hi

started my experiment! i have some results but i still need to repeat the experiment so i get a wider range of results, and so i test the validity of the previous results. all went well i suppose although i did spill half the water i was supposed to pour into my water filter.

here are some pictures...(above)

To start, as I may have already mentioned, my aim for this experiment was to investigate different filtering mediums and their effectiveness in removing sediment from water. I thought that the denser the medium, the more sediment removed. Makes sense, right?

So I set up my filters using 6 plastic bottles and some gauze. I filled them in with sand, activated charcoal, mulch, filter paper and cotton and left one empty for a control.

The results were not surprising but I still waited in anticipation to see what the water would look like as it filtered through. the charcoal left the water crystal clear, an absolutely dirt free zone. It was so cool. Next, the sand did a pretty awesome job too, although the water looked a bit like heavily diluted juice. the mulch and the control were horrendous, I really couldn't tell the difference between the before and after. the filter paper and the cotton filters did an okay job, although i certainly wouldn't drink their water.

I did some research and it told me that charcoal was activated by exposure to high temperatures in an absence of oxygen, which created tiny pores and drastically enlarging the surface area. Now, wait for this... 1\2 kilo of activated charcoal provides 50 HECTARES of surface. Isn't that amazing? No wonder the water was so clean. Charcoal can do wonders. And it'

s ironic because charcoal itself is black, pitch black.

I could have done better on controlling some variables, like the thickness of the mediums. If i had thought out the process more thoroughly i could have got it over with a lot more quickly and efficiently. I had a bit of trouble figuring out exactly how to measure the quantities of sediment. Eventually I just had to repeat the experiment over again until i got a substantial and quantifiable amount of sediment. Enough that a simple set of kitchen scales could measure. even then the end results were milligrams; it was a very precise set of scales, you know, i should have put it into acknowledgements...

Anyway, now it's over and done and I have nothing in life to spur me on...

Kidding!

I am indescribably happy that this is finished..almost. I still have to do a poster.

No...I did learn some stuff that no doubt will be useful to me in the future but, really? I don't ever want to think about this again.

I tried coming up with a really elaborate farewell but i don't have time to write it all because I've got better things to do and all I can say is

Goodbye, I hope you aspiring scientists learnt something from my mistakes - don't do an SRP if you can possibly help it.

Water Filtration

Aim: To test different potential water filters

Hypothesis: That sand is the best material to use to filter particles from water.


Materials:

• sand
• compact clay
• very fine sieve
  ordinary kitchen sponge
  
• filter paper
  
• tight cloth
  
• loose cloth, the kind used for arm slings (not to support anybody's limbs but to support the other materials so they don't fall through with the water)
  
• plastic container or bucket or other, not very large


• muddy water

Method:

• stretch the loose cloth over the opening of the container and secure.
  
• spread the filtering material over the cloth. 5 cm layer for sand and clay.


• combine water and mud/dirt. (250mL, 20g dirt)


• slowly pour the water through the improvised filter.


• wait until all the water has passed through before removing the filter.


• boil in a separate pot until water has evaporated.


• weigh the remaining dirt to determine results.
• repeat if necessary

As you can see, I have returned to my abandoned water filtration idea...I promise this is the very last time I will change my subject. Before I was stuck with the problem of how to measure how well the filtration work, how clean the water was after its detox. By evaporating the water, the residue will be left behind as the particles are too heavy and cannot be turned into gas by very high temperatures, obviously, the particles being mud. And when was the last time you saw mud hovering in the air?

Okay, it doesn't really matter that I won't be able to tabloid my results. But a science report can still be written without including a table. So it's cool. I won't be needing any super high-tech machinery like I first thought because this experimenting is all about improvising with the best materials at hand, if the need arises...say, for instance, you happen to get yourself stranded on an island. You would need to know if sand was a reliable filter so you could turn that silty water around into something drinkable. Just an example. It's not like I'm hoping someone will get stuck in the middle of nowhere just so they'll get a chance to test out my experiment for themselves...

Well, that was sufficiently strugglesome. All I'm hoping for now is that my constant changes of mind will actually add up to something - like results. Right, I will probably write something more in about a week. Hopefully I'll be beginning my experiment by then, which will be the cause of my writing that future blog in the first place. Until then...

Climatic graph

DO PLANTS GROW BETTER IN GREEN, BLUE OR RED LIGHT?

The theme for my new experiment is measuring plant growth in three different coloured lights. This duration of the test is approximately 3 weeks. It requires a minimum number of materials and will actually prove something, I'm fairly certain. Yes, I know, this is my third change of heart. The other two were just ideas, very complex ideas, unachievable ideas at that. This one has heaps less to think (or worry) about, clear and identifiable variables, and is within the required time period.

The new method is;

Aim: To investigate the effect of different coloured light on plant growth.

Hypothesis: That green light will have the least influence over the growth of plant.

Materials:

• three small cardboard boxes


• three seeds of the same plant
  
• three identical lamps


• three identical flowerpots


• three pieces of celophane - green, red, blue
  

Method;

1. Fill pots with same amount of soil and fertiliser.
   
2. Plant the seeds.


3. Cover the light bulb of each of the lamps with a sheet of celophane.


4. Arrange the lamps safely inside the boxes, upright and not touching the sides.


5. Place the pots inside the boxes, under each of the lamps.


6. Switch them on and set aside.


7. Record the results after 3 weeks.

Hi

I apologise for yet another change of mind, but this one will be the last mostly because this is my last chance to change it.
I got a hint that my last aim was far too complicated and frankly i agree. So now I will be testing different methods of water filtering such as clay, sand, fine sieve and iodine.

My aim is To investigate various methods of filtering unclean water

My hypothesis (which obviously needs more work) is That iodine will purify the water of germs but will not remove particles larger than microscopic.

Um, my materials I think will be clay, sand, iodine and a fine sieve for now but I will research other materials theoretically used for water filteration, beakers and an apparatus that will hold up the filtering equipment while the water passes through. Oh, and something like an ultra sensitive microscope to look at the filtered water.

hey there...

okay, time to organise my thoughts, my blog, and my planned experiment. Here goes...

Right, I have under two weeks to prepare the written part of my experiment, and for the experiment itself, I have to have that completely done by June. Seeing, as we are seeing the tail end of April, now's the time I think to get things underway.
I've decided to scrap the 'does-smell-influence-appetite-along-with-the-actual-presentation-of-the-food' part of the plan, seeing as this is probably just going to be a tad complicated, just a tad, mind. Therefore, to give myself a chance of actually finishing this thing without too many hiccups, I will just record the visual effects.
Which reminds me of the 30 or so guineapigs still needing to be recruited. I'm thinking of separating these 30 into five groups of six, and testing them group by group over a period of two weeks.
Also, there's the dilemma of figuring out how exactly to measure the change in appetite without relying solely on word of mouth.
Hopefully, by the next post I'll have a bit of research under my belt.
Until next time

Hello,



I've been thinking (very hard) about my research/experiment. Firstly, I have to work out how I am going to control all the variables...like;

1) portion control/how much everybody should eat (that'll be difficult, since the food is going to be scrumptious),

2) WHAT SORT of food is important (aiming for quality not quantity),

3) At what times those delectable morsels should be eaten,

4) How long I should wait before recording results

And,

5) Food preferences and allergies, of course, should be taken into account



I need to start recruiting people, by the way - at least 30 participants, I've been informed, is the way to go.

I just found out via the internet that the most common food allergens are; dairy, wheat, soy, nuts, seafood and eggs. So I'll work around the individual, and steer clear of any of those.

Change of plan..
I was contemplating the ethics issue about changing lifestyles and I thought -
well, restaurants dress the plates up before setting the meal before their customer and Mum and Dad heap a pile of edible stuff onto a plate and plop it before you, more often than not. So, I would conduct a study investigating whether food presentation affects our appetite in any way.
I would print pictures of food arranged in all manner of ways (good and bad) and lay them out before each of the participants in my study. I would them ask them to choose which appeals to them most, and which appeals to them the least.
And since smell influences our sense of taste, I would expose them to different odours and aromas while they looked at the food, and record if anything interesting is observed in their choices.
I would also record whether they had eaten the food shown in the examples before, since that ould surely affect their senses.

For example, if I showed them a messy bowl of spaghetti and got them to smell the aroma of, say, flowers, would that change their feelings towards the image.
Or, if there was a plate of chocolate strawberries mounted on a heap of pure cream, but they were smelling the odour of stinky socks, would the smell override the image of the strawberries and therefore change their mind about the deliciousness of chocolate strawberries, or not?

Obtaining the images would be easy, for I would find them in any recipe magazine. the smells are little more complicated - I need them to be portable yet I don't see myself carrying around dirty socks, right?

Of course, there would still be variables, though it would mainly be a survey. Plus the requirement of at least 30 participants involved in the study still stands.

Food for thought...

Hi there! Attention all food lovers

Back again. I'm under a schedule with this blog so I thought I would get started.
First of all, I suppose since I am researching a scientific dilemma a topic would be a good start. So I've been thinking over the past weeks and I really want to do SOMETHING (I am not qute sure what yet) in the areas of food technology and psychology - which are both really really awesome and interesting.
I'm contemplating completing an experiment that involves a large number of people to be my guineapigs (mwah ha ha ha), some great food, some not so great food, and an understanding of how our brains respond to different sorts of food. I read in the newspaper recently, an article about some scientists/chefs who conducted a study called 'MOOD FOOD'. Enough said.
It was so cool; they made ice cream using liquid nitrogen, and edible dirt, which is kind of gross when you think about.
Since food and eating is basically our whole reason to live, I thought it'd be intruiging to find out if food does anything else other than sustain our energy levels and, I don't know, keep us alive!

So, until the next post, bye=)