• Question: what was your faverout experement?

    Asked by eloiseflavell to Asif, Laura, Lena, Sean, Viv on 13 Mar 2012. This question was also asked by samthescientist, bonnie26, sc01470.
    • Photo: Laura Waters

      Laura Waters answered on 12 Mar 2012:

      We used to play with bits of dry ice in the lab. They skid across the floor really well as they vapourise!
      I like to do things that change colour, that always looks good too.

    • Photo: Viv Lyons

      Viv Lyons answered on 12 Mar 2012:

      The experiment that sticks most in my mind from my school days is when we replicated J.J. Thompson’s experiment bending beams of electrons in a cathode ray tube using strong magnetic and electric fields. This was the experiment that was used to investigate electrons over 100 years ago and was then used to form the basis of CRT televisions.
      I should say that one of the reasons it sticks in my mind, apart from the importance and relevance of it, is that I managed to electrocute myself with a static charge of several kV. My sage advice to all is: don’t do this – it bleeding well hurts.

    • Photo: Sean Murphy

      Sean Murphy answered on 12 Mar 2012:

      We once made liquid nitrogen ice cream. Ask your teacher to show you how it’s done!

    • Photo: Lena Ciric

      Lena Ciric answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      I agree with Laura about the dry ice. We used to put it in little plastic tubes and chuck it at each other in the lab – it would make a big (but safe!) bang!

      My favourite experiment these days is replacing one gene in a bacterium with another and then seeing how this changes how the bacterium acts.

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