[Q]: I read this background article the other day: Alkali, or Alkaline, soils are clay soils with high pH (> 8.5), a poor soil structure and a low infiltration capacity. Often they have a hard calcareous layer at 0.5 to 1 metre depth. Alkali soils owe their unfavorable physico-chemical properties mainly to the dominating presence of sodium carbonate, which causes the soil to swell[1] and difficult to clarify/settle. They derive their name from the alkali metal group of elements, to which sodium belongs, and which can induce basicity. Sometimes these soils are also referred to as alkaline sodic soils. Alkaline soils are basic, but not all basic soils are alkaline. I am facing a new situation today: Two brothers have a piece of land each, situated 2 miles from each other. Jim's land is not very fertile because it has clay soil with a high pH, while Bob's land has very fertile soil and has a good productivity on it. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which of the two pieces of land has a high filtration capacity?
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[A]: Bob's

[Q]: I read this background article the other day: To determine the concentration of an acid in an aqueous solution, an acid-base titration is commonly performed. A strong base solution with a known concentration, usually NaOH or KOH, is added to neutralize the acid solution according to the color change of the indicator with the amount of base added.[7] The titration curve of an acid titrated by a base has two axes, with the base volume on the x-axis and the solution's pH value on the y-axis. The pH of the solution always goes up as the base is added to the solution. I am facing a new situation today: Due to increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere more an more carbon dioxide is mixing with ocean water - thus increasing the acidity of the world's oceans. Rob is a climate scientist. He is measuring the acidity of the Atlantic ocean and the Pacific Ocean. To determine ocean water acidity he performed an acid-base titration. His conclusion is that Atlantic Ocean's acidity reached higher level than Pacific Ocean's acidity. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Whould Rob have to add more base or less base for Pacific Ocean's acidity test?
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[A]: less base

[Q]: I read this background article the other day: When the temperature of reactants is higher, the rate of the reaction is faster. At higher temperatures, particles of reactants have more energy, so they move faster. As a result, they are more likely to bump into one another and to collide with greater force. For example, food spoils because of chemical reactions, and these reactions occur faster at higher temperatures (see the bread on the left in the Figure below ). This is why we store foods in the refrigerator or freezer (like the bread on the right in the Figure below ). The lower temperature slows the rate of spoilage. I am facing a new situation today: Rob is a chemist with a pharmaceutical company. He is trying to devise a technique that would be able to control chemical reactions. For that, he conducted two tests. In the first test, he used warmer reactants. He called it reactant A. In the second test, he used cooler reactants. He called it reactant B. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Would particles would collide with smaller or greater force in reactant A than in reactant B?
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[A]: greater

[Q]: I read this background article the other day: Electrons can be removed from some objects using friction, simply by rubbing one substance against another substance. There are many examples of objects becoming charged by friction, including a rubber comb through hair, and a balloon on a sweater. In both these instances, the electrons move from the second object to the first, causing the first object to become negatively charged and the second one positively charged. Friction between the tires on a moving car and the road cause the tires to become charged, and wind causes friction between clouds and air which causes clouds to become charged and can result in tremendous bolts of lightning. I am facing a new situation today: Weather patterns in two cities are rather different. Much to the dismay of many residents of the town, the weather in Smallville is often windy and cloudy. Citizens of Klangton are much happier since they rarely experience heavy winds and generally only have a couple clouds in the sky. Their weather is almost always sunny with almost clear skies. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Does Smallville get more or less thunderstorms than Klangton?
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[A]:
more