Abstract

There is a considerable gap between the memorization of chemistry concepts and how those seemingly strange ideas actually interact with and create the world around us. Our project, CheMix, is a chemistry-based simulation in which the user combines elements and subatomic particles to create their own world. This allows them to understand how particles, elements, molecules, and physics - all concepts that are hard to visualize - manifest themselves in the physical things that they can see and understand - things like stars, planets, water, land, life, etc. The user will be guided by a cartoon character, Mr. Atom, through the process of dragging and dropping smaller particles to create larger, more relatable pieces of the universe. The simulation will also feature a two-dimensional interface and a toolbar to make it user-friendly. All in all, our project, CheMix, meets a real need in bridging the gap between education and understanding.