High school chemistry: What is it? Can I be good at it?

academics chemistry
By Niyi

High school chemistry

The word “chemistry” inspires so many emotions. To some, it brings about the excitement of mixing together glowing liquids and crafting the perfect radioactive potion that, when consumed, will turn you into the Incredible Hulk. To others, it’s discombobulated numbers and letters on a piece a paper in a classroom, a concatenation that strikes fear and anxiety into the bravest of students. I mean … it looks like a foreign language!

So, what exactly is high school chemistry? Why do I need to study it? Is it for me? Can I be any good at it? What are the chances I can actually get superpowers? Well – let’s try to answer some of these questions in this post.

What is chemistry?

In high school, I honestly had no idea what to expect from chemistry. I knew it had to do with molecules, atoms, and mixing things together in silver flasks that could blow your hair away. I remember walking into my first real chemistry class my sophomore year in high school and seeing four Erlenmeyer flasks on my professor’s desk. The first flask had a green liquid in it; the last flask had some amount of clear liquid. The middle two flasks probably had a couple drops of a clear liquid in them as well. We sat down and watched the professor pour the green liquid into one of the middle flasks and watched it magically turn pink! She then took that pink liquid and poured it into the next flask – it magically turned blue! She ended by pouring the blue liquid into the last flask and having it return back to pink! I was amazed and curious: how did the liquid change colors?! This was the start of my fascination with chemistry.

This experiment, moreover, emphasizes what chemistry really is: an understanding of molecular properties and how they interact, combine, and change the world we see around us in spectacular ways.

Can I be good at it?

YES! Do you remember riding a bike for the first time? How about running your first 5k or finally learning how to play your favorite song? Whatever the case, no matter how big or small, we have all had that moment where we worked hard at something that we wanted to be good at. We all remember that feeling of “finally getting it.” Chemistry is just like that! At first it will seem strange and uncomfortable. But, I promise that if you work at it, have fun, and see how important each topic is to everyday life, you can, and will be, AMAZING at chemistry.

Will I get super powers?

Will you turn into the Incredible Hulk? Okay, maybe not. But, will you learn how chemistry can be used to make a superhero difference in the world? 100% yes.

Comments

topicTopics
academics study skills MCAT medical school admissions SAT expository writing college admissions English MD/PhD admissions strategy writing LSAT GMAT GRE physics chemistry math biology graduate admissions academic advice ACT interview prep law school admissions test anxiety language learning premed MBA admissions career advice personal statements homework help AP exams creative writing MD study schedules test prep computer science Common Application summer activities history mathematics philosophy organic chemistry secondary applications economics supplements research 1L PSAT admissions coaching grammar law psychology statistics & probability legal studies ESL CARS SSAT covid-19 dental admissions logic games reading comprehension engineering USMLE calculus PhD admissions Spanish mentorship parents Latin biochemistry case coaching verbal reasoning DAT English literature STEM excel medical school political science skills AMCAS French Linguistics MBA coursework Tutoring Approaches academic integrity chinese letters of recommendation Anki DO Social Advocacy admissions advice algebra art history artificial intelligence astrophysics business cell biology classics diversity statement gap year genetics geometry kinematics linear algebra mechanical engineering mental health presentations quantitative reasoning study abroad technical interviews time management work and activities 2L DMD IB exams ISEE MD/PhD programs Sentence Correction adjusting to college algorithms amino acids analysis essay athletics business skills careers cold emails data science dental school finance first generation student functions graphing information sessions international students internships logic networking poetry resume revising science social sciences software engineering tech industry trigonometry writer's block 3L AAMC Academic Interest EMT FlexMed Fourier Series Greek Health Professional Shortage Area Italian Lagrange multipliers London MD vs PhD MMI Montessori National Health Service Corps Pythagorean Theorem Python Shakespeare Step 2 TMDSAS Taylor Series Truss Analysis Zoom acids and bases active learning architecture argumentative writing art art and design schools art portfolios bacteriology bibliographies biomedicine brain teaser campus visits cantonese capacitors capital markets central limit theorem centrifugal force chemical engineering chess chromatography class participation climate change clinical experience community service constitutional law consulting cover letters curriculum dementia demonstrated interest dimensional analysis distance learning econometrics electric engineering electricity and magnetism escape velocity evolution executive function freewriting genomics harmonics health policy history of medicine history of science hybrid vehicles hydrophobic effect ideal gas law immunology induction infinite institutional actions integrated reasoning intermolecular forces intern investing investment banking lab reports linear maps mandarin chinese matrices mba medical physics meiosis microeconomics mitosis mnemonics music music theory nervous system neurology neuroscience object-oriented programming office hours operating systems