Where did u go?

if you found the mass spectrometer hard in chemistry you really are going to struggle.....

What's a mass spectrometer?

Uhm, that's a little hard to explain. Basicly a mulecule is split into several ionized parts. Those parts are shot away and are given a sideway push. I believe then the heaviest molecule-parts are pushed harder and by the place where they land you can determine the weight. If you know the weigths of the molecule-parts you can puzzle the whole molecule together. For example if you have a part weighting 17u it's OH and the molecule has an OH group.
I'm not really sure about this explanantion but I believe it works this way.

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No idea what that's got to do with - they don't teach that here at 7th form level....

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Hmm.... I have used a machine where there's a bright flame burning, and you put a tube into a beaker of an aqueous solution and you can work out its content by the colour and other data the thing gives you - no idea what its called - J?

Arathorn, yeah that's basically right. Particles are ionised, then accelerated around a magnet, the weight of the particles depends on how far the get deflected, hence when either moving the detector or changing the strength of the magnetic field you can work out the mass of the particle being detected.

Inqui, i have used one of those, but it was at a Uni open day, and i can't remember what it was called. Had something to do with chromotography though

A bright flame? remember we worked with something called AAS -> atomic absorption spectrometry or something (i think), could be something like that?

mass spectrometers and puzzling structures together aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah(runs away crying, traumatized)

Yea - it was at a uni open day too Fran...

Still never heard of the mass spectrometer though...

Doesn't matter. As long as you can work with the results. You get a graph with for every possible weight of an ionized part how much was found, you puzzle a bit and you know from what parts the molecule is made, a little more puzzling and you have the molecule.

On topic....i went to check today, and apparently i passed this year. Don't know my exact grades tho, that'll be a few more days.

Anyways...it's good i passed..if not it'd been working time for me. It's about time i finished my "candidate" years anyways. Now let's hope i do less than 5 years over my next 2 year studies.

I can't believe you get so many chances at doin the year....if we fail first time we have to resit the entire year. If we fail again you get kicked out

And if you pass most of the year but fail like one section, they make you do another exam in it but this time the grade boundaries are much higher

Plus in my course even my first year exams count towards my final result, even if it is only 1/9th of the total course mark, i still have to work hard all 4 years...

Aww.... poor fran...

Jesus christ, what school are you attending?

How are you supposed to party when you can't fail stuff? That means either you don't have a life in 4 years, or the lessons are easy, and i'm betting on the former, which is the least fun.


And what's with the friggin "counting points from previous years in"? omfg...That's not moivational, that's destroying young hopes. I'm gonna do scratch effort until i reach my final year where i will try and prolly get (if i may be so bold) a great distinction, cos that's the only thing that'll show on my diploma. Hell, maybe i'll even do a doctorate, it's real relaxed (i should know, all the ppl i started out first with have graduated a year ago lol), and what else would i do anyway?

As for my doing 4-5 years over the normal 2: it's not "allowed" here either. You can do one year thrice, and 4 years in total over the two years. But i forged my application this year a little so they would allow me. Like they're ever gonna check up on that. Oh, and last year i had to do psychological tests to see if i wasn't a)insane b)stupid or c)totally apathic. Those tests rocked man!

The word "rofl" comes to mind Rinox....

hell the pass rate is 40%.....i think i can manage that one really

and did you ever get the results of those psychological tests then?