IMPORTANCE OF CHEMISTRY FOR KIDS
Chemistry is of vital importance to us. Practically there is no human activity that is possible without it. If you observe your daily activities closely then you will find that you are using so many things that are there only due to the knowledge of chemistry.
Some of the products or items which represent the importance of chemistry in our daily life are listed below –
- Tooth-brush and toothpaste for brushing teeth
- Soap for bathing and bucket for storage of water
- Cosmetics like – combs, powders, creams, moisturizers, perfumes, nail polishes, etc., for grooming
- Clothes to wear
- Gas for cooking food
- Metals like – iron, copper, brass, steel, etc., for making utensils and other household items
- Toys and sports items for playing
- Fuel like – petrol and diesel for driving vehicles like – cars, trucks, airplanes, trains, etc.
- Medicines for keeping us healthy
- Electronic items like – television, refrigerator, air conditioner, mobile phones, laptops, etc.
The above list is never-ending, but the main areas that find uses and justify the importance of chemistry are as follows-
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MAJOR FIELDS/AREAS WHICH JUSTIFY THE IMPORTANCE OF CHEMISTRY
1.0 Agriculture
We all need food to survive. The food supply to any society entirely depends on agriculture. However, with the increase in population, the pressure on farmers is increasing day by day to produce more food. Chemistry plays an important role in increasing food production. It provides farmers with better quality seeds and chemicals like –
- Fertilizers that make the soil fertile,
- Insecticides, pesticides, and fungicides protect crops from insects, pests, and fungi.
2.0 Extraction of Metals
Man needs a variety of metals such as iron, gold, steel, brass, aluminum, copper, and silver for making various items like – utensils, vehicles, tools, machines, buildings, factories, etc.
Metals are mined from the earth, but it does not offer them in their pure form for direct use. It gives us in the form of ores. Ore is a type of rock that contains particular metals along with several other substances like clay, sand, etc. Thus, we need to extract pure metals from its ores. Chemistry helps us in this extraction. The importance of chemistry in the process could be understood by the fact, that all the steps required for carrying out extraction are developed using knowledge of chemistry.
For example, if you want to make a wire of copper, then first you have to find a copper ore and from it, you will extract pure copper for making wire. An ore of copper contains a mineral called copper sulfate. Copper sulfate dissolves in water to form an aqueous solution which, when reacted with pure iron, forms pure copper.
3.0 Cosmetics
Cosmetics are those items that we use for grooming ourselves, like – powders, creams, moisturizers, deodorants, perfumes, soaps, shampoos, lipsticks, nail polish, etc. All these items are the result of chemistry. Chemists made all these products after years of research and careful observations of various substances. The importance of chemistry in manufacturing cosmetics could be understood by the simple fact that cosmetics wouldn’t have existed without its knowledge.
4.0 Medicines
There is no need to explain the importance of medicines to anyone. We all need them to keep us healthy and disease-free, but without chemistry, there wouldn’t be any medicines. It helps us in carrying out medical tests to find a reason for our bad health and the discovery of new medicines.
To understand the importance of chemistry in the field of medicine, consider this example,
In ancient times, during surgery, people use to suffer a lot of pain as they stay well awake at the time of the surgery. But, nowadays surgeons use anesthesia – which makes patients unconscious at the time of surgery. Chemistry played an important role in the discovery of anesthesia.
5.0 Fuels
Chemistry provides us with different types of fuels. Fuels are of great importance because they release a large amount of energy on burning. We use different types of fuels such as petrol, diesel, kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), etc. for different purposes.
The uses of different types of fuels are listed below-
- Light vehicles like cars, motorcycles, etc., runs using petrol & CNG.
- Heavy vehicles and machines like trucks, buses, ships, cranes, generators, etc., uses diesel.
- Airplanes use kerosene as fuel.
- LPG for cooking food.
All the above fuels are present in crude oil. Crude oil is a complex mixture of several substances and chemistry plays an important role in the separation of various fuels from crude oil.
6.0 Textile
Chemistry helps us to make artificial fibers like nylon and rayon. These fibers are used today as an alternative to natural fibers like cotton and silk. Chemistry also helps in making dyes that add color to clothes. The importance of chemistry could be judged by the fact, that without it we all would have been wearing clothes of the same color.
IMPORTANCE OF CHEMISTRY IN OTHER FIELDS/AREAS
1.0 Electronics
Chemistry research has provided us with special materials such as silicon and germanium which are widely used for making television, computers, laptop, etc.
2.0 Plastics
Plastic a result of chemistry is such a versatile material that we can practically do anything and everything from it. Buckets, bottles, storage boxes, toys, bags, etc. all are of plastic.
3.0 Building Materials
Basic raw materials such as cement, steel, glass, paints, etc. used for making houses, buildings, bridges, roads, etc. are there only due to the knowledge of chemistry.
4.0 Sports
We use gifts of chemistry like rubber, leather, plastics, metals, and fibers for making sports goods such as rackets, balls, nets, skateboards, etc.
5.0 Defense
The importance of chemistry in defense can be understood by the simple fact that all the weapons such as missiles, bullets, bombs, etc., use explosives which are the result of chemistry. Explosives are chemical substances that give a huge amount of energy in the form of heat, light and sound on burning in a very short interval of time.
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