Fun with Polymers!

Do you like goop, or putty? Did you check out the pink goop at the ice cream social? Fun stuff to play with right? Here’s how you can make some of your own.
Materials:
2 paper cups
4 tablespoons white wood glue, such as Elmer’s
Warm water
Food coloring (optional)
1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons borax powder (found in laundry section at the store)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Procedure:
1. In a paper cup, mix the glue, 4 tablespoons water, and a few drops of food coloring. Add 1 tablespoon borax and the cornstarch and mix well.
2. In another cup, mix 2/3 cup water and 2 teaspoons borax until the borax dissolves. Pour 2 tablespoons of the borax and water solution into the glue mixture and stir until it’s stiff.
3. Let the mixture set for a minute, then take it out of the cup and rinse with water. Blot the extra water with a paper towel and knead the mixture until it’s smooth. If you want it to be stiffer, add more of the borax and water solution.
What does your goop do? Try bouncing it, breaking it, stretching it. Does it keep its shape? Is it hard, soft or both?

Polymer is a funny word. A polymer is a chemical made up of many repeated parts (poly=many; mer=unit). The glue contains a polymer, polyvinyl acetate (PVA), which is made from many monomers (individual chemicals) of vinyl acetate. So the glue is a polymer to start with but when the borax is added, the chains cross-link to make even bigger—and stiffer—polymer chains. Cross links are like chemical bridges between polymer chains, linking them together. Knowing this what do you think would happen when you vary the amount of borax you add? Try it!

More Polymers

Here are some more places and books to investigate polymers:

Oobleck, slime & dancing spaghetti: twenty terrific at-home science experiments inspired by favorite children's books by Jennifer Williams J 507.8 WILLIAM

Plastics and polymers science fair projects: using hair gel, soda bottles, and slimy stuff / Madeline Goodstein TEEN 507.8 GOODSTE

The Earth's resources / Richard and Louise Spilsbury J 333.7 SPILSBU

The way toys work : the science behind the magic 8 ball, etch a sketch, boomerang, and more / Ed Sobey and Woody Sobey. 688.728 SOBEY

Plastics and polymers science fair projects, revised and expanded using the scientific method
Author: Goodstein, Madeline P. Y540.78 GOO 2010

Title: Materials science
Author: Ward, D. J. (David John) J620.11 WAR

Plastics & polymers
Author: Mebane, Robert C. J547.7 MEB

Investigating Solids, Liquids, And Gases With Toys by Jerry Sarquis

Lucky Science: Accidental Discoveries From Gravity to Velcro, with Experiments by Royston M. Roberts

Mistakes that worked by Charlotte Foltz Jones 609 Jones
Toys! : amazing stories behind some great inventions by Don Wulffson 688.7 Wulf

Polymer Websites:
http://pslc.ws/macrog/kidsmac/index.htm website for the University of Mississippi’s Polymer Science Learning Center

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/resources/ngo/education/plastics National Geographic’s website about Polymers

http://scienceprojectideasforkids.com/2010/polymer-slime-facts Website by science author Jan VanCleave

http://web.mit.edu/Invent/iow/sillyputty.html MIT’s website on the invention of Silly Putty

http://www.sciencekidsathome.com/science_topics/amazing-polymers.html

http://www.sciencebob.com/experiments/videos/index.php Three videos from Science Bob on making slime.

The Spider and the Web

Ever watched a spider catch its prey? How do they know the difference between food and debris blown into the web? Try this and see if you can figure it out.
Materials:
An occupied garden spiderweb
Tuning fork (or fork with long tines)
Small block of wood
Directions:
Explore your garden or nearby park until you find a web with a spider in it.
Hold the tuning fork by the handle and tap it against the wood block. The fork should hum.
Place one prong of the fork against a strand of the web. What does the spider do?

So did you get any stray webs on your hands, or face? Would you like to inspect the web closely? Try this.
Materials:
Can of clear spray lacquer (available in hardware stores)
8-inch square sheet of stiff black paper
Directions:
Look around your yard or nearby park for a spider web. Touch the center of the web lightly with a leaf to be sure that the weaver is no longer around. Find a web with no spider.
Spray the web with lacquer several times, allowing it to dry between applications.
Spray the web once again. While the web is still wet, hold the black paper up against it and lift the web onto the paper. Gently pull away any support strands.
Spray the web and paper with one more layer of lacquer and allow it to dry.
Follow the same procedure with other webs. Look for different sizes and shapes.

For more science information and ideas see the science fair website: http://www.schoolsciencefair.blogspot.com/. The science fair will be this spring. Anyone interested in helping please contact Amy Oliver via email (amyroliver@gmail.com). No science experience necessary; curiosity and a sense of adventure are preferred

Books about spiders and other bugs

Want to find out more about bugs and spiders? Here are a few resources to help you find out more available at Fernwood, SnoIsle or King County Libraries:

Scholastic's the Magic school bus creepy, crawly fun! J DVD-ED 781.23 MAG164

Bug zoo by Nick Baker J 595.7 BAKER

Science fair winners. : bug science : 20 projects and experiments about arthropods: insects, arachnids, algae, worms, and other small creatures by Karen Romano Young

J 595.7078 YOUNG

Spiders : learning to love them by Lynne Kelly 595.44 KELLY

Up, up, and away by Ginger Wadsworth E 595.44 WADSWOR

Amazing insects and spiders by George C. McGavin J 595.7 MCGAVIN

Spiders up close = Las arañas / Katie Franks ; traducción al español, Ma. Pilar Sanz.
Spanish & English INTL-SPA E 595.44 FRANKS

Reader's Digest Insects and spiders by Matthew Robertson 595.7 ROB Fernwood Library

Spiders! by the editors of Time for Kids with Nicole Iorio J 595.44 SPIDERS

Spiderology by Michael Elsohn Ross J 595.44 ROSS

Spiders spin webs Yvonne Winer E 595.44 WINER

Everything bug : what kids really want to know about insects and spiders by Cherie Winner J 595.7 WINNER

Someone saw a spider : spider facts and folktales by Shirley Climo 398.2 CLI Fernwood Library

Simon & Schuster children's guide to insects and spiders by Jinny Johnson 595.7 JOHN Fernwood Library

Spider Websites

http://www.backyardnature.net/spiders.htm

http://www.zoo.org/Page.aspx?pid=1252

http://www.kidzone.ws/lw/spiders/index.htm

http://www.explorit.org/science/spider.html

http://www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Arachnida/

Opportunity to visit Mars!

Did you know we are set to launch another rover to Mars in 2011? How would you like to be a part of history and include your name on this rover? Use the link below to check out the website and add your name if you like (parent permission required). Then check out the map to see what states and countries have the greatest participation. Do a little more poking around and play a few games. Cool stuff!

http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/index.cfm

Grapes, good golly!

Hey guys!
We hope you've been enjoying the summer. We figure you might have hit a lull in activity, so thought we'd see if we could help. We found a couple of things to try at home, just ask an adult for permission first, and have a "grape" time!

Sparking Grapes

You need:
White grapes
Knife
Microwave-safe plate
Microwave oven

1. Slice the grape down the center toward the stem, but not all the way through. The two halves should just be attached by a tiny piece of grape skin.
2. Place the two grape halves face down on the plate.
3. Set the microwave for 20 seconds. Turn it on and watch the sparks fly.

What happened? The oven produces microwaves, which are a type of electromagnetic radiation. All electromagnetic waves create a changing electric field, which will cause electrons to move. (Electrons are negatively charged particles located around the nucleus of the atom and everything in the world is made up of atoms, so everything has electrons.) Moving electrons through a thin conductor will give you light just like a filament in a light bulb. In this activity the thin flap of grape left is a conductor, and the microwaves make electrons move through it.

It's Not a Shoe Box! It's a Catapult!

You Need:
Duct or packing tape
Long plastic spoon
Shoebox
Rubber bands
Grapes (or any small item)
Outdoor area

1. Tape the bottom of the spoon to the end of a shoebox. The concave part of the spoon should face along the side of the box.
2. Loop one end of the rubber band around the spoon and tape the rubber band to the middle of the spoon. Tape the other end of the rubber band to the side of the shoebox. Make sure you've got a good stretch on your rubber band, so there's tension. (To increase tension, use a smaller rubber band, or loop it around the spoon a couple of times.)
3. Use one hand to hold the shoebox. Use the other hand to load the grape on the spoon and pull back on the spoon. Let it go and launch the grape. How far did it go?
4. Adjust the position of the rubber band so it stretches farther, creating greater tension. How does this change the launch? What happens if you use more than one rubber band?

What's going on? Whether they're built to launch grapes at targets or boulders at castle walls, all catapults work because of elastic materials. Here you're using the elasticity of the rubber band to store energy in your catapult. You put the energy in your catapult. You put the energy in the rubber band by pulling the spoon back with your hand. That energy goes into the grape and becomes kinetic energy. So the grape flies!

ideas from Smash It! Crash It! Launch It! 50 Mind-Blowing Eye-Popping Science Experiments

Watch for the date of our next Science Fair!

Stay tuned for the date for the 2011 Science Fair!