Extra Credit: Cat Chemistry- Would Your Cat Eat This Stuff?
The following are the listed ingredients for Puss'n'Boots Pounce (Shrimp
Flavor) Treats for Cats:
Flour, liver, dried whole egg, glycerin, pregelatinized wheat flour, shrimp byproducts, wheat gluten, torula dried yeast, calcium sulfate, cheese meal,
phosphoric acid, animal fat (preserved with butylated hydroxyanisole,
otherwise known as BHA), potassium chloride, salt, potassium sorbate (a
preservative), wheat middlings, color, choline chloride, calcium carbonate,
ferrous sulfate, vitamin E supplement, zinc oxide, BHA ( again!), cupric
oxide, cobalt carbonate, manganous oxide, vitamin A supplement,
potassium iodide, D-calcium pantothenate, vitamin B-12 supplement, vitamin
D-3 supplement, water sufficient for processing.
Purpose
The purpose of this extra credit activity is to analyze food labels for inorganic
compounds, to gain practice writing and recognizing ionic compounds and converting
between chemical formulas and chemical names. A table of commons ions is attached for
reference.
Primary Learning Outcome
1. Students should learn to be critical thinkers and analyzers of food labels, and
recognize that not all chemicals are bad.
2. Students should learn to be organized in their presentation of information.
Procedure
1. Find food labels in the grocery store, drugstore, and/or at home for inorganic
compounds that are formed from the common monatomic and polyatomic ions found
on the attached reference table. –Ic or –Ous endings: The –ous ending of a metal is
for the lower charge of the metal and the –ic ending is for the higher charge of the
metal.
2. You may not use Pounce Puss n Boots as a product.
3. You must provide labels of all compounds found in the chart. Make copies of the
labels or attach the original copy of the ingredients to a separate sheet of paper. Circle
or highlight the compounds that you are placing in the chart.
4. Complete the data table with your findings. For each correct chemical name/formula,
you will earn ½ point. The Compound Name column must be listed in alphabetical
order and a compound can only be used once even though it might be found in more
than one product.
5. You may turn in as many compounds as you like but total extra credit value is not to
exceed 10 points.
Due Date: Monday, October 21st