The Flock Clock

February 6, 2011

Mike Rigsby headshotby: Mike Rigsby

Drinking Bird, Educational InnovationsThe normal way to operate a drinking bird is to have him dip his head in water.  The water on his felt head evaporates, leaving the head cooler than the bird’s body.  The liquid flowing into the upper bulb (head) changes the center of gravity, causing the bird to tip forward.  Liquid flows back to the bottom bulb and the bird returns to his upright position.  As long as an adequate temperature difference (head cooler than body) remains, the cycle will repeat.

Instead of cooling the head, why not warm the body?  If you place an electrical resistor below the bird’s body and pass current through the resistor, the resistor will get warm.  The warmth will cause the bird to bob. Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a Comment » | College level, energy, experiments, High School level, Physics | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor

How Do Tides Affect Marine Animals?

January 18, 2011

Dr. Helen Pashleyby: Dr. Helen Pashley

Objectives:

1.    Students will brainstorm factors that might affect an animal living on the seashore at high and low tides.

2.   Students will identify strategies that shore animals use to survive conditions at low tide.

3.   Students will design an experiment to test whether the strategy adopted by their simulated shore animal would be effective in helping it survive low tide.

Focus Question:

How do marine animals survive low tide?

Background:

The seashore is an inhospitable place for marine animals to live. Seawater has much less temperature variation throughout the year than air.  In other words, during the summer in New York it can be 98˚F but the sea isn’t much warmer than 75˚F. In the depths of winter it can be –10˚F on land, but the water will be 48˚F. Animals that spend all their lives out at sea have a fairly steady environment. Those that are exposed to air at low tide, may face broiling hot temperatures in summer and freezing cold temperatures in winter.  They may be soaked in fresh water when it pours with rain, and pounded by rough waves during a storm. Animals that can survive on the shore have to be tough! Read the rest of this entry »

1 Comment | Biology, Elementary level, experiments, Middle School level | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor

Science Corner Investigation: Mirrors

January 13, 2011

Gordon Goreby: Gordon Gore

Mirror Investigation #1

You Need

2 small, flat plastic mirrors, with suitable vertical supports, 1 piece of plain white paper, letter size

What to Do

1. Hold the mirror vertically. Look into the mirror. Touch your right ear. Watch what the good-looking person in the mirror does. Which ear does he or she seem to touch?

2. Write your first name on a piece of paper. Look at your writing in the mirror. What is ‘unusual’ about what you see? Write your name so that it looks ‘right’ in the mirror.

ambulance3. Notice how AMBULANCE is written.  Why is it always written this way on the front of the emergency vehicle? Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a Comment » | Elementary level, experiments, Middle School level | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor

No-Pop Bubbles!

December 3, 2010

Ron Perkins, Educational Innovationsby Ron Perkins

At first glance No-Pop Bubbles may seem like any other bubbles.  While the bubble solution is a bit more viscous, one blows No-Pop Bubbles like any other bubble.  The small bubble wand suspends a bubble film which, when air is blown through it, releases small bubbles into the air.

These bubbles, however, are no ordinary bubbles.  No-Pop Bubble solution begins as a regular soap and water bubble solution.  Added to this solution is a small amount of a non-toxic water soluble polymer.  When No-Pop Bubbles are first blown, the bubbles behave like ordinary bubbles.  As the water evaporates from the bubble’s surface, however, an extremely thin plastic ‘bubble skeleton’ remains.  It is this plastic bubble skeleton which has the properties for which No-Pop Bubbles are named. Read the rest of this entry »

6 Comments | Chemistry, density, Elementary level, experiments, High School level, Middle School level, static electricity | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor

The Fire Syringe!

December 1, 2010

Tami O'Connor, Educational Innovationsby:  Tami O’Connor

The fire syringe sold by Educational Innovations is a wonderfully simple, yet impressive and dramatic demonstration that increasing pressure on a gas increases its temperature. Fire Syringe Demo

The fire piston, predecessor to the fire syringe was once used as a means of kindling fire in prehistoric Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands. The apparatus used a hollow cylinder, sealed at one end and open on the other. A piston fit snugly in the cylinder and by sharply compressing the air, the tinder would ignite. This is an example of compression ignition.

This is also the principle behind a diesel engine.  Unlike gasoline engines, diesel engines do not have spark plugs.  Rather, the upward movement of the piston compresses the fuel vapor and increases the temperature to the point of combustion.  That forces the piston down thus turning the drive shaft.

Here is how best to operate a fire syringe:

Place the piston into the mouth of the cylinder and thread the collar back onto the syringe.  Place the syringe on a sturdy table.  Get a firm grip on the handle and force the piston straight down, FAST AND HARD.  The compression of the air causes the temperature of the gas to rise rapidly, igniting the material at the base of the cylinder.  If the compression is done too slowly the heat will dissipate before ignition will occur.  This can take a little practice, so don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t flash the first time you try it.  It may be helpful to prepare a few pieces of toilet paper or cotton fiber in advance. Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a Comment » | College level, High School level, Middle School level, Physics | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Tami O'Connor

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