• Question: what was your faviriot experiment

    Asked by scottyonfire to timcraggs, Donna, Jo, Mark on 23 Jun 2010 in Categories: . This question was also asked by georgia.
    • Photo: Tim Craggs

      Tim Craggs answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      When I was at school I enjoyed the experiment where you mix sodium metal with water (ask you teacher for a demonstration if you have not seen this, it is very cool!). I also liked doing titrations, where you make a solution change colour.

      Now my favorite experiment involves watching individual DNA molecules changing shape when they interact with a protein that reacts with them. This experiment involves lasers, a microscope and glow in the dark dyes, AND it gives us really exciting results, about how DNA is repaired in cells.

      What is your favorite experiment?

    • Photo: Joanna Buckley

      Joanna Buckley answered on 23 Jun 2010:

      It’d have to be the good old mentos and diet coke experiment. Everyone can do it and it’s so safe… unless you look directly down at the coke when you’ve just popped your mento in.

      You can make swirly patterns and set loads of your ‘fountains’ to go off in time with some rousing music.

      Buy a bottle of diet coke and some mentos and get experimenting. Who can fire the coke fountain the hightest? What happens when you grind up the mento before popping it in? Is it better if you put two in there at once?

      Try it and get back to me 🙂

    • Photo: Donna MacCallum

      Donna MacCallum answered on 23 Jun 2010:

      My favourite experiment ever was one at secondary school. We wrapped the head of a match in tinfoil then heated it with a bunsen. At this point the match is supposed to jump – mine did … straight onto the posters on the science lab wall – there were flames up to the ceiling and I just stood and watched – very funny! (especially when the teacher came over and started bashing the wall with a mat to put out the flames!)

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