I need a really hard science question for my teacher?

Question

Hi, my chemistry teacher is offering a ton of extra credit for a scientific question that he cannot answer. Please stay away from philosophical and controversial topics, like creation or the big bang. also avoid the questions with "who cares" answers, like "how far is pluto from the sun", in other words, don't give me questions with huge numerical answers. the question can have to do with any field of physical science. Thanks! Austin

Answer 1

In college organic chemistry I was taught that the Friedel-Kraft synthesis can only occur "dry"( no water), and at high pressure and elevated temperature.

When I went to work as a chemist at a chemical refinery they made dodecylbenzene in the Friedel Kraft synthesis at atmospheric pressure ambient temperature and a generous slug of a water solution of a chemical catalyst. This combined benzene(from coking ovens) and dodecene. The resultant was fractionated to recover benzene,  intermediate, dodecylbenzene and "bottoms" of overreacted materials. Research provided commercially usable products from most of these.The dodecylbenzene is the main ingredient in household detergents.

Why was the commercial reaction  possible when the labs and books say no.

Answer 2

What is the shape of the nucleus of an aluminum atom?

Why does U238 fiss, but U235 doesn't?

Why is there anything?

Why, not how much, does light bend when it hits a prism?  

Answer 3

There are some therories on this, but he probs wont know all because he teaches chemistry. Just ask him what caused the earth's axis to become tilted in relation to the orbital plane (the path it takes round the sun) Thats a hard one

Answer 4

How many genes make up the human genome?

I believe the answer is about 25000