Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

This year I am conducting an experiment that will test different pain relievers and which one relieves pain the fastest. I plan to use Hydrochloric acid and water as my control. The amount of time that the pain reliever takes to dissolve will be recorded and sodium bicarbonate to simulate the intestines's function in the digestive system. The amount of time that it takes for each beaker containing the dissolved medicine to reach a higher stable pH scale will also be recorded. Even so, I don't have a good hypothesis besides basing it on the cost of the pills. My teacher wants a hypothesis that talks about the ingredients/substances within each pain relieving pill and their effectiveness. Any suggestions on how I should do this or possibly even how I could add another twist to the project to make it better?

Thank you for any suggestion,
scienceguy14

Hi,

The data points that you will be measuring seem reasonable in terms of data quality and analysis. I think your teacher is right though, in that your hypothesis cannot be based on cost (that would be more of a bonus thing). A very popular orgo lab in college is to grind up a tylenol pill and separate it out into its acid, base, and neutral components (see an example here: http://courses.chem.psu.edu/chem36/Chem ... nophen.pdf). It's a fairly simple separation procedure but does take a bit of labwork, and maybe this way you could compare ingredient composition and purity (since there is lots of random neutral junk along with the active acid and base components). Try and think creatively on top of that! There's lots to be found with a little labwork.

OK, so is there a website that actually has the results or that explains what is inside pain relievers because finding out the ingredients/substances isn't actually part of my science fair project? I just need that information to form my hypothesis.
---Thanks!

Aelin, I think I've come up with a new hypothesis. My hypothesis will be that Advil caplets, one of my independent variables, will relieve pain the fastest and is the best pain relieving medicine because it doesn't have the special 'gel-coating' which slows down the dissolving process and since it contains ibuprofen which is better and lasts longer than acetaminophen medicines. Of course I will word it differently but it will contain the same idea. What do you think?
---Thanks
----scienceguy14

Hi,
There are several types of pain relievers (analgesics), such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen, opiates... the list goes on (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analgesic) and each work slightly differently. It seems like you are interested mostly in over the counter pain medications such as Advil and Tylenol.

I think that with more background research and a little more planning in terms of experimental design, you could strengthen your hypothesis. For example, different types of pain might respond to painkillers differently. Is there a certain age group you are interested in? This might help make your experiment more specific. (Keep in mind, once you have human subjects, you need to make sure that your experiment is safe!) Take some time to think about it, and let us know what you come up with!

Lily