Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions
- Submitted by: mariel
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- Category: Science
- Date Submitted: 02/07/2010 07:39 PM
- Pages: 5
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During the last one hundred years, the human race has experimented with many endothermic and exothermic reactions to further advance our civilization. Examples of exothermic reactions are the use of nuclear bombs and cigarettes. An example of an endothermic reaction is a chemical ice pack. There are other examples of endothermic reactions, such as the evaporation of dry ice and photosynthesis (chlorophyll is used to react with carbon dioxide plus water plus energy to make glucose and oxygen). We have used most of these reactions and many more in our every day lives.
The most important and influential exothermic reaction of our century was the use of nuclear weapons in WWII. The United States Government began the serious operation known then only as "The Manhattan Project.” The most complicated issue to be addressed in making of an atomic bomb was the production of ample amounts of "enriched" uranium to sustain a chain reaction. The bomb killed men, women, and children aimlessly. It killed both military personnel and civilians. On August 6 and 9, 1945, the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed by the first atomic bombs used in warfare. Nagasaki has never been subjected to large scale bombing prior to the explosion of a nuclear weapon there. While the damage from these few bombs were relatively small, it created considerable concern in Nagasaki and a number of people, mostly school children, were evacuated to rural areas for safety, therefore reducing the population in the city at the time of the nuclear attack.
The impact on the environment was that the explosion of a nuclear bomb over a target such as a populated city would lead to immense and severe damage. The degree of damage would depend upon the distance from the centre of the bomb blast, which is called ground zero. The closer one is to ground zero, the more severe the damage.
Beyond the immediate blast area, casualties are caused from the heat, radiation, and fires produced from...
The most important and influential exothermic reaction of our century was the use of nuclear weapons in WWII. The United States Government began the serious operation known then only as "The Manhattan Project.” The most complicated issue to be addressed in making of an atomic bomb was the production of ample amounts of "enriched" uranium to sustain a chain reaction. The bomb killed men, women, and children aimlessly. It killed both military personnel and civilians. On August 6 and 9, 1945, the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed by the first atomic bombs used in warfare. Nagasaki has never been subjected to large scale bombing prior to the explosion of a nuclear weapon there. While the damage from these few bombs were relatively small, it created considerable concern in Nagasaki and a number of people, mostly school children, were evacuated to rural areas for safety, therefore reducing the population in the city at the time of the nuclear attack.
The impact on the environment was that the explosion of a nuclear bomb over a target such as a populated city would lead to immense and severe damage. The degree of damage would depend upon the distance from the centre of the bomb blast, which is called ground zero. The closer one is to ground zero, the more severe the damage.
Beyond the immediate blast area, casualties are caused from the heat, radiation, and fires produced from...