In our lives, we can often find items that can be used as alternative instruments for chemistry experiments. Here are some of the items and their possible alternative uses:
1. Medicine spoons and small spoons: medicine spoons are often used to pick up monosodium glutamate (MSG) in cooking, so they can be used as an alternative to small spoons for picking up small quantities of medicines in chemistry experiments.
2. Heating devices: While alcohol lamps are used for heating in laboratories, electric heaters can also provide heating at home and can be used as an alternative to alcohol lamps.
3. Beakers: Although glass beakers are not specialized chemical instruments, they are similar in shape and texture to beakers and can be used to temporarily hold medicines or as reaction vessels.
4. Syringe: this common medical tool can be used to measure the volume of liquids because of its graduated scale and liquid manipulation function, thus replacing a measuring cylinder. It can also be used to draw or drip liquids, acting as a dropper.
5. Dispensing funnel: the syringe has a control switch that controls the addition of liquids, which is similar to the function of a dispensing funnel, so it can be used as its temporary replacement.
In our daily life, we can even do some simple chemistry experiments. For example, the process of making homemade tofu involves steps such as soaking, grinding, pulping, and coagulation, while heating to a specific temperature and adding a coagulant (e.g., gypsum water) is a coagulation process similar to the one used in chemistry experiments. Another example is the extraction of acid-base indicators from flowers, which can be obtained naturally by grinding and filtering the plant for testing the acidity or alkalinity of different substances.
These alternatives and experimental methods are not as accurate as professional laboratory equipment, but they allow us to experience and understand the principles of chemistry in our daily lives and bring scientific knowledge closer to life.