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From Philip- ...and if that's not the truth, may I be struck by
lightning from the Heavens abo#%!>]>%}&[{]]]]]]]]
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NO CARRIER
I just found your animation page, and I think it's great. There's one
animation trick I used to do as a kid that I think you'll like. It's
essentially a 2-page flipbook made from a single piece of paper folded in
half like a greeting card. The cover of the "card" and the place
where the
message would be each have one of two similar pictures. Something that
shows a simple repetitive motion is best (my favorite is a woodpecker
poised to peck a tree, and in contact with the tree). Roll the
cover
around a pencil so that it's curled enough to see the inside picture. Use
the pencil to quickly roll and unroll the cover. I would sketch the cover
picture, then draw over it hard enough to make an impression on the inside,
and use that impression as a guide for the inside picture. I think it's a
neat trick for those without the time or patience to make a whole flipbook.
Thanks again for a great site.
Cheers,
Tony
I've used a chunk of dry ice about the size of a six sided die to carbonize a 1 liter bottle of water. A concern I might raise is that the dry ice should be food grade if consumption of the desired
liquid is anticipated. You can use fruit juice or some flavored drink
mix to make your own soft drinks. This also works for carbonating wine
to get a sparkling drink....
I like your site... great things for kids to do. a few others:
From Steve
Please mention in your "Home Lab" page, under "Electricity", to have the
power strip mounted above the table top so spilled liquids do not
splash or run into the outlets openings. A "Ground Fault" receptacle
will prevent an accidental electrocution at any rate. These are some
"should haves" that are discussed "after the fact".
Thank you for your attention, and maintaining these wonderful pages
furthering our interest in science.
Hi,
When my daughter was in fifth grade she did a science experiement with three jars
of water and three eggs. One jar was only water and the egg sank. One jar was only
salt water and the egg floated to the top. The third jar was half water and we siphoned
in salt water with a straw, therby, making the third egg float in the middle of the waters.
She won third prize at her science fair and would have gotten first if we had been on
time. She is now a mother herself. We can hardly wait to let her kids do such an
experiment, even if it only at home.
Dear Brian,
I am in sixth grade and we are having a science fair. I would like to do
an experiment with dry ice that I saw on tv. The man blew bubbles over
an aquarium filled with dry ice and fog and the bubbles didn't sink.
they hung in the fog for a very long time.
I have tried this at home and it works the same. I timed how long it
took bubbles to drop to the table without dry ice, over regular ice
cubes and over dry ice. I have all my data and information, but....
I'm not sure how to explain what happened. Why do the bubbles hang in
the fog? Is it because the CO2 is denser?
If you could explain this to me it would help me with the question
section of the science fair.
Thanks for your info. I hope you can help
Evan
Hey Brian I got a blue ribbion! I got the three best scores I could
get. Thanks alot for your help, I really needed it.
Evan
HI,
I`m a 6 grader in Huntsville AL. Every six weeks our teacher makes us do a
science experment. there are 90 people in the sixth grade and after a while
it`s hard to find a good science experment. Your science experments helped
alot. THANKS!
P.S. E-mail me some time.
Read your web page on making fog. Here's a good one for you. You can buy
propylene glycol as "animal-safe automobile antifreeze" or as "RV-water
system non-toxic antifreeze", or the way I get it, as the reagent chemical
from a veterinary supply (ketosis treatment for dairy cattle). One gallon
for something like six bucks. Cheapest way to get "food/medical
grade".
Mix one ounce distilled water with one ounce of propylene glycol. Heat an
old metal pan up until it is about 400 degrees F. Toss the two ounces
into the hot pan. The room will quickly fill with dense white fog, that
is relatively non toxic, and non-staining (fog juice sold for the
commercial fog units is polyethylene glycol, it slimes everything and
never evaporates while proylene glycol quickly eliminates itself). The
refraction index for propylene glycol is very good, and I find it is an
excellent fog to use with lasers for "beam effects". :)
Steve
There is a very beautiful crystal like growth I discovered while
attempting another process that is very easy to produce. They are pale
whitish green in color and have very fragile tendril like protrusions.
I have no Idea what the exact proportions are right now, I have them
written down somewhere...
Ted
you should try making a simple laser show machine with rotating
mirrors...
Try it... its really cool for parties etc.!
Sincerely,
Henrik
Trondheim Young Scientists (Norway)
Q: I am an elementary education student in my
professional semester. Currently I am doing a thematic unit geared
towards first graders on camping. If anyone has any great ideas that
have worked in the past for science and camping I would greatly
appreciate the help.
Thanks.
Sheri
A: Hi Sheri,
There are lots of opportunities to learn some scientific concepts on a
camping trip (if that was your question). Some that come to mind are:
and many more you could spend hours brainstorming.
Thank you for the help. You gave me some great ideas to go on for my
camping unit.
Q: I'm conducting a search for my son's 7th-grade science teacher.
He would like the formula for making glow-in-the-dark paint pigment
and/or the formula similar to that used in the Cyalume (tm) light
sticks.
If you know where I can get these, please respond directly to me via
EMail.
Frank
A: Hi Frank,
The glow-in-the-dark pigment is called phosphorescent Zinc Sulfide. I
will be posting some experiments using this substance soon.
I will also be describing how to make slime (the formula for which is on
my
site) glow in the dark, and react to magnetic fields. I'm working on
these right now; give me a little time to finish.
-Brian
Q: I am interested in experiments you can do with over the counter
medicines or cosmetics. Do you have any idea how to find a site with
this info?
How can we test the effectiveness of allergy medicines?
How could we test the anti-inflammatory qualities of aspirin vs
naprosyn?
How to test cough medicines?
We homeschool and want to do some of these experiments. Any
guidance?
Thanks
A: Not really. I don't think it would be too easy to do the kinds of
clinical trials that the drug companies do. Personally, I would stay
away from these types of experiments.
We're trying to find out how to build a simple motor dc. any suggestions?
Billie
Great website.
I am retired and helping teach science in my wife's third grade class
and assiting in the 4th and 5th. I love the stuff and am always looking
for some way to make education more connected to the real world. Thanks
for putting together all this information.
Tim
Well, thanks for your comments, Tim! I think it's great you are helping
out. And, yes, making education more connected to the world outside of
school is an important thing to do. Best of luck to you and your
wife.
-Brian
Q: I was wondering if you could help. On a recent episode of The Lateshow
with David Letterman a girl did an experiment where she mixed hydrogen
peroxide with a pink coloured liquid. The result was a bright
yellow/green liquid that glowed in the dark.
I was wondering if you knew the other chemical(s) involved besides
hydrogen peroxide that was used - or if you know of anything that will
produce a similar effect.
A: Yes, that is the "Luminol" reaction. I have been planning for some time
to post that one, because I like it
very much. You might be able to find it on the net by searching for Luminol.
Q: Hi I recently visited your webpage, and I didn't find any science
experiments involving the growing of crystals. If you know such a
procedure, or if you know where to find it, I would greatly appreciate
it if you would
let me know. Thanks very much!
Cordially,
Lilly
A: I will have procedures soon. Right now I am growing Rochelle Salt
crystals. There is a good book at your library about this. It is called
"Crystals and Crystal Growing". I have a review of the book on my
website (see "Book Reviews" section). If it isn't at your library, you
can buy it from Amazon by linking there from my book review.
Q: Hi! Love your site. I have a comment and question. Is it possible to
find out about the experiments that are
"talked" about in feedback. Some sound very interesting but I would
need more details, are they written up
anywhere?
I have read that you can purchase sodium carbonate and phenol red from a
Spa store. Are these o.k. to use for
a "kitchen" chemist and is there a list somewhere of chemicals that can
be found at places other than a science
company and that aren't on your chemical list?
Thanks for your time.
PJ
A: Are you referring to Phillip's e-mail, in which he has a
list of fun things to try? Let me know, and I will try to direct you to
more information.
Yes, sodium carbonate is safe no matter what the source. And phenol red
is an indicator that is also safe. The first is for lowering the pH of a
spa or pool,; the second is, I believe, for measuring the pH. Creating a
list of commonly-avaiable chemicals is a great idea. I will
investigate.
-Brian
Q: hello just looking through some of your stuff and i wanted to
say that all your stuff is great.im a 10 year old girl and
alot of my friends think im crazy for liking science so much
but as long
as i like it ill keep on.
Please write back to PaMich.
A: Hi PaMich,
I have a ten-year-old daughter myself.
I'm glad you liked the stuff.
I hope you will do some of the experiments.
If you do, please let me know how you liked them.
Thank you very much for writing.
-Brian
Oh I have. I can't remember whitch ones but I have done a
lot. They haven't all worked but it's still fun and teaches
me more about science. I'm always looking for a new one. My
name is Michelle.
A little advice keep doing all those good
experiments.
PS
write back soon
Hi Brian,
Just found your site...very impressive...I will definitely make use of
it. Please notify me of any updates.
Regards,
Eileen
Q: Hello, my name is Brandon and I am a cadet at the United States Air
Force Academy. As part of a senior design class, I am part of a class
that has been tasked with building focused sound dishes for a children's
museum here in the Colorado Springs area. Right now, we are looking at
ideas for how to go about in constructing these dishes. We are trying
to decide materials, dimensions, etc. The two dishes will be 40-50 ft
apart. We are also looking to see if there are any mathematical
formulas for designing these. Any advice, help, information, or
resources that you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Respectfully,
Brandon
Hi Brandon,
The reflectors you build will look a lot like large satellite dishes. In
fact, used satellite dishes may be the way to go. Be sure that they are
the solid type, not the wire ones.
The form of the curve is a paraboloid of rotation. This form starts with
a parabola, which is a two-ddimensional curve, then rotates it to get
the third dimension.
A parabola has the equation
y=x2/4f
To plot the curve, first decide what "f" (the focal length) is going to
be. I suggest 3 or 4 feet (36 to 48 in.). then plot "Y" values for each
"X" value starting at zero, and continuing to the edge of the dish,
about 50 inches. This will give you half of the parabola.
Now you need a manufacturing technique. You could make a parabola-shaped
template and layup a dish over it. If you have someone skilled in
boatmaking, you could make a mold and build the dishes out of
fiberglass. If not, maybe you can use other materials. Maybe you can
fashion a dish from plastic sheets - thick ones, not "trash bag"
material. Cut the sheets into pie sections and tape or weld them together.
Q: OK, I'm doing a project in biology, and they said to research it some
so any info you can give will help. The question is "Does smell affect
taste?"
Thanks,
Katie
A: Blindfold someone. Then feed them a piece of apple while having them
smell an onion. Report what they describe.
Very nice site Brian! I'm an elementary education major and found some
great info here. Thanks
Q: Hello, My name is Michael Brassil writing on behalf of the Josie True
internship. We are a non-profit group of multimedia students at the
University at Buffalo. We are currently creating a CD-ROM for girls
ages 8 - 11 emphasizing math, science and technology.
Please visit our webpage at Josie
True.
We are trying to incorporate some off-line scientific experiments on our
website. We already have several online activities, but none are very
heavy on content. I was hoping we could incorporate some of the experiments from
your website: Brian's Science Website.
These exercises would be strictly preserved as offline content, not
associated with the cd development, and full credit would of course be
given. Thanks in advance for your cooperation.
Feel free to contact me or the project producer.
A: I replied to this message before, saying, "sure, go ahead", or something
like that.
Today I had the chance to visit your site for a bit, and I
would like to say that I think it's great! I have three daughters
myself, and I am going to
show it to my oldest (age 10) as soon as possible. Great job!!!!
Q: My daughter-in-law is a second-grade teacher and has asked me to perform
some simple science experiments for her class. Can you give me any
hints ? I have printed out your Experiments with Dry Ice
from The
Saturday Scientists and will try some of these.
Thank you,
Richard
A: I enjoy doing the Animation stuff with
the kids. I also enjoy the mini-
maglite experiments, but you need to be able to darken the room, and
work in small groups.
The kids ALWAYS LOVE the dry ice experiments (the
popping film-cans, especially!).
They also quite enjoy making slime.
Q: Do you supply a kit, or the chemicals, to perform the iodine clock
reaction, and, if not, can you suggest a supplier of either a kit or the
requisite chemicals.
Thank you.
Richard
A: I have recently stopped all sales activity on this website, so that I too may enjoy my science hobby.
Try searching for the individual chemicals on ebay or a mainstream science supplier like Tri-Ess sciences in Burbank CA.
Q: I was wondering where I could find science experiments dealing with
mixtures and compounds, or with atoms. Thank you for listening to me and
please write back.
A: The difference between mixtures and compounds is that mixtures can be
separated again by physical means. Compounds must be separated by
chemical means.
This is an indication that the atoms in a mixture are not holding onto
each other, they just happen to be nearby. In a compound, the atoms of
the constituent substances are connected atom-to-atom by chemical bonds.
Chemical bonds are where the atoms either share electrons between them
(valence bonds), or exchange electrons, and are then attracted to each
other by electrostatic forces (ionic bonds).
You can mix sugar and sand together and then separate again by
dissolving out the sugar in water.
You can mix iron powder and sulfur together, and separate it out again
by using a magnet. But if you heat the mixture, the sulfur and iron
combine (rapidly -watch out!) to form a compound, Iron sulfide.
Q: Hi Brian,
I'm a 51 year old kid that has always had a fascination for these
optical devices and the history behind them. Might you know where
original or replicas of these items might be purchased from?
Thanks a lot,
Brian
Have you seen this site?
Van Cort Instruments
Here's another one:
Deutsche Optik
Q: I did the dry ice/35mm film can demonstration for my daughter-in-law's second-grade class and they loved it !!! Do you have any suggestions for other experiments for this age group ?
Thanks
Richard
Q: Hi,
Years ago, probably 60 years ago!, I would get a monthly packet called
Things of Science that was undoubtedly a gift subscription from a
relative. These packets, small cardboard boxes that came in the mail,
were geared toward pre teens. They contained an explanation of that
month's topic, eg. magnetism, and had the material etc with instructions
to perform or build an experiment or working device. I know those
things influenced my subsequent technical career; I can still picture
some of those kits and the subjects. Does anything like Things of
Science exist today?
Your website looks interesting - I haven't explored your links yet but will now.
Thanks,
Ben
A: Hi, Ben,
Yes, I remember Things of Science too. It was pretty terrific.
It was run by a nonprofit organization called Science Service. See http://www.sciserv.org. A brief look
at their website revealed that they
mention Things of Science, but didn't indicate that they are
available.
Science Service
was founded in 1921.
Q: I've been looking for one of "those things" that you picture on the
heading of your home page where light spins the white/black tabs in a
vacuum ball. Do you sell them? Any ideas where to get them?
Tom Gaston
Q: I`ve been reading all the posts for some time now so I thought it was
time I posted in. Now this may be an old chestnut but I need to know
how my radiometer works.
On the bottom is a sticker which says it is powered by the sun, I take
it that this actualy means IR radiation. So why does it spin? I thought
it might be the excitation of air molecules next to the black surfaces
but I`m not real sure.
cheers,
Mike
Q: Yes, it is powered by the kick that air molecules are given by the black
surface. The black surface absorbs more radiation, so is warmer than the
white or silver surface. You can also power your radiometer with hot
water. Try it! Put the radiometer under the tap, and run the hot water
over it. Then, when it's going really fast, switch over to cold water.
The vanes will stop, and start going the other way!
Q: Hi there,
I stumbled upon your site thanks to a search using my Mac's handy
Sherlock. We have a chunk of dry ice and were looking for experiments,
and your page of experiments should keep us busy all morning. And since
we are a new homeschooling family, I'm definitely bookmarking your site
for further science projects and answers to questions.
Glad to have found you!
Jennifer
A: Hi Jennifer,
We are a homeschooling family too. Glad you found us.
-Brian
Q: Hi Mr. Rich,
My name is Salwa and I'm a technical instructor at the IDX Institute of
Technology in Burlington, VT. My group is working on a project called
"Learn to Earn" with highschool kids where we go into a school and have
an hour in every class to get kids motivated about science. Currently
enrollment in science programs in Vermont colleges are very low, and
alot of the technical expertise in the state ends up coming from
outside. This is a chance to bring more Vermont kids into a science
related field.
I saw your very interesting website and I'm not sure if you're still
working on this. However, if you are, I wanted to see if you have any
ideas for an exercise that I can do with the kids to give them a flavor
of what science is about. Each class has about 20-25 students and I have
only one hour to talk, answer questions and do an exercise. So basically
what I need is something that they can do in about half an hour. Any
ideas will be highly appreciated. Thank you in advance and good luck on
your work.
With best regards
Salwa
A: Hi Salwa,
Yes, my site is alive and well. I don't get as
much time as I would like to add to it; I have a large backlog of
experiments to write up for the site. I would like to ask you to help me
prioritize. Look at the following list of experiments that I have done
in an outreach situation similar to yours. If you like the sound of any
of these, I will send you details on how to perform them. The link
is:
Science Outreach.
Good luck, and let me know if
you are interested in more info.
Best regards,
Brian
Dear Brian,
Thanks so much for writing back so quickly. The following sound like
things I'd like to do:
....I'll stop at these three. They all sound interesting. But for the short time frame, something that will need some moving around be fun as well would be ideal. I hope it's not too much of a problem to give me the details on the exercises!
Thanks again,
Salwa
NOTE: THIS IS UNFINISHED, BUT IT MAY GIVE YOU SOME GOOD IDEAS
FLYING ZEPPELINS
Everything you use in the construction of your zeppelin must be as
lightweight as possible. Helium has a lifting power of only 1.06 grams
per liter (helium is 1.06 g/l less dense than air at sea level). For the
gondola frame, I use plastic Flexi-Straws. These are the ones with the
accordion bend near one end that enables you to bend the straw
without it collapsing.
COPYRIGHT © 2000-2004, Brian Wesley Rich
Brian,
The site you have put together is great!!
I'm an educational consultant currently doing work with the Space
Science Lab at Berkeley in conjunction with
the NASA Space Programs. I assist in the development of the educational
components for their educational
outreach program and spend much of my time searching sites for
applicable, practical educational materials.
Your site has these qualities. Thanks for the refreshing change.
The educational outreach programs I have been working with are two
consortiums, SEGway and SECEF.
These consortiums do have some cheap astronomy stuff you may want to
add. The NASA and NASA supported
web sites have tons of science materials, some of it on line and some of
it materials to order. Most of it is free
and what isn't is at cost. SEGway and SECEF web sites have astronomy
lessons, information, activities, labs,
etc. Check the web sites and see if you think this is something that
would fit as one of your links. Good luck, have fun and kudos,
Susan Highlund
Q: Hello Brian,
Do you offer a kit for an oscillating clock demo? I have received a kit
from Flinn Scientific, Inc. in the past. I would like to use a closer supplier.
Your web site has great ideas.
Darren
A: Do you mean clock reaction experiments? I don't have a kit now, but
it is one I have wanted to put together for a long while. I just might
do that, now that someone has asked me.
Just dropping you a note that we "stopped by" looking for info we could
use for a second grader to do a science fair experiment using
electricity. Enjoyed the site. May come again to do some of the
experiments you have listed.
Thanks
the Mandelko Family
Q: I have a question. The discussion is natural gas. Does natural gas get
shipped to homes or businesses in a gas form or a liquid form?
A: Natural gas is shipped to homes and businesses in a compressed,
gaseous state.
Q: Second Question - I am saying, "If you raise the pressure high enough
you can turn anything from a gas form to a liquid form". Is this a
correct statement?
A: No!
It depends on the substance. There is a critical temperature for a gas,
above which you can't make it condense no matter how much you increase
the pressure. For example, Carbon Dioxide has a critical temperature of
31oC. Just below this temperature you can liquefy the gas by
compressing it to about 1,070 psi. Above this temperature you can't
liquefy it at all.
Updated 26 April 2004