Chemical Equilibrium
This project was done in order to get a better idea about what chemical equilibrium is. The project itself was a research project about some topic that we individually chose. I decided to go with the effects that stress has on the body and on the brain. We had to create a document with all of the resources that we used to get information from about the chemistry in our topics. In the end, we had to post what we made about our topic somewhere as social media. That could be either on the internet or something physical that is passed around. I chose to write my research out on a sort of forum website called Reddit for my project.
My project: https://www.reddit.com/r/ScienceFacts/comments/4l3amm/stress_throws_the_body_out_of_equilibrium_and_too/
My project: https://www.reddit.com/r/ScienceFacts/comments/4l3amm/stress_throws_the_body_out_of_equilibrium_and_too/
My Supporting Document:
Concepts
Chemical Equilibrium: This is the main subject of our project. In chemical reactions, this is a state in which there are forward and reverse reactions and that these reactions go at equal rates. In my subject it was very challenging to find any kind of equation that would go forward and reverse because many of the occurrences due to stress are irreversible and the body falls in and out of equilibrium constantly. For example, once stress is detected, the hypothalamus sends out corticotropin-releasing hormones. It is impossible for the hormone to do the reverse reaction and trigger the hypothalamus to retract the hormone. I did find that the hormone cortisol ends up increasing blood sugar levels. Insulin, another hormone, does the opposite and decreases blood sugar levels when they are high. In this way there are forward and reverse reactions for blood sugar that are affected by stress.
Le Chatlier's Principle: His principle shows how chemical reactions can be predicted when they are at equilibrium. He saw that when these chemical equations are subjected to any form of stress on one side, he could predict which reaction would be favored. In my project the chemical equilibrium equation is more like two equations. Once stress is detected by the brain cortisol is eventually released and that increases blood sugar. The sugar is glucose that flows through blood that can be used by cells. So the first equation is:
Cortisol -> glucose. The reverse reaction is from another hormone insulin, which creates cells that use up glucose, thereby reducing the amount in the blood. The second equation is: Insulin -> cells. With Le Chatlier's principle, stress, which would likely be form concentration, affects what reaction will be favored. An increase in the concentration of glucose due to cortisol will favor the reverse reaction with insulin that reduces glucose in the blood. An increase in the concentration of stress favors the forward reaction, creating more glucose.
Le Chatlier's Principle: His principle shows how chemical reactions can be predicted when they are at equilibrium. He saw that when these chemical equations are subjected to any form of stress on one side, he could predict which reaction would be favored. In my project the chemical equilibrium equation is more like two equations. Once stress is detected by the brain cortisol is eventually released and that increases blood sugar. The sugar is glucose that flows through blood that can be used by cells. So the first equation is:
Cortisol -> glucose. The reverse reaction is from another hormone insulin, which creates cells that use up glucose, thereby reducing the amount in the blood. The second equation is: Insulin -> cells. With Le Chatlier's principle, stress, which would likely be form concentration, affects what reaction will be favored. An increase in the concentration of glucose due to cortisol will favor the reverse reaction with insulin that reduces glucose in the blood. An increase in the concentration of stress favors the forward reaction, creating more glucose.
reflection
This project was not exciting, but it was interesting by the end. I got to learn about something that I cared about and I found it rather interesting. I liked all of the responses that the body has to stress and how that affects the body in weird ways like lowering the immune system response. Some cons with my project were that it was challenging for me to find a good equation at equilibrium. I also was confused at the beginning of the project, which hurt my productivity. Some pros with my project were that I ended up finding really good chemistry and biology behind the minute details of the effects of stress. I also began to get more efficient with my research once I understood what I was doing more and more.