Projects, Lessons, Activities (Page 61)

Stop Slumping: What Makes Foams Stand Up Straight

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Here's a riddle for you: What would a latté be without a froth of bubbly milk on top? Answer: Black coffee! And how about a pumpkin pie without the whipped cream? Answer: Sad. Delicious, edible foams are everywhere, from sodas, meringues, and soufflés to mousses and whipped creams. They provide a delicious, spongy contrast to the foods they accompany, and their airiness releases aromas that enhance the eating experience. So, what makes a good foam? One with high volume and lots of… Read more

Storytelling Alice: Once Upon a Time in a Computer-generated Land...

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Up. What do these Pixar films have in common? They are all computer-animated films. While the writers and directors came up with the compelling stories and the kinds of scenes that would best tell the stories, the computer animation experts brought the films to life. In this computer science project, you will easily be able to create your own animated story using a simple computer programming environment called Storytelling Alice. To create your animation, you will… Read more

The Science of Spin: How Does Spin Affect the Trajectory of a Kicked Soccer Ball?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Imagine a symmetrical grid of nine points superimposed over the ball. Kicking the ball squarely on the center point imparts no spin, but kicking on any of the other points will impart spin on the ball. How will the resulting spin affect the trajectory of the ball for each of the 8 outer grid points? Kicking the ball with a sliding motion of the foot is another way to impart spin. Once you've made your predictions, you can set up to test them with a soccer ball, video camera and a tape… Read more

Think Fast! Measure Your Reaction Time!

STEM Activity

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45 reviews

‘Think fast!’ someone says, as they toss a ball toward you. You catch the ball, but do you really ‘think’ about doing it? Probably not! Most likely you raise your hands to catch the ball without ever consciously thinking about it. How does this happen? Lucky for you, your brain is able to react to things in your environment without you having to consciously make a decision about how to react. There are many ways to measure the speed of this type of reaction, and in this… Read more

Transforming Bacteria to Make Colored Pigments

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Can bacteria be altered to produce life-saving insulin for diabetics? Or change color to indicate the presence of a harmful toxin? Yes, it can! Using biotechnology, scientists work daily on problems like these. It starts with selecting a gene you want bacteria to produce and creating a sequence of DNA that has that gene and a promoter that will help express it at the right time and at the right levels. The next hurdle is actually getting this engineered DNA into the bacteria and… Read more

Try the Mythbusters' "Phone Book Friction" Experiment at Home

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever heard that two phone books with the pages interleaved are impossible to pull apart? This might seem crazy, right? It is not that hard to slide a sheet of paper off the top of a stack of paper. How much friction can there really be between sheets of paper? In this experiment, you will use pads of sticky notes instead of phone books. How much weight can they support when you interleave the pages? Do you think you will be able to pull them apart by hand? The results might surprise… Read more

Understanding Wolf Behavior from GPS Tracking Data

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

If you were leaving home for a long walk, how far would you go? One mile, 5 miles, 10 miles? How about 550 miles?! That's a long way, but some wolves have been known to travel that far when they are leaving their packs in search of a mate so they can form their own pack. But is that how far wolves normally travel? Try this wild wolf tracking science fair project to find out! Read more

Use a Catapult to Storm Castle Walls

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You may have seen movies or read books where armies in medieval times catapulted large rocks or other objects at castles (or each other!). These armies used different types of catapults to accomplish different goals — for example, launching things over or into castle walls to knock them down. In this experiment, you will use a ping-pong ball catapult to lay siege to a "castle" and find the right settings to hit your targets. Read more

Use Super-strong Magnets to Make a Simple Motor

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

In this science project, you will build what might be the world's simplest motor. It has just four basic parts: magnets, a battery, a screwdriver, and a short piece of wire. It takes only minutes to assemble, but it provides a wonderful device to explore how electricity and magnetism combine to produce a fast-spinning motor. Read more

What Makes the Rings of Saturn?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Saturn is a unique planet because of the many beautiful rings surrounding it. How are all of those rings made? Why is each ring unique? Read more

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