I started walking Solano Ave. in the fall of 1994 in pursuit of much-needed
steady exercise to improve my health, both physical and mental. I had
discovered Pennie at Gathering Tribes several years before when she was on the
western part of the Avenue, and had often stopped in to purchase some of her
lovely jewelry. Then, in October of 1995, reluctant to move along, I glanced
at the case of fetishes. I had always regarded collecting things as being a
waste of time and money, to say nothing of more stuff to dust. But the label
"Mole" caught my eye, and, to my astonishment, I discovered that the Zuni
artists carve small figures of moles!
In my chemistry classroom at Piedmont High School in Piedmont, CA, is a
bumper sticker that reads "A Mole is a Chemist's Best Friend." My students
are given patterns of moles and encouraged (in a contest) to make a mole
mascot. Over the years, the students have come up with some wonderful
creations, once, a Bevis and Butthead pair, another, made of a pumpkin, and
this year, a Chelsea Clinton Stanford mole, complete with blond wiry hair and
a red "S" on her sweatshirt. Often, the ever-popular road-kill mole is
submitted for judging.
So why is a mole a chemist's best friend? Well, atoms and molecules are so
very small that the only way you can measure how many are in a small quantity
of matter is to use a new unit, which we call a mole (from molecule, I
believe), abbreviated mol. It is the chemist's version of a dozen, only our
mole is equal to 6.02 x 1023! That's a little more than 6 followed by 23
zeroes! And that's the number of molecules found in 18 milliliters of water,
or 12 grams of carbon, or 32 grams of oxygen gas, and so on. So, we can say
that in one mole of H2O (water) there are 2 moles of hydrogen atoms and one
mole of oxygen atoms. We have to make all measurements in grams (or liters)
of matter, but all calculations must be done in terms of moles. Yes, I know
I've lost many of you; just trust me that we must utilize this concept to
understand what is going on in our study of the behavior of matter.
Because the mole is a tough concept for kids to get, we teachers try to bring
a little fun into the classroom by referring to the animal. There is a
National Mole Day Foundation, Inc. that promotes the celebration of National
Mole Day on October 23, from 6:02 a.m. until 6:02 p.m. annually. Many
schools make a big deal out of it, from making and decorating mole cookies,
to making up mole poems, etc. I even heard a commentary on All Things
Considered about this day on NPR last Oct. 23!
My own collection is now at 51 moles. I have been reading books, trying to
learn more about them and the artists who carve them. I am now in the
process of writing an article for the National Mole Day newsletter, and I
really want other chem teachers to join me in making their own collections.
I think it is very important to show our students the wonderful diversity in
culture, art, and beliefs. I have weighed all my moles, and with my small
collection of mineral books, have identified the chemical formulas of the
minerals of most of my collection. A few substances, such as jasper and
sandstone are a mixture of minerals and do not have single formulas.
However, turquoise is composed of copper, aluminum, phosphorus, oxygen and
hydrogen in a complex formula I won't bother with here. The lovely blue
color is due primarily to the copper. But, between the formula and the grams
of the fetish, my students can calculate the number of moles (and therefore
the number of atoms) in the fetish. Gold compounds are red; red stained
glass is very expensive because it has gold ions in it, so it was no surprise
to me that gold slag is also red, and I love to pass around my gold slag mole
carved by Evalena Boone in my classroom. My first mole purchase, a small
turquoise one, carved by Marlo Booqua, rides in my car in front of the
instrument panel of my '95 aqua Integra. My license plates are MOL TREK.
Marlo Booqua's 6-Direction Mole
1-1/4X1/2"
The mole is a protecting and hunting animal of the underground. I have also
read that it is a symbol for the hidden bounties of the earth, sensitivity
and love as expressed in nature. It is telepathic, guarding, nuturing, and
holds up the world, as in the Six-Direction jet mole I purchased that was
carved by Jayne Quam. It has the 5 other directional animals attached to its
back, representing the 4 directions, plus overworld and underworld. I can identify
with all of that!
Related Sites
American Chemical Society.
The American Chemical Society was founded in 1876 and is a not-for-profit
organization. It is the world's largest scientific society and has a membership
of over 155,000 chemists and chemical engineers. The American Chemical Society
was chartered by a 1937 Act of the U.S. Congress. The Society is recognized as a
world leader in fostering scientific education and research, and promoting
public understanding of science.
