Wednesday, March 18, 2020

The making of Mr Putin essays

The making of Mr Putin essays In order to ask the question who is Putin, it is first necessary ask what is a politician and what do we really know about any of them. The article The Making of Mr. Putin, discusses the fact that what we know about Russians President is filtered. The images we see, the stories we read are all strategically placed to create a certain image of the leader of the Russian state. These images are supposed to play on the emotions of the voters. The qualities that are emphasized and presented are those desirable by the majority. In essence, Putin is a public figure for a force much greater than himself. Hes the front man of a group of people whose interests lie in ruling the state and deciding in what direction the country should go next. It is pointed out, that Putins goal while growing up was to work for the KGB, a very secretive, powerful, efficiently functioning part of the Soviet state machine. He set this goal for himself early in life, found out what had to be done to accomplish the goal, and did it. It is my opinion that everyone wants to have some power. The extent of the desired power depends on a persons determination and character. Putins determination and qualities required to join the KBG are, in my opinion, what got him to where he is today. The conditions of life and government changed, so he adjusted, keeping some the previously learned tactics, which he could use to his advantage. The article mentions several times Putins lack of leadership experience. Until he was introduced to the Russian people by Boris Yeltsin, he worked in highly controlled positions where his every move was dictated by someone else. I wonder if that has changed simply because he is now the President. It is my opinion that no one person can be the leader of an entire State. Yes, he does have the title, but does that mean that everything that happens within the new Russian regime is decided by Putin. I do not ...

Monday, March 2, 2020

Equilibrium Constant Kc and How to Calculate It

Equilibrium Constant Kc and How to Calculate It Equilibrium Constant Definition The equilibrium constant is the value of the reaction quotient that is calculated from the expression for chemical equilibrium. It depends on the ionic strength and temperature and is independent of the concentrations of reactants and products in a solution. Calculating the Equilibrium Constant For the following chemical reaction:aA(g) bB(g) ↔ cC(g) dD(g) The equilibrium constant Kc is calculated using molarity and coefficients: Kc [C]c[D]d / [A]a[B]b where: [A], [B], [C], [D] etc. are the molar concentrations of A, B, C, D (molarity) a, b, c, d, etc. are the coefficients in the balanced chemical equation  (the numbers in front of the molecules) The equilibrium constant is a dimensionless quantity (has no units). Although the calculation is usually written for two reactants and two products, it works for any numbers of participants in the reaction. Kc in Homogeneous vs. Heterogeneous Equilibrium The calculation and interpretation of the equilibrium constant depends on whether the chemical reaction involves homogeneous equilibrium or heterogeneous equilibrium. All of the products and reactants are in the same phase for a reaction at homogeneous equilibrium. For example, everything could be a liquid or all the species could be gases.More than one phase is present for reactions that reach heterogeneous equilibrium. Usually, only two phases are present, such as liquids and gases or solids and liquids. Solids are omitted from the equilibrium expression. The Significance of the Equilibrium Constant For any given temperature, there is only one value for the equilibrium constant. Kc  only changes if the temperature at which the reaction occurs changes. You can make some predictions about the chemical reaction based on whether the equilibrium constant is large or small. If the value for Kc is very large, then the equilibrium favors the reaction to the right, and there are more products than reactants. The reaction may be said to be complete or quantitative. If the value for the equilibrium constant is small, then the equilibrium favors the reaction to the left, and there are more reactants than products. If the value of Kc approaches zero, the reaction may be considered not to occur. If the values for the equilibrium constant for the forward and reverse reaction are nearly the same, then the reaction is about as likely to proceed in one direction, and the other and the amounts of reactants and products will be nearly equal. This type of reaction is considered to be reversible. Example Equilibrium Constant Calculation For the equilibrium between copper and silver ions: Cu(s) 2Ag ⇆ Cu2(aq) 2Ag(s) The equilibrium constant expression is written as: Kc [Cu2] / [Ag]2 Note the solid copper and silver were omitted from the expression. Also, note the coefficient for the silver ion becomes an exponent in the equilibrium constant calculation.