We have all experienced wind and, like it or hate it, it affects us. Moving air can jostle your hair about, fly a kit, or, in extreme cases, tear entire buildings from their foundation. Did you know that this moving air actually creates low pressure, though? It’s true. On an exceptionally windy day, you can even see tall buildings bowing towards each other near their tops! We’re going to recreate this phenomenon using ping pong balls in the Ping Pong Pressure experiment. – See more at: http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/lab/experiments/ping-pong-pressure#sthash.HINuLOio.dpuf
Vision and the way our brains perceive what we are seeing are incredible. Just think of optical illusions, 3D images, the fact that your eyes are processing the world around you upside-down! A fun trick to play on your eyes and brain uses a zoetrope. This fantastic tool is able to change multiple still images, into a moving animation that would make Walt Disney jealous.
Do square bubbles really exist? That’s the question of the day and the answer is yes… if you know the science secret. Square bubbles are easy to make and serve as a great learning tool as students explore the concepts of soap films and surface tension. Get ready to amaze your friends.
Not all sunscreen lotions are the same, as can be evidenced by a lobster-like appearance after a day of working outside. SPF 15 just didn’t do the trick. Instead of using your skin as a detector of ultra-violet light (UV), try experimenting with Energy Beads or UV Beads. These indicator beads change color when exposed to UV light. It’s an amazing way to test the effectiveness of sunscreen or to see if UV light is really blocked out by filters in sunglasses.
Sometimes, gardening and planting seeds can be very boring. This can especially be the case if you are a young scientist that loves action and excitement! Thankfully, there are gardening methods that can offer a bit more kick than just digging holes and planting. Introducing Seed Balls, the method of gardening that allows you to throw to sow!
We’ve been performing the Mentos Soda Geyser here at Steve Spangler Science for years. We’ve launched so many geysers, in fact, that we created a tool to help streamline the process of creating the eruption. While the Geyser Tube is, hands-down, the best way to create a soda geyser that can be 30 feet tall, you might not be able to get your hands on one right away. So we’re going to teach you how to create a Homemade Geyser Tube with stuff you have at home.
Popsicle sticks are great for holding frozen treats and reading the occasional joke off of, but did you know they’re excellent for demonstrating potential and kinetic energy? It’s true! If you weave popsicle sticks together just right, you can create a chain reaction that will create a dazzling display of flying popsicle sticks!
Our science guy, Steve Spangler, is an expert at making science fun, but you get an extra dose of fun when the science is ooey, gooey and slimy. Steve is with Kim today to uncover the real science behind making the perfect batch of slime.
Steve Spangler is a celebrity teacher, science toy designer, speaker, author and an Emmy award-winning television personality. Spangler is probably best known for his Mentos and Diet Coke geyser experiment that went viral in. Spangler is the founder of www.SteveSpanglerScience.com, a Denver-based company specializing in the creation of science toys, classroom science demonstrations, teacher resources and home for Spangler’s popular science experiment archive and video collection. Spangler is a frequent guest on the Ellen DeGeneres Show and Denver 9 News where he takes classroom science experiments to the extreme. For teachers, parents or DIY Science ideas – check out other sources of learning:
Bubbles usually only come as individual spheres of soap and water. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you can get a whole bunch of bubbles in one cluster… but it always seems random. Luckily, we’ve found a spectacular way to create entires snakes made of bubbles and teach you how to make them in all the colors of the rainbow!
Have you ever wondered why shaking a soda results in a great explosion when it’s opened? What causes a 2-liter bottle of soda to go flat? Is there anything that can be done to keep fizz in a bottle of soda? Get ready to uncover some amazing soda secrets that will change your soda drinking habits.
Marshmallows are a delicious, fluffy staple of summer, campouts, and barbecues. Did you know that there isn’t really much to them? It’s true. The best way to see what really comprises a marshmallow is to put it to the Marshmallow Masher pressure test. You’ll use the power of air to demonstrate what you’re really eating when you roasting ‘mallows this summer.
Density can be a difficult scientific property to grasp, that’s why we like making it colorful, fun, and (most importantly) simple! The Salt Water Density Straw is the epitome of kitchen science. You’ll use materials are right in your house, and with just a bit of salt, you’ll create a colorful experience that will have young scientists understanding density in moments.
M&Ms have the slogan of melting in your mouth, but not in your hands. You wanna know something cool? The special melting property is totally scientific. The results are an amazing phenomenon that we call Floating Letters.
You’ve seen Steve Spangler use blow dryers or industrial-sized blowers to levitate ping pong balls, beach balls, and send toilet paper flying through the air. You can replicate this levitating object phenomenon on a smaller scale using objects that are right in your home! The Floating Ping Pong Ball trick uses amazing principles of air that are sure to amaze anyone, from your science teacher to your parents to your neighbors!
Hard candies are known for their bright colors, delicious tastes, and, well, having a ton of sugar. While having a handful of candy every once in a while is definitely a good thing, we like conducting experiments with them! We especially love Gobstoppers. They have layers of colors that, when they dissolve into water, do something very peculiar…
Purchase DVD here: http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/product/sick-science-dvd-volume-1
If you’ve experienced our Sick Science!™ series before, you know that the videos are all about bringing science to life for young learners. The best part? The hands-on science exploration can be done using items found right in your own home or classroom! Each volume of the Sick Science DVD series features 10 experiments that leave young scientists with a question. Sometimes, they may be asked to figure out why the experiment works. Other times, they may be asked to determine a mystery component of the activity. The entire experience is designed to encourage investigation and inquiry… a sure-fire way to keep everyone engaged and wanting more.
Sick Science™ is a trademark of Steve Spangler, inc.
From Tatooine to Hoth, there is one legendary weapon that is regarded as the ultimate in Rebel and Empire warfare… the lightsaber. Ewoks, Wookies, Jawas, and droids all cower before the mighty lightsaber. Wanna make your own? Let us take you to a galaxy far, far away and teach you how you can build your own working lightsaber. Trust us, it works.
Steve Spangler is a celebrity teacher, science toy designer, speaker, author and an Emmy award-winning television personality. Spangler is probably best known for his Mentos and Diet Coke geyser experiment that went viral in. Spangler is the founder of www.SteveSpanglerScience.com, a Denver-based company specializing in the creation of science toys, classroom science demonstrations, teacher resources and home for Spangler’s popular science experiment archive and video collection. Spangler is a frequent guest on the Ellen DeGeneres Show and Denver 9 News where he takes classroom science experiments to the extreme. For teachers, parents or DIY Science ideas – check out other sources of learning:
A vacuum packer is an amazing device that vacuum packs food to seal in the freshness. At least that’s what those late night infomercials tell us. We’re more excited about using this fascinating device to explore amazing scientific properties. Fill the special storage container with marshmallows (we prefer those adorable yellow Peeps) and watch the incredible growing marshmallow trick!
Who taught these noodles to dance, anyway? Go on – gather up some pasta noodles, turn up the music, and get ready for an old-fashioned pasta party. Just when you thought you were done at the dinner table… here is some kitchen science that will have you learning about volume and density in a brand new, hands-on way!
“For this trick, all you need is a bit of un-popped pop corn and a ball bearing.” It’s the perfect phrase to get all of the people around you excited for a bit of science magic. Many people don’t realize that pop corn and ball bearings have a remarkable chemical reaction that turns the ball bearing into a ping pong ball. In fact, when you perform the demonstration, your audience won’t believe their eyes.
Who needs a magic wand to create levitating objects when you have a balloon? In the Static Flyer experiment, we’ll teach you how understanding certain scientific ideas can result in a trick that would make Harry Potter, Gandalf the Grey, and even Merlin jealous.
A flame goes out inside of an upside down jar and, like magic, the jar is stuck to a plate. You might think that the jar has sucked right to the plate, but we’ll explain why this trick is actually a result of pushing!
If someone told you that they could balance a full-size text book on a piece of paper, you might call up the looney bin. That’s a crazy idea, right? Well, the notion that a book can sit, precariously, atop a plain piece of paper isn’t quite as bonkers as you might think!
What a great start to 2013! From Pop Rocks, mystery liquids, folding eggs and even a VIRAL video showing how to remove iron from your breakfast cereal, to newspaper trees, dirty cell phones, and instantly freezing water. Hope you enjoyed this month as much as we did!
Don’t miss the season two premier of The Spangler Effect on March 6, 2013!
If you are a candy enthusiast, like a lot of the people at Spangler Labs, you know that not all candies are created equal. And, if we’re being honest, Pop Rocks are one of the greatest candies of all time! You dump a few of the tiny pebbles onto your tongue and, in an instant, they begin fizzing, popping, and snapping about in your mouth. What’s going on here? Being scientists, we devised a way to figure out the popping secret behind the famous candy. Are you ready to expand your mind (as well as a few balloons)?
Mystery liquid revealed here http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/sink-or-swim-surface-tension
There are times in science where changing one variable can be the difference between fire and smoke, conducting and insulating, and in this case, sinking and swimming. In the Sink or Swim experiment, you’ll learn how adding one variable to water will change the amount of surface tension the water has. You’ll see that anything you add to water can quickly affect whether something sinks or swims.
Common sense tells you that it’s impossible to boil water in a paper bag, but this classic parlor trick was a favorite of Victorian magicians. The real difficulty in performing this effect is making it look harder than it is! As you might imagine, the secret lies in yet another amazing property of water. Instead of using a paper bag, this modern day version of the demonstration uses an ordinary balloon, some water, and a candle. It’s a combination that’s guaranteed to make people stand back.
Mystery liquid revealed at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/how-to-make-a-folding-egg
The Folding Egg activity is actually an extension of the classic Rubber Egg experiment with a really fun twist. Just imagine the look on your friends’ faces when you show them an egg and then proceed to fold it in half several times until it forms a small white ball! Wait… it gets better. Just bounce the “folded egg” between your hands and the egg reappears!
Read the full experiment at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/leak-proof-bag
Who would have ever thought that a plastic bag, some water, and a few pencils would frighten the thunder out of Mom? Learn how to poke a hole in a plastic bag filled with water and reseal it like magic. The secret has to do with a better understanding of the chemistry of polymers.
Check out the full experiment at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/balancing-nails-trick
The object of the challenge is to balance all of the nails on the head of a single nail. All of the nails have to be balanced at the same time and cannot touch anything but the top of the nail that is stuck in the base. If you’re really ambitious, you can try your luck at our large-scale version using landscape nails and a friend as the base. Enough of this idle chatter… get balancing!
Read the full experiment at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/flame-light-relight
There’s a lot of chemistry behind the simple lighting or extinguishing of a flame. Would you believe us if we told you that you could extinguish a flame just by placing it partway into a graduated cylinder? What if we told you that you could relight the fire without a match or lighter? Both propositions seem unlikely, if not downright impossible. With the Flame Light Relight experiment, however, you’ll see how a few household items can mix together and create a fire-based experience you have to see to believe.
Read the full experiment at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/egg-drop-inertia-trick
The challenge sounds so simple… just get the egg into the glass of water, but there are a few obstacles. The egg is perched high above the water on a cardboard tube, and a pie plate sits between the tube and the water. Still think it’s easy? Sir Isaac Newton does.
You’ve probably learned or heard about DNA, but have you ever seen it? With the Strawberry DNA experiment, you’ll extract, isolate, and observe the DNA of a strawberry in a matter of minutes. It sounds impossible, but thanks to special characteristics of strawberries, it’s actually very possible… and simple. You don’t have to be a geneticist. You don’t need a microscope. It’s easy, fun, and all you need are some household materials.
Want more experiments like this? Check out http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/product/naked-eggs-and-flying-potatoes
Sick Science™ is a trademark of Steve Spangler, inc.
Halloween is our favorite time of year, and dry ice is the ultimate addition to any Halloween party! With a little dry ice, water, and dish soap, you will be able to make your own crystal ball bubble to gaze into the future and see what your Halloween has in store for you!
With Halloween right around the corner, all you need to be the hit of the party is a little bit of dry ice, a touch of dish soap, and a bunch of time! Once you make these smoking bubbles, you won’t want them to stop… or maybe its that you can’t make them stop!
If you’re a fan of Spangler Science, you know that we love exploding pumpkins… but we’ve also found that glowing pumpkins can be just as fun! Just add Glow Powder to your Halloween pumpkins and you’ll get a spooky Halloween display without all the mess of carving.
