CHEMISTRY READING Written by Joe Schwarcz Translated by

CHEMISTRY READING Written by: Joe Schwarcz Translated by: 師明睿 By: CHAN MAN YU (18) ZHEUNG TSZ KI(21) MOK TSZ KI (28) YIU FOR YUI (33)

Introduction Why we’ve chosen this book? We took a glimpse on its content page and found the titles of the short stories are very attractive. Also, it is understandable. Therefore, we chose this book as our study. What is the book about? The book has a total of 67 short stories which introduce the daily application of chemistry. It points out our common misunderstandings. We’ve chosen 4 interesting stories. The content of the stories will be discussed in further details in the following pages.

A. Chinese Restaurant Syndrome —No MSG allowed Summary The story points out the common misunderstanding made by people towards MSG

MSG—monosodium glutamate (An ionic compound) THEREFORE, The ionic bond in MSG is between this molecule and sodium Molecular formula

Application Why does glutamate increase our desire of intaking more food? REASON ONE 4 Tastes Sweetness Saltiness Sourness • Sensitive glutamate receptors in our brains HOWEVER, when our tastecarries buds excitatory get in touch with • Glutamate effect THEREFORE We can feel the taste of: When we are consuming MSG, It excites us to consume more food REASON ONE Umami! t u l G Bitterness e t a am

REASON TWO • Pancreas excretes insulin to lower the blood sugar level after consumption of food back to the optimum level • Many glutamate receptors in pancreas When we consume glutamate in the form of MSG, Over-stimulation in the pancreas results • Excessive insulin decrease in the duration of time to lower the blood sugar lever • Feel hungry easily THEREFORE It creates artificial hunger

Misunderstanding on MSG Even… n i k s n o y g Aller e h c a Head Naus ea Obes ity However, there actually lots of food containing glutamate Food containing glutamate THEREFORE, an appropriate consumption of MSG is totally safe

Inspiration • Acknowledgment of the importance of knowing chemistry and science • A better glimpse into our lives • Using a scientific perspective to look into a problem and give a solution

B. Eating chalk makes you healthy—Calcium Summary The story explains the advantages of calcium and the problems of taking not enough calcium

• An excessive consumption of lead and magnesium may encourage people to commit crimes (lead-crime hypothesis which has symptoms including depression, nervousness, irritability) • Calcium can lower the absorption rate of lead and magnesium THEREFORE, Consuming adequate calcium can lower our offence rate

Inspiration Calcium is important for our health People nowadays can achieve the daily demand of calcium more easily when compared with the past Not enough calcium can lead to different calcium-deficiency diseases such as osteoporosis and rickets (bone tenderness, dental problem and muscle weakness) We can take in calcium from different sources of food such as milk products, fish and nuts

C. Be dead and alive again — puffin fish Summary This story explains why people will ‘die’ after eating puffin fish

Puffin fish contains Tetrodotoxin caused paralysis selectively blocking sodium ion channels in the membranes of excitable cells (that is neurons). can paralyze the nervous system of people blocks motor neuron pathways to skeletal (voluntary) muscles. cage-like compound 86%

D. Drinking tea help prevent cancer— ECGC Summary This story explains the advantages of drinking tea Tea contains small amounts of theobromine and theophylline (stimulants) and xanthines similar to caffeine.

the catechins are mostly converted to theaflavins and thearubigins. via polyphenol oxidases. EGCG • reduce blood cholesterol levels, both total and LDL • have been found to act on numerous points regulating cancer cell growth, survival, and metastasis, other diseases such as obesity or Alzheimer's disease Theaflavin • no beneficial effect in lowering blood cholesterol levels

Theobromine also found in cocoa and chocolate weaker in both its inhibition of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases and its antagonism of adenosine receptors. lesser impact on the human central nervous system than caffeine. As with caffeine, theobromine can cause sleeplessness, tremors, restlessness, anxiety, as well as contribute to increased production of urine. it is a myocardial stimulant as well as a vasodilator, it increases heartbeat, and also dilates blood vessels, causing a reduced blood pressure.

• Our daily drink can affect our health. • I found that if you have gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD), be more cautious about what you drink. It is concerned that drinking coffee and tea together can cause heartburn and aggravate acid reflux. THEREFORE Drinking tea is good, but it doesn’t only bring good deeds

Comments This book increases our interests on Chemistry as it raises lots of issues about it using a different perspective. Not only about theories but its practical usage in our daily lives. HOWEVER, We think the writer could try to explain a bit more since sometimes we could only get a rough idea. In macro-view perspective, we still want to recommend this book to our classmates!

THANKS!