Looking for a fun way to pass the time and learn something cool? Try any of these easy-to-do experiments that would make the young ones and even the young once feel like a scientist.
Dancing raisins
What you need: raisins, clear soda, and clear glass
To make raisins come to life, fill the glass with warm and clear soda and drop the raisins in the glass. Raisins are denser than the soda which makes it possible for them to sink, but science explains that the soda’s air bubbles formed on the raisins’ bodies allow the fruit to float. When the bubbles disappear, the raisins will sink from the glass, as if they are dancing in the disco.
Hidden message
What you need: lemon, water, paper, cotton buds, bowl, and light bulb
Want to send a secret message? Mix lemon extract with droplets of water, dip a cotton bud in the mix (that will serve as ink), and start writing your message on a clear white paper. When the ink dries up, the writing will become invisible, and will only appear when heated above a light bulb. Due to its organic nature, lemon juice oxidizes and becomes brown when heated. Mixing it with water transforms it into an almost invisible substance and will only be visible when put in high temperature.
Bouncing egg
What you need: raw egg, white vinegar, and bowl
Aside from sports, science can similarly make an object bounce. When an egg gets soaked in vinegar for 72 hours, it can actually bounce from up to 20 centimeters above ground when the shell is removed. Since vinegar is a weak acid, it can peel off the shell without damaging the insides of the egg. Eggs are made of calcium carbonate that reacts when exposed to acids like vinegar, turning the egg intact and rubbery enough to make it bounce.
Water cycle in a bottle
What you need: plastic bottle, plastic cup, ice cubes, and food coloring
The water cycle, where water evaporates and comes back as rain, can be bottled up in one science experiment. Mix a drop of food coloring inside the plastic bottle, fill up 1/3 of it with water, and close the cap. Turn the bottle upside down inside a cup, place a few ice cubes on top of the bottle, and place under a sunny location. After an hour, there will be water droplets in the upper part of the bottle, which resembles how the water cycle works on Earth.
Static electricity
What you need: balloon
You might be getting a new temporary hairstyle in this scientific experiment. Try it by rubbing a balloon against your hair for a few seconds, and your hair will follow as you pull the balloon away afterwards. This happens due to static electricity, where negatively charged particles interact with positively charged particles.
Tune in to MythBusters Jr. on Discovery Channel to learn more fun and easy experiments. Adam Savage along with six young myth busters test popular myths and legends using modern science.