Science Buddies Blog (Page 77)

Science and Engineering Activities for the Winter Break (Or Any Time!)

December 19, 2013 11:52 AM

As you prepare for winter break and lots of indoor time with your kids, consider scheduling some time for family science. We have suggestions for fun hands-on science and engineering activities you can do with your kids that might feel a lot like playing or crafting even though there is plenty of science at hand! By this point in the year, you have hopefully nailed down any upcoming gift-giving moments and are ready to kick back with your kids, friends, and family and enjoy the final days of… Read more

Memory Science: Weekly Science Project Idea and Home Science Activity Spotlight

December 19, 2013 10:00 AM

In this week's spotlight: a human behavior science project and family activity that explores memory and how using a mnemonic device can help you remember a string of words or the items in a list. Have you ever used the HOMES acronym to help you remember the names of the Great Lakes or ROYGBIV (or Roy G. Biv) to remember the order of the seven colors in a rainbow? In this science project, you conduct a controlled experiment to see whether or not a mnemonic device makes a difference in… Read more

Football Science: Distance and Field Goal Kicking—Increasing the Odds of Scoring

December 17, 2013 11:30 AM

Making it to the end zone on a last-second Hail Mary pass is one way to score in football, but when it's 4th and 30, a well-executed field goal for three points can be the game-tipping, winning play. What's the secret to a successful field goal? Students can put the science and math involved in one aspect of field goal kicking to the test with a sports science project that places a rubber-band catapult on the field as the team's football kicker. After seeing how your kicker does at varying… Read more

Family Robotics: Toothbrush Bots that Follow the Light

December 12, 2013 10:00 AM

Building light-tracking robots as a family activity lets you and your kids take next steps in electronics and circuitry! My kids and I had a great time over the summer whetting our teeth on basic robotics and electronics by transforming toothbrushes into cute little Bristlebot robots that look and work very much like commercially-available nano or hex bugs. The basic Bristlebots robotics engineering project is a fun hands-on activity and one that works for a wide range of ages. You can… Read more

Science Buddies 2013 Annual Update

December 10, 2013 11:00 AM

Dear Friends and Supporters of Science Buddies, I founded Science Buddies in 2001 with the primary objective of leveling the playing field, enabling every student to succeed with a hands-on science project. With science literacy for all young people as a goal, we take a highly personalized approach, making sure we have engaging content in a wide range of science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines, supporting students at all stages of their projects, and reaching out to as many… Read more

Taste Bud Science: Weekly Science Project Idea and Home Science Activity Spotlight

December 6, 2013 1:00 PM

In this week's spotlight: a human biology and health science project and family activity that encourages you and your family to investigate the science of taste! Do your taste buds differ from those of your friends, siblings, or other family members? Probably! In this project, you conduct a scientific experiment to explore your taste threshold for things that are salty, sweet, or sour. Once you've analyzed your own taste buds, see how other family members and friends… Read more

Sauce Science: Weekly Science Project Idea and Home Science Activity Spotlight

December 2, 2013 8:00 AM

In this week's spotlight: a food science project and family activity perfect for the holiday kitchen! Are cranberries a part of your holiday menu? Does your family like a wiggly, solid cranberry roll, or do you make a looser cranberry sauce. What causes the difference in consistency? In these hands-on science projects, you and your family can experiment to see how cooking time affects the natural pectin in cranberries. From Sauce to Solid: The Science of Cranberry Condiments (full… Read more

How Flaky Are You? The Science of Pie Crust

November 27, 2013 10:04 AM

During the holiday season, pies are front-and-center on the dessert menu. Become the pie-baking champion in your family with this tasty experiment. By Kim Mullin Turning Family Baking into Family Science In the "Perfecting Pastries" kitchen science project, students explore the role of fats in piecrust making. Different fats (and fats at different temperatures) can make a big difference in the texture of the crust. But what about gluten? If your family festivities involve… Read more

Get Your Spud On with Potato Science

November 25, 2013 11:00 AM

Potatoes make a great side dish, but they also make great subjects for hands-on science! Food chemistry, plant biology, and even basic electronics are all on the menu when you experiment with potatoes. By Kim Mullin What is your favorite food on the Thanksgiving table? Turkey with cool cranberry sauce? Pumpkin pie with a dollop of whipped cream? For me, it is creamy, smooth mashed potatoes, piping hot and dripping with extra butter! A South American Treasure South American cultures… Read more

Salty Science: Weekly Science Project Idea and Home Science Activity Spotlight

November 21, 2013 9:00 AM

In this week's spotlight: a food science project or family activity that adds a dash of salt to questions about health and nutrition. The salt in your family's table shaker may be iodized because iodine is an important micronutrient that not everyone gets naturally in the foods they eat. To help prevent iodine deficiency, many salts contain added iodine (in the form of iodide). Not all salts are iodized, however. In this pair of projects, families experiment to see which salts contain… Read more

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