We have all grown up being taught that oxygen is necessary for life to exist on this planet. We have been taught that oxygen is what we breathe and that is what keeps us alive. I chose to revolve my project on rather the evil side of oxygen; mainly on free radicals, antioxidants, and aging. Free radicals are either a molecule or an atom which have an unpaired electron on their outer orbit. Since these molecules and/or atoms are deprived of an electron; they tend to "steal" an electron from surrounding molecules within our body. According to researches it has been found that free radicals speed the process of aging .The free radicals related to our biological system are called reactive oxygen species (ROS). These ROS cause damage to cells within our body. Some parts of our bodies fight the free radicals with the use of antioxidants, however some parts do not. Antioxidants are known as substances which help remove damaging reagents by giving the free radical an electron. Antioxidants are very stable hence by donating an electron they do not become a free radical themselves. The mitochondria are seen to be the site of production of ROS, hence the mitochondria DNA (mtDNA) is very likely to be damaged. The mitochondrial DNA in our body do not have a mechanism that fights the ROS. Damage caused to the mtDNA causes the cells to become functionless and eventually cause them to die. Such simply increases the rate of aging, and it also increases the risks of getting diseases. Aging is known as a natural process in the life of humans; however free radicals are an important contribution to this process. I incorporated all this information in my art work with the use of apples. I used the decaying apples as a form of comparison to human aging. When we humans are exposed to an environment filled with antioxidants, we are likely to age at a faster rate, slowly lowering our life span. I added the oxidized vitamin C reaction, which is donating its electrons to the free radicals, to show that even in the presence of antioxidants, the apples will still decay; they won't help stop aging, yet will only slow the process. I've used arrows to show that the free radicals attract the free electron. To emphasize that the radicals are evil, I put little devil ears on the free radical molecules, and I put them on cloud structures to show that they can be present in the air as well. I also used the colors red and black for the radicals, to emphasize they are bad and contribute to the aging process. On the contrary, I used a bright purple along with a light shade of pink to frame the vitamin c reaction because I wanted to emphasize with these colors that currently they are the only "good" substances helping slow the process of aging. The use of the apples can also be related to show how even though apples are rich in antioxidants, they still tend to decay in a matter of time, we humans are no different, we may have mechanism which try to fight these radicals, however we are still likely to age.

Organic chemistry plays a vital role in our everyday lives, it is the study of carbon or simple can be said as a study of life. This course contains many relates to reactions, molecules and substances which in one way or another relate to our every day household products. By house hold products I mean, shampoo, insect repellents, pain killer, and so on. This course also has relevance to medicine, drug productions and etc. In our bodies, the DNA, proteins, and carbohydrates are all organic compounds they are made of C-H bonding. These are vital for life.