• School Projects: Karlie’s Thermal Carousel Science Fair Project

    School - Science Fair Projects - Science - Brina - Karlie -P1430637c

    Karlie presenting her “Thermal Carousel” Project at the Science Fair!

    I am super proud of Karlie for all the energy and time she put into her Science Fair Project.  She spent evenings and weekends working on her project for several weeks.  There were times when it wasn’t as excited to work on the science project, like with all the science journal writing, however, she buckled down and got it done.  All her hard paid off because she also was picked as one of the top 2 for her class!!!  Karlie got a 100% on her science experiment journal and 100% on her science experiment presentation!  Way to go KARLIE!  So proud of my girls and their hard work!

    All the science projects had to be submitted to the teachers at the end of April so that the teachers would have time to grade all of them prior to the actual science fair.  The science fair was later in May so the whole project expanding over a couple of months.  Karlie had a lot of fun doing the actual science experiment.  The display board and the presentation of her project was something she enjoyed too.  Like her sister, Karlie’s least favorite piece of the experiment was all the hand written information for her journal.  Karlie had over a 100 pages of hand written information regarding her science projects and procedures.  We video taped her doing the experiment trials and have over 2 hours of her doing her testing.  She will probably enjoy going back and watching it again someday in the future!

    This is an experiment that you may enjoy replicating.  I have included a shortened version (remember her hand written notes were over 100 pages) of her science project and procedures she used to go through the experiment.  Some of the information such as her title, purpose, hypothesis, and experiment are directly below.  Additional information such as her constants, variables, research, materials, step-by-step procdures, analysis, conclusion, future work, and more are at the very bottom after the pictures.  Have fun doing the experiment!

    Karlie titled her science experiment: Thermal Carousel

    Purpose:

    • Does hot air expand and rise?
    • Would changing the temperature affect how fast the fan wheel spins?

    Hypothesis:

    • If candles heat air, then the air will rise, turning the fan.

    Experiment:

    • Build a thermal carousel windmill that will spin when a certain number of tealight candles are lit under it.

    P1430641c

    Karlie sharing her project with another student.

    P1430645c

    Karlie listening to their questions!

    P1430659c

    Karlie sharing her Science Fair project with Mrs. Johnson, her last year’s homeroom teacher.  Mrs. Johnson was super sweet and stopped by to talk with both girls about their projects.

    P1430670c

    Karlie’s presentation board and displays at the Science Fair.

    P1430672c

    Karlie had several display items to show people as they came by her area.

    School - Karlie Science Fair Project - P1410444c

    Timing the fan for one minute while counting the number of times it spun.  She was completely focused.

    P1410447c

    The thermal carousel starting to spin.  Notice the tiny light pink piece of paper on one of the fan blades.  That was her marker so she could keep track of her how many rotations the fan blade spun.

    P1410449c

    Counting!  The blue straws helped her see when the rotation was complete.

    P1410452c

    Checking the stop watch.

    P1410455c

    Testing with 2 candles lit

    School - Science Fair Projects - P1410604c

    Work in progress on her display board.  The majority of her information is complete now to figure out which pictures she wants to add to her board.  The yellow sticky notes are where she plans to add more pictures.

    P1410724c

    She decorated her thermal carousel!

    P1410726c

    Very colorful and fun!

    P1410727c

    Karlie’s rainbow thermal carousel!

    P1410677c

    Thermal Carousel Science Project Journal

    P1410684c

     Karlie decorated her Science Project Journal Notebook with duck tape.  This is the back of her journal.  She was very excited to get it completed!

    The information below contains more about the experiment so you may try it for yourself.  It was a neat project.  Karlie put in a lot of time to get everything completed and her hard work paid off.  It was a great learning experience for her too!

     Manipulated Variable:

    • I will change the temperature of the air by increasing the number of candles under the fan blades.

     Responding Variable:

    • The movement and speed of the rising air is measured by tracking the speed of the spinning fan blades above the heat source.
    • I will count the number of full rotations per minute (rpm) in each trial and record the data.

     Constant:

    • The room temperature of the air will remain the same throughout all trials of the experiment.
    • The distance of the fan blades from the heat source will remain the same during the experiment.
    • The friction of the fan on its axle will remain the same.

     Research:

    The first thing we must understand is that heat is a form of energy.  As the air absorbs energy from the heat it makes the molecules start to move more, expand, and decrease the air density.  With the same volume of air the hot air will not only weigh less it also has fewer molecules.

    Hot air is always in motion.  As the air increases in temperature the molecules become more active by vibrating, bumping into each other, and expanding to fill the space between each molecule.  The Laws of Thermodynamics explains the relationship between the volume of air and its temperature.  As air gets hotter it produced more kinetic energy which is transferred to the air molecules.  The particles from the warm air rising should cause a fan or spinning object to increase in speed.

    Air is full of a mixture of gases.  The majority of gases in air are nitrogen and oxygen.  Gases weigh different amounts and will change as you add a heat source.  When the warmer air rises it pushes, vibrates, and begins moving.  Force could be described as something that pushes on something else.  As the hot air rises it will hit the fan blades thus they start moving sideways which is called lift.

    Analysis:

    I completed 5 full trial experiments using a various number of lighted tealight candles under the carousel fan blades.  Based off the information I collected from the trials I was able to create graphs.  The data indicates that heat does rise, expand, and have an effect on fan blades that are sitting directly above it. 

     Conclusion:

    The experiment appeared to work well and support my hypothesis that when candles heat the air, the air will expand, rise, and cause the fan blades to turn.  It was neat to see this work and be able to chart the results.  There is a lot more I could do with this experiment to learn more regarding this topic. 

    Future Work & Questions to Ponder:

    • Did the distance between my candle flames and carousel windmill fan blades affect the speed and number of full rotation per minute?  To find out the answer to this question I could repeat the science experiment, but shorten the length of the skewer? What would happen if it were longer?
    • Did I alter any of the experiment trials by being physically near the experiment?  Would my breathing, a sigh, sneeze, leaning on the counter, bumping something nearby, or anything similar potentially change the movement of the air around the experiment and altered the data collected?
    •  Would changing the angles of the blades from 30 to 40 degrees (or another amount) affect the speed of the blades?
    • Will the position of the candles change the speed of the blades?  What if they are not evenly spaced or I changed their outer positions?  Moved them closer to the center of the pie pan stand?  How will these changes affect the speed of the fan?
    • By adding a little friction to the parts would that make it better or worse?  I believe any additional friction would cut down on the blade speed and possibly even stop it from spinning.
    • Would using different candles have any impact?  By changing the height, diameter, brand, scented, unscented, and more cause any changes in speed of the blades?
    • What would happen if I redesigned the base or fan blades?  Are there ones that would be faster?  Is there an ideal shape to get the most rotations per minute?
  • School Projects: Brina’s Mix Like Magic Science Fair Project

    P1430649c

    Brina presenting her “Mix Like Magic” Project at the Science Fair!

    I am very proud of Brina for all her hard work and time she put into her Science Fair Project.  She worked on her project for several weeks in the evenings after homework and on the weekends.  It was a lot of work, but she was picked as one of the top 2 for her class!!!  She got a 100% on her science experiment journal and 100% on her science experiment presentation!  Way to go BRINA!

    She really enjoyed doing the actual science experiments and testing.  The display board was fun for her too.  Probably the most time consuming and least favorite piece of the science fair was the handwritten journal.  By the end of the project she had over 80 pages of hand written information recorded in her science journal.   We have over 2 hours of video of her doing her experiment and that was only one piece of the whole project!

    For anyone wanting to replicate the experiment on their own I am going to include the shortened version (I am serious about the amount of hand written notes) of her science project and procedures she used to go through the experiment.  Some of the information such as her title, purpose, hypothesis, and experiment are directly below.  Additional information such as her constants, variables, research, materials, step-by-step procdures, analysis, conclusion, future work, and more are at the very bottom after the pictures.  Hope you enjoy doing this fun experiment as much as she did!

    Brina titled her science experiment:  Mix Like Magic

    Purpose: 

    • Do water molecules move faster or slower based on the temperature of the water?
    • Would changing the temperature of the water affect how fast the molecules move?

    Hypothesis:

    • If the temperature of the water is raised, then the mixing rate will be faster.

     Experiment:

    • Take 2 jars of water (one with food coloring) and see how long it takes for the molecules to completely mix on their own using various water temperatures.

    P1430651c

    Sharing with another kid about her science experiment.

    P1430652c

    Sharing her Science Experiment with her 3rd Grade Math and Science teacher, Mrs. Johnson.

    P1430653c

    Listening carefully to Mrs. Johnson’s questions and feedback about the project.

    P1430658c

    Answering questions!  (Side note – notice how crowded it was during the Science Fair!  It was a tight getting through and very loud so when speaking with someone you almost felt like you were yelling.)  The kids were having a great time though showing off their projects!

    P1430664c

    Brina’s display board and items!

    P1430667c

    She brainstormed about a way to demonstrate her project for people to see since she couldn’t easily do the water.  The conclusion was to make a mock demonstration of the experiment using jello and green food coloring.  It turned out pretty well and got the point across.

    P1410383c

    Adding the drops of food coloring to the jars that will be going on the top!

    P1410384c

    Concentrating as she counts out the number of food coloring drops!

    P1410387c

    Jar of room temperature water with green food coloring.

    P1410401c

    Jar of ice cold water with green food coloring (notice the frosty outside of the glass mason jar).

    P1410404c

    Jar of very hot water with green food coloring (notice all the little tiny bubbles inside the jar).

    P1410391c

    Brina’s three mason jars with green food coloring – 1 with hot water, 1 with room temperature water, and 1 with cold water!

    P1410395c

    Talking with Dad about the experiment, hypothesis, and the next steps!

    P1410412c

    Brina watching the water molecules mixing “like magic” even though the jar is complete still!

    P1410414c

    Watching and timing the mixing of the two jars.

    P1410419c

    First round of testing complete!

    P1410422c

    Making sure it’s completely mixed

    P1410426c

    Measuring the temperature of the water in each jar and recording it!

    P1410434c

    The only assistance she needed was flipping the jars  so that the one with green food coloring was sitting directly on top of the one without food coloring.  The main reasons why we assisted with this piece of the experiment was because the jars were heavy, they needed to be lined up perfectly to avoid spilling, we didn’t want her dumping steaming hot water on herself, and she had to be ready with the stopwatch.  Otherwise, she handled the experiment procedures pretty much on her own.

    P1410612c

    Brina’s display board as she is working on getting it completed.  She has most of the information now just to add the pictures (the yellow sticky notes are spots where she wants to add pictures to her display board).

    P1410669c

    Brina’s Science Experiment Journal!  This piece took the longest and required a lot of hand writing, but she got it done!

    P1410682c

    The back of Brina’s Mix Like Magic Science Journal!

    Below is more information about the experiment so you may try it for yourself.  It was a fun project.  A lot of work, but Brina did fantastic!  Her hard work paid off!

    Manipulated Variable:

    • I will change the temperature of the water.
    • There will be one set with hot water, one with room temperature, and one with cold water.

    Responding Variable:

    • I will test the speed of the water molecules measured by tracking the mixing rate of colored and clear water.
    • I will use a stop watch to track this time in order to provide more measurable data for the experiment.

    Constants:

    • I will keep the volume of water in the jars the same.
    • I will use the exact same jars for every trial.
    • The stillness of the jars will remain the same for each experiment.

    Research:

    Water is made up of many small particles.  Even a jar of water that is sitting still on the counter has many little particles that are constantly moving.  Although the many tiny water molecules are packed snugly together in the jar they are always moving.  When you combine water from two jars they will eventually mix together.  Particles from one jar will blend with the particles of the second jar.

    The scientist that originally discovered that particles are constantly mixing was Robert Brown, a botanist, back in 1827.  It eventually became known as Brownian Motion.  He noticed that the pollen granules were always in motion in water.  He started this theory even though he never figured out all the reasons behind it.  Later Maxwell, Boltzmann, Einstein, Langevin, Gouy, and others expanded on Brownian Motion Theory.

    Water consists of hydrogen and oxygen atoms that are stuck together.  The molecules in water have enough energy to allow the particles to move around each other.  Hot water has more kinetic energy than the cold water.  Therefore, the hot water should move faster than cold water molecules and mix quicker.  You should be able to see this by adding food coloring to containers with different temperatures.  The liquid molecules in suspension should move more quickly thus colliding with other suspended particles.*

    Materials:

    • 6 Clear Glass Jars (same size)
    • Dark Food Coloring
    • 3 Pitchers
    • 3 Divider Cards
    • 1 Spoon
    • Container of Petroleum Jelly
    • 2 Jelly Roll Pans
    • Thermometer
    • Stop Watch (or Timer)
    • Pencil & Paper

     Experiment (Step-By-Step Procedures):

    1. Create a chart to record your data from all the trial
    2. Put petroleum jelly around the rims of all 6 clear glass jars.
    3. Put jelly roll pans on the counter top and put 3 jars in each one.
    4. Fill 1 pitcher of water full of room temperature, 1 pitcher full of cold water (and place it in the fridge until you need it), and 1 pitcher of hot water.
    5. Get the Pitcher of Hot Water and fill one clear jar to the top with the pitcher.  Allow the water to overflow by a trickle.  Use a thermometer to measure the temperature of the water and record it on your chart.  In the other jelly roll pan fill up another jar ¾ full of hot water.  Add 5 drops of dark food coloring and stir until mixed.  Slowly fill that jar until at the top with a small trickle of water overflowing.
    6. Use the divider card to cover the opening of the jar containing the colored water.  Carefully turn over the jar and place it on the jar with clear hot water.  Once the water as stopped moving remove the divider card and start timing to see how long it will take for the two jars to mix completely.  Record the time on the chart.
    7. Repeat Procedure Step #5 this time using room temperature water and record it.
    8. Repeat Procedure Step #5 this time using cold water and record it.
    9. Repeat Procedure Steps #5 to #7 for another 5 to 7 times and record the data on the chart.

    Analysis:

    I did my experiment over 2 days, however, I kept all the items the same.  The data from the 7 trial experiments was collected, recorded, and analyzed.  The information that I collected during my experiment was inconclusive.   

    Conclusion:

    Upon the completion of my experiment I brainstormed a few ideas of why there were some larger variances with my data.  The data from my experiment was inconclusive.  Based on the data I collected I cannot confirm that my hypothesis was indeed correct.    Although, I followed the experiment the best I could there were too many variables that may have prevented the experiment from showing consistent results.   When you look at my data collection chart and graph you can see there are not regular patterns evolving from the 7 trial experiments I performed.

    Ideas on why I did not prove my hypothesis to be true:

    • On Day 2 I switched to a different bottle of food coloring.  Did that alter the experiment?
    • When removing the divider cards were the jars bumped a little possibly skewing the results?
    • It is somewhat subjective per person when the 2 jars from each set actually appear to be mixed.
    • I decided to add 10 drops of food coloring on Day 2 to see if that would help me see the mixing process better.  Did that make a difference in the results?
    • The glass jars had some reflection and refraction occurring depending on which angle you stood and looked at them.  Did that make a difference?
    • Both the hot and cold water were taken from the kitchen sink, however, the room temperature water was taking from the Reverse Osmosis Water Filter System.  Did that have an impact on my experiment?
    • I did not wait very long between stacking the 2 jars and removing the divider card.  Was I pulling the card too soon and the water molecules were still moving too much from stacking the jars to give accurate results?

    Future Work

    • In future experiments I would like to try a variety of different tests to see which would result in the experiment matching with my hypothesis statement.
    • Would a horizontal container with a divider instead of a vertical one work better?
    • A non-rounded container may have less refraction issues.
    • The use of a color chart may help eliminate the subjectiveness of when the 2 jars are indeed mixed completely.
    • It may be better to wait longer for the water to stop moving once set up before pulling the divider card, however, will waiting cause it to cool too much?  It would be interesting to see the results.
    • There are a lot of things I could change, retest, and alter to see if I could produce the results outlined in my hypothesis.

    *Research bibliography and other references are available upon request. We didn’t include all the information in her journal to save a little space, but are happy to share if you wish to have it.

  • Hero of the Year History Project

    Hero of the Year  History Project

     Karlie’s Time Magazine Hero of the Year Project – Thomas Sumter

    The girls did a Social Studies project at school recently about various people in the American Revolution.  They made their own Time magazine “Hero of the Year” cover page and article.  They each picked one person and they did more research about the life of that particular person.  Karlie choose to research Thomas Sumter who was nicknames “The Fighting Gamecock”.  Brina did her research on George Washington who was nicknamed “The Father of His Country”.  Both men were instrumental and influential during the early years of our country specifically during the time of the American Revolution.

    Time Magazine Hero of the Year Social Studies school project

    Brina’s Time Magazine Hero of the Year Project – George Washington

    On the back of each of the girls Time Magazine cover page was the details about the hero and his life.  It was a fun Social Studies project and the girls got to learn a lot of other details about the American Revolution during their time of research.  It is neat to see them get excited over fun school projects.  Both of them really enjoy learning about history!