Acids in the news.

(a) Chemists often talk about the United States senator who addressed the public about acid rain and said: “I too abhor the effects of acid rain and I pledge the United States Senate will fight to reduce acidity of rain until pH is zero!” Is battling acid rain by reducing the pH a good idea? The story would be particularly good if it were true, but thankfully it is a myth.

(b) “Anger: an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured” is a quotation attributed to Seneca, a Roman philosopher, in the mid-1st century a.d. Do you think Seneca was referring to a strong acid, a weak acid, or something else?

(c) Use the Internet and other resources to find the origin and common meaning of the phrase acid test.