Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hi, my name is Alexander Branigan and I am doing a Science Fair Project at All Saints Catholic School.

May I have your permission to interview you?
Thank you for your help.


Topic- Filling makeshift lightbulbs with different gasses to see how it affects how bright it shines. (makeshift lightbulb found at http://invention.smithsonian.org/center ... ulb_01.asp)

Please answer the following questions:


When did you first become interested in this topic?

Can you please tell me what interested you about this topic?

What are some of the most important things you learned about this topic?

Why do you think this topic is useful of interesting?

What practical applications have you found for this topic?

Which gas do you think would have the greatest effect on how bright the makeshift lightbulb shines? (helium, butane, none)

Where would i find the gasses for filling my makeshift lightbulb easily and cheap?



Please sign the form below-

My name is Alexander Branigan. I am a student at All Saints Catholic School and am conducting research for a Science Fair Project. May I please have your permission to include your name and factual parts of our discussion related to science in my report? If you give your permission, please sign the form below.

____________________________ _____________________
Person Interviewed Date



Thank you for allowing me to interview you.

digiman155 wrote:Hi, my name is Alexander Branigan and I am doing a Science Fair Project at All Saints Catholic School.

May I have your permission to interview you?
Thank you for your help.


Topic- Filling makeshift lightbulbs with different gasses to see how it affects how bright it shines. (makeshift lightbulb found at http://invention.smithsonian.org/center ... ulb_01.asp)

Please answer the following questions:


When did you first become interested in this topic?

Can you please tell me what interested you about this topic?

What are some of the most important things you learned about this topic?

Why do you think this topic is useful of interesting?

What practical applications have you found for this topic?

Which gas do you think would have the greatest effect on how bright the makeshift lightbulb shines? (helium, butane, none)

Where would i find the gasses for filling my makeshift lightbulb easily and cheap?



Please sign the form below-

My name is Alexander Branigan. I am a student at All Saints Catholic School and am conducting research for a Science Fair Project. May I please have your permission to include your name and factual parts of our discussion related to science in my report? If you give your permission, please sign the form below.

____________________________ _____________________
Person Interviewed Date



Thank you for allowing me to interview you.

This is not really the best place for an interview. First, someone typing back a series of answers isn't an interview or a discussion, so it may not comply with your teacher's assignment. Secondly, most of us don't give out our contact information/ real names, so cannot sign your form. Some experts may answer a list of questions like this, but many of us don't feel it very productive. Lastly, there may not be an expert who feels qualified to answer your questions- they seem to assume that the person is actively working in this area. Reposting isn't going to get a response.

Is there any chance you could get your teacher to post here explaining the purpose of interviews? The experts here don't really understand what the point is, or how to answer these questions. Perhaps your teacher could explain this to us, so we can be more helpful.

As for where you can find an expert, here are a few thoughts: contact the Smithsonian, contact a neon sign maker, contact a physics professor at a local college. Don't use the same questions for each person... you need to do research and make the questions so they can be understood by the person you are talking to. No one wants to get a list of questions they cannot answer with out doing a bunch of research. Some of these questions in your list seem odd-' practical applications have you found for this topic'? Asking an expert for practical applications of a lightbulb makes it sound like you did not think very hard about your questions. Emailing a form like this probably isn't effective, but a polite phone call might get you somewhere.

As for gas... I could not follow your link, so I am not sure what gases you want to use. I saw you suggested butane, that seems like a very bad and dangerous idea, as butane is flammable. You should use inert/inactive gases. You could buy a helium filled balloon and use that. A local restuarant (with a bar) might be able to fill a balloon with nitrogen for you. Nitrogen is sometimes used for keeping open wine fresh. Not every place will have this, so you may need to call around. If you can find a professor at a local college, they could probably provide both nitrogen and argon.

Good luck.

Louise