Environmental Chem C

[AlchemyRocks]

i heard that echem might be combined with science crime busters...anyone explain that?

This is just a guess, but maybe solving enviornmental crimes, like dumping waste in water, or poluntants in soil, or something along those lines?

[oh joy]

ah... i see

[Phenylethylamine]

i heard that echem might be combined with science crime busters...anyone explain that?

They were going to, but all mentions of that disappeared a while ago. The only remaining effect that Envi Chem seems to have had on Crime is the addition of some sort of water testing part. I'm not certain, though; I'm in C now, not to mention that I don't even have a rulebook (yet) .

[ScienceIsMyLife]

They havent updated the information on soinc.org....I mean, is the topic changing for this year or what?

[SOM.is.my.life]

I think they are the same this year. you know the usual. The rules doesn't seem that different.

[puscat]

Can somebody please explain points g and h of the rules please?

[iYOA]

i dont have a rules book with me right now so about the notes sheet:

is it supposed to be typed, handwritten or either?

[packer-backer91]

Did anyone else get random questions for this event last year? At Michigan's State comp last year they gave us a soil sample to do and some questions were just on balancing chemical formulas (like Combustion, Acid&Bases, and some identification of formulas). What kinds of other questions did others get at your state comps?

[packer-backer91]

i dont have a rules book with me right now so about the notes sheet:

is it supposed to be typed, handwritten or either?

This is how I interpret the rules that it can be anything as long as its one sheet of paper. The rules would have said that it must be handwritten if that is what they wanted.

[peoneill]

I'm running chem lab and environmental chemistry at the Indiana state tournament this year.

@puscat: I think g and h are quite valuable (those are the sections about stoichiometry, balancing reactions, dilution, concentration, etc. right?). For one thing, LOTS of topics in soil testing, soil pollution, remediation of soil pollution, plant nutrition cycles, etc. are quite difficult to discuss with any scientific sophistication if you are unable to reference concepts like concentration, balanced reactions, dilution, and other basic chemistry. If these topics aren't in the rules than event coordinators who are really trying to stick to the rules (there are some of us, I promise) are forced to operate under the assumption that students shouldn't be punished for being ignorant of them.

I also think this year's rules are massively improved, if not still a bit vague.

You know there was this fantastic trial event (written by Caitlyn Smith, a Carmel High School, IN alumna) called "Disaster Downstream" that was essentially an environmental forensics event. It was almost disease detectives-ish in that it mimicked the types of problems that a large group of science professionals actually work at on a daily basis. She wrote it before either forensics OR environmental chemistry had ever been topics! She had been basing it off of what she felt were seriously limitations of the old "Water Quality" event. It was super cool! I'm pretty sure it's dead now, but it was worth a shout out. It was a GREAT event and it's unfortunate it wasn't more popular during the trial process.