them

Periodic Table


Once again back with the periodic table, I shall now break the periodic table into 2 main parts, the metal elements and non-metallic elements.

As seen from the above periodic table, the BLUE part is the metal elements and the PINK part is the non-metal elements. The GREEN part is also known as the metalloids which are neutral. Therefore, we can conclude that the majority of the elements are metals. Since we have known this, I shall move on to the next part, the bondings.

Noble gas

Noble gas are chemical elements that has low chemical reactivity. They are normally chemical elements that have electrons that fills up the whole circle. An example will be lithium with 10 electrons, filling up the first and second circle.

Ionic Bonding


Ionic Bonding is formed through metal elements and non-metal elements. For example, lets take sodium chloride (NaCl) which is our table salt as an example. Sodium is a metal while chlorine is a non-metal. Sodium have a total of 11 electrons and 11 protons while chlorine have 17 electrons and 17 protons. In ionic bonding, the 2 elements will "give" their electrons therefore, Sodium will become 1+ and Chlorine will become 1-. This is so as when sodium gives chlorine 1 electron, it will become positively charged by 1 while chlorine on the other hand when received the electron, will become negatively charged by 1. Therefore, these elements will allow each other to become noble gases.

Covalent Bonding


Covalent Bonding is formed through 2 non-metal elements. For example lets take water also known as H2O as an example. Hydrogen is a non-metal and Oxygen is also a non-metal. Hydrogen has 1 electron and 1 proton while oxygen had 8 electrons. And in covalent bonding, the 2 elements that are present will "share" their electrons. Therefore, in order for the elements to become a noble gas, 2 Hydrogen will be needed to merge with oxygen to form H2O. During this process, neither party loses nor gain electrons, therefore, no elements will become negatively or positively charged.

Equation Writing


After we have known what is chemical bonding, we also have to know how to write a balanced chemical equation. Using H2O again as an example, H2 + O = H2O. This is an example of a balanced equation. But if I multiply the number of H2 by 2, and write it 2H2 + O = H2O, the equation will not be balanced as 2 hydrogen molecules will be lost. Therefore, I will have to write it as 2H2 + O2 = 2H2O. This will form another balanced equation again.

With this, I end what we have learnt for chemical bonding and equation writing in Term 2.

Here is a short summary on Chemical Bonding and Equation Writing.

Chemical Bonding is split into 2 different types of bondings namely, ionic and covalent bonding, and ionic bonding is between a non-metal chemical element and covalent bonding is between 2 metal elements. And to form a noble gas, a balanced chemical equation will be needed.

Reflection:

I feel that this topic is rather boring yet confusing at times. This is so as when you bond chemicals, you have to fully understand the periodic table and know it well enough before you can know how many atoms of that chemical is needed to form a noble gas. However, it gets boring after a period of time as when you have fully know the bonding process and the periodic table itself, it will become very easy. Therefore, I feel that this topic is rather challenging at times yet, gets boring after a long period of time of getting exposed to chemical bonding.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 2 Sabbatical: MacRitchie Trail

Hi readers,

Today we went to MacRitchie to have a trail during our sabbatical. In this trail, we had learnt the biodiversity in MacRitchie as well as the forms of sports that we see in MacRitchie and how does it affects the biodiversity.

So firstly, we had great explanations by the guide that guided us through the trail, Ms Grace Leng. We went through almost half of the MacRitchie Reservoir and through this trail, we have seen the wide biodiversity, ranging from animals to plants. Also we got to see the pollution from the activities of mankind to the reservoir.

Firstly, I will be talking about that wide range of biodiversity there. We got to see the Tembusu tree, one of the significant trees that we do see in Singapore. When we went, we got to see the tree bloom, and the flowers gave off a very fragrant smell, which we got to know from the guide and also had a first-hand experience in smelling it. It gave off a sweet scent. This Tembusu tree, based on the guide, is also found on the back of Singapore's $5 dollar note. Next we also got to see animals such as monkeys, as well as some marine animals. All these contributes to the biodiversity in MacRitchie. However, there are also human activities around MacRitchie that affects the biodiversity.

The activities in MacRitchie that we had seen are kayaking, jogging, and also people feeding the animals there.

Firstly, kayaking is a great sport for people to exercise there. It is good for the health of humans. However, it also can be detrimental to the environment. This is so as when people kayak, they will also pollute the water, as when they kayak, the waves may push the dirt under the water and pollute the water.

Next, Jogging is also a very good exercise that can train your body. However, it may cause the biodiversity there to die off, as when the people jog, they might unknowingly step on some plants, take for example, grass. When these grass are stepped on frequently, they will die off. Therefore, jogging may be detrimental towards the biodiversity. However, if carefully look on, it will be a win-win situation, where the person benefit physically and the biodiversity do not get destroyed.

Lastly, we also saw people feeding animals there. This is a very serious case and should be taken into great consideration... So why do these people want to feed. They might feel that feeding is not wrong as they are giving the animals food to eat, so they will not need to find food, and also maybe face competition with the other animals. They might also think that this is a form of "good deed". However, unknown to them, after these animals are used to be fed by these people, they might be used to these people feeding them and hence, lose their ability to find food and also be over-reliant on humans to feed them. And when humans do not feed them, they will then try their best to steal food from the humans, and inevitably, this will cause the humans to get injured during the process. And if animals like monkeys scratch a human, that person may have a risk of being infected with AIDS.

In all, I felt that this trail was very enriching as well as good for us to learn about the positive and negative impact of humans activities on the rich biodiversity in MacRitchie, and also the reservoirs in Singapore. And also I STRONGLY recommend all who had not joined this trail to join as it is fun yet enriching.

Images time!

Term 1 Reflections

Hi everyone,

I am once again back, now giving you guys my reflections.

So yeah, I feel that this term was rather enriching and innovative, with Ms. Nada being our Science Teacher for the year.

This term was fun! During lessons, we had jokes making the class laugh. Everyone had fun! During practicals, we learnt and once again had fun! For example, we were told to hold a piece of Magnesium ribbon to burn over the Bunsen Burner. The suspense created by Ms. Nada when she introduced us to this made us even more curious to see the result of the experiment. The result of this experiment was that a very sharp and bright light was produced. That light was actually Magnesium Oxide (MgO). When this light was produced, everyone went "WOAH....' and that was very surprising for us who had not really done a successful experiment before.

Next up, I will be reflecting on my grades.

This term, I had gotten an A2. I felt that I do not deserve this grade as I could had gotten an A1. If I had put in more efforts and studied, I would be able to get 1 more mark, allowing me to get an A1, putting me into a situation where I could have the possibility of getting an exemption, which means I do not need to take the final exam for Science. Also, I felt that I do not deserve this grade as this term was very easy. This is so as Chemistry compared to Biology and Physics, is more of common sense and pure reading and memorising. If I had spent more time reading up my notes, I would not have gotten only an A2! Therefore, I rather regretted my actions of not studying until the last minute which caused my grades. However, with this failure, this would serve as a reminder for me to study even harder, so as to score well for the next test, which might help me in my marks.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan

Term 1 Learning Points

Hi readers,

Today I will be telling you guys what have I really learnt throughout this long period of 10 weeks?

So what have I really learnt throughout this 10 weeks? As said earlier in this post, I have been learning Chemistry for this term and what we have learnt during this 10 weeks is mostly about the periodic table. This periodic table allows people to know the number of protons, neutron number, atomic mass, etc. of the elements. So using the table below as an example, we can see that Hydrogen (H) have 1 proton with a atomic mass of 1.0079. Since the equation of atomic mass is equal to Protons + Neutrons, we can therefore say that Hydrogen have 0.0079 neutrons. And lastly, the electrons. The number of electrons in a element is equivalent to the number of protons in the element, therefore we can once again say that Hydrogen have 1 electron.



Now let me explain to you all the difference between electrons, protons and neutrons. These are actually quite self-explanatory but nevertheless, let me introduce to you all.

So firstly let me start with the neutrons. As seen from this word, most of us will link it to the word 'neutral'. And bingo! Neutrons are neither positively nor negatively charged, making it neutral.

Next, let me introduce to you all protons. So what are protons? Protons are positively charged (+). And just to add on, neutrons and protons adds up to the atomic mass of the element (stated above) and the atomic mass is also known as the nucleon number. Also protons and neutrons are found in the nucleus of the element.

Lastly, the electrons. Electrons are negatively charged (-). They also orbits around the nucleus of the element. So how are they arranged? They follow an order, just like the planets orbiting around the Sun. In the orbit, there are many circles. So in the first circle, nearest to the nucleus, there will be 2 electrons. In the following 2 circles, there will be 8 electrons. In the fourth circle, up to 18 electrons could be fitted inside. Beyond that, the number of electrons that could be fitted will be rather complicated, therefore, we will stop at the fourth circle.

This ends what we have learnt in Term 1 for Lower Secondary Science. So just a quick summary of what I have learnt for Chemistry in this term.

I have learnt about the periodic table and how to identify the protons, neutrons and electrons of a specific element using the periodic table. I also learnt what are protons, electrons and neutrons and how are the electrons arranged in the element.

Thanks,
Aloysius Chan