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DENSITY TOWER

SUPPLIES:

Honey

Water

Cooking Oil

Hand Sanitiser

Dish Soap

Large, Tall Jar

Food Coloring

You can also experiment with adding honey and corn syrup and even an ice cube! You will find that some density tower experiments have a very specific and careful way to add the layers, but ours is a bit more kid friendly!

LIQUID DENSITY TOWER STEPS:

Add your ingredients from heaviest to lightest. Here we have the heaviest being honey, then dish soap, then water (colour the water if desired), then oil, and lastly the alcohol (hand sanitiser). You can colour the water and hand sanitiser with food colouring before adding them to the tower.

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STEP 1: Gather your ingredients! You need a jar, water, oil, food colouring, Alka Seltzer or equivalent.
STEP 2:  Fill your jar about 2/3 of the way with oil.

STEP 3:  Fill your jar the rest of the way with water.

STEP 4:  Add drops of food coloring to your oil and water and watch what happens.

STEP 5:  Now it’s time for the grand finale of this lava lamp experiment! It’s time to drop in a tablet of Alka Seltzer or it’s generic equivalent.

LAVA LAMP EXPERIMENT EXPLANATION

When the two substances combine (tablet and water) they create a gas called carbon dioxide which is all the bubbling you see. These bubbles carry the colored water to the top of the oil where they pop and the water then falls back down.

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The Tea Bag Liftoff is an adaptation of a classic science demonstration called the "Ditto-Paper Rocket."* Each two-page Ditto master had a sheet of tissue paper separating the two pages. It was this discarded tissue paper that teachers used to make the "rockets." Since Ditto paper is - thank goodness - a thing of the past, science enthusiasts have found a simpler, albeit smaller, replacement: an empty tea bag.

*Ditto paper was used in schools many years ago (ask your grandparents). It printed purple ink on paper and produced an unforgettable smell from freshly printed copies. Come to find out later, however, that both the Ditto machine solvent and the ink were highly toxic to humans. Apparently, no one seemed to care back then. Go figure.

Experiment

Use scissors to cut off the top of the tea bag. You don't need the string and label or any staples on it but you do need to be able to empty the bag.

Empty the contents of the tea bag into the trash. They probably smell pretty good depending on the tea.

Unfold and straighten the empty bag. Open it so that it looks like a cylinder and is pretty straight. It doesn't need to be perfectly round but it does have to be opened up. Place it upright on the plate or pan.

Light the top rim of the bag on fire all the way around the edge. As you watch it burn, think about what the heat is doing to the air both around and inside the burning bag.

Let the bag burn completely to ash and watch it liftoff the pan and rapidly rise into the air. You should be able to watch it rise quickly and then descend slowly as it cools. If there are any remains, look at them closely to determine what's in them.

How Does It Work

There are actually three principles at work on the burning paper cylinder that make this activity happen.

First: There's the density difference between the air inside the cylinder compared to the air outside of the cylinder. As the flames move down the bag, they heat the air trapped in the cylinder. The heat causes the molecules to move very quickly and to spread out inside and above the cylinder. These molecules are much farther apart than those outside the cylinder. That means the air inside the cylinder is less dense than the air outside the cylinder. Warmer, less dense air rises above cooler, denser air.

Second: The burning bag generates hot, less dense air inside it and above it. This leads to a "thermal" or a convection current of rapidly rising hot air above the flames. The larger volume of space generated by the hot rising air inside the cylinder needs to be filled. The cooler denser air outside of the burning cylinder moves in from the bottom to fill the space under the heated air.

Third: As the bag burns, it becomes both ash and smoke. The hot smoke rises, lifts away, and dissipates into the air. A delicate ash frame of the bag is all that remains but since the ash frame is so lightweight, the force of the rising, hot air is strong enough to quickly lift it upward. As it rises, it cools and then falls back into the dish... if you're lucky.

Real World Connection

While NASA launch vehicles use rocket propulsion engines to achieve an incredibly powerful vertical "liftoff," hot air balloons are way more subtle. They use a method similar to your burning tea bag to launch into the cool, morning air. Hot air balloons use a burner to rapidly heat and expand the air inside the balloon. This creates the same air density differences you made with your burning bag. However, in a balloon, there is no mass change like there was in the bag when it turned to ash. That would not be a good thing in a hot air balloon. Instead, the air inside the balloon is heated much hotter than the outside air which creates an envelope of trapped, less dense air within the denser morning air. As a result, the balloon lifts off the ground and rises.

Check out our Solar Bags to see first hand the power of hot, rising air on a large, very visible scale. Two types of the Solar Bag expand to either 25 or 50 feet (7.6 to 15 m) when inflated. Both harness solar energy to expand and then float into the air. It's truly a sight to behold as a giant, black "solar sausage" slowly lifts off of the ground powered by nothing but sunshine and controlled by you!

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The Tea Bag Liftoff is an adaptation of a classic science demonstration called the "Ditto-Paper Rocket."* Each two-page Ditto master had a sheet of tissue paper separating the two pages. It was this discarded tissue paper that teachers used to make the "rockets."

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Experiment

How Does It Work
Geysers of Fun
Why do Mentos mints turn ordinary bottles of diet soda into geysers of fun? The answer is a little more complicated than you might think. Let's start with the soda: soda pop is made of sugar or artificial sweetener, flavoring, water and preservatives. The thing that makes soda bubbly is invisible carbon dioxide (CO ₂), which is pumped into bottles at the bottling factory using lots and lots of pressure. If you shake a bottle or can of soda, some of the gas comes out of the solution and the bubbles cling to the inside walls of the container (thanks to tiny pits and imperfections on the inside surface of the bottle called "nucleation sites"). When you open the container, the bubbles quickly rise to the top, pushing the liquid out of the way. In other words, the liquid sprays everywhere.
More Carbon Dioxide Observations
Is there another way for the CO ₂ to escape? Try this: Drop an object (like a raisin or a piece of uncooked pasta) into a glass of soda. Notice how bubbles immediately form on the surface of the object. These are CO ₂ bubbles leaving the soda and attaching themselves to the object. Adding salt to soda also causes it to foam up. That's because thousands of little bubbles form on the surface of each grain of salt. This bubbling process is called "nucleation." The places where the bubbles form - whether on the sides of the can, on an object or around a tiny grain of salt - are called the (yep, you guessed it!) nucleation sites.
Why are Mentos Mints so Special?
The reason why Mentos work so well is twofold. First, there are thousands of tiny pits on the surface of each mint. Second, the weight of the Mentos candy itself is important in this Mentos and Coke experiment. Each Mentos mint has thousands of tiny pits all over its surface. These tiny pits act as those nucleation sites we discussed - which are perfect places for all those CO ₂ bubbles to form. As soon as the Mentos mint hits the soda, bubbles form all over the surfaces of the candies and then quickly rise to the surface of the liquid. Couple this reaction with the fact that the Mentos candies are heavy and sink to the bottom of the bottle and you've got a double whammy! The gas released by the Mentos mints literally pushes all of the liquid up and out of the bottle in an incredible and amazing soda blast! Cool, huh?
Measuring the Height of the Geyser
To make any of these tests meaningful, you'll need to find a way to measure the height of the eruption in this experiment with soda and Mentos. Have a friend or a parent record this experiment while you perform it. This is a great way to watch and document the results of your experiment; however, you'll also need some specific measurements for data. Try placing the soda bottle next to the wall of a brick building (after getting permission from the building's owner, of course). Measure the height of the geyser by counting the number of bricks that are wet once the geyser stops. If you want a more specific measurement, use chalk to mark off 1-foot increments on the brick wall before you drop the Mentos into the bottle of soda. Make comparisons, create a chart with your data and draw some conclusions. Be sure to thank the building's owner and to hose off the wall of the building when you are finished!
Measuring the Volume of the Geyser
If you want to examine the volume of the geyser instead of the height, make a note of the volume of a full bottle of soda before you drop the Mentos into it. (OK, this is a trick question because a 2-liter bottle of soda holds - you guessed it - 2 liters!) Once the geyser stops, pour out the remaining contents of the bottle and measure how much liquid is left inside. You could use a beaker or a graduated cylinder to measure the remaining liquid in milliliters. Remember that 1 liter is equivalent to 1000 mL. Subtract the remaining amount of liquid from the original volume of the bottle to calculate the volume of the geyser. Then, make comparisons, create a chart with your data and draw your conclusions.
How Many Mentos Work Best?
This has to be the number one question that everyone asks about this experiment with soda and Mentos. What exactly IS the best number of Mentos mints to use to make the highest-shooting geyser? This is a great topic for a science project - you'll need lots of soda and Mentos mints and a few friends to help record all of the data.

Be sure that the soda bottles are all the same brand and type. It's also important that all of the test bottles are stored in the same place so that the liquid in each bottle is the same temperature.

Line up a row of ten 2-liter bottles against a brick wall (see "Measuring the Height of the Geyser"). Each bottle will receive a different number of Mentos. Drop one Mentos candy into the first bottle and record the height by counting the wet bricks (or set up your own scale behind each soda bottle). Drop two Mentos candies into the second bottle - and so on - until you've completed the experiment with all ten bottles.

Of course, this could go on forever. However, you'll start to see a trend in your data that shows the maximum height of the geyser for a certain number of Mentos. Many soda geyser-ologists believe that seven Mentos candies produce the highest-shooting geyser. Using any more than seven Mentos mints is just a waste, according to these soda-soaked science enthusiasts. What do your results reveal about the effect of the number of Mentos on the height of the geyser?
The Brand Test
It's time to put your favorite soda to the test in this fun experiment with soda and Mentos! Does one brand produce higher-flying geysers? How does generic soda stack up against the big-name brands? If you're doing a science fair project, your initial question might be: "What is the effect of the brand of soda on the height of the geyser?"

Use your data from the previous test to determine the standard number of Mentos candies to use for this test. The only variable you'll change in this test is the brand of soda; everything else will remain the same (for example, the number of Mentos and the amount of soda). Again, make sure all of the soda is at the same temperature. That's because temperature plays an important role in the reaction, too. The brand of soda is the only thing that changes (the variable).

Just think - your results could be the catalyst for the next Mentos Geyser Experiment craze!
The Temperature Test
What is the effect of temperature on the height of the geyser? Does warm Diet Coke and Mentos versus cold Diet Coke and Mentos make a difference? Does warm Diet Coke create a higher geyser explosion than does cold soda? The key is to keep every launch fair and to make sure the only variable is the temperature of the soda. You'll need a thermometer to record the temperature of the soda just before you launch it.

To enforce the fairness factor, you must stick with one brand of soda for the entire test. Let's use Diet Coke in this example. You'll want to purchase three bottles of Diet Coke and two rolls of Mentos. You're going to set up three tests: warm soda, room temperature soda and cold soda. Place one bottle of Diet Coke in the refrigerator and let it sit there overnight. Place the second bottle in a place where it will reach room temperature overnight. There are two safe ways to warm the other bottle of soda. The simplest method is to let the unopened bottle sit in the sun for several hours. You can also place the bottle of unopened soda in a bucket of warm water. (Never use a stove or a microwave to heat a bottle of soda!)

It's time to return to your launching site. Check to make sure your measuring scale is in place (counting bricks or using an alternative scale against the wall). Let's start with the bottle of cold Diet Coke. Open the bottle and dip the thermometer down into the soda. Record the temperature. Load seven Mentos mints into your paper roll or your Steve Spangler Science Geyser Tube and drop them into the soda. Immediately record the data for the cold soda test. Repeat the same procedure for the bottle of soda at room temperature and then again for the bottle of warm soda. It's important to use the same number of Mentos for each test and to drop them into the soda bottles the exact same way.

No matter which brand of soda you tested, the warm bottle probably produced the highest-shooting geyser. Warm soda tends to fizz much more than cold soda. Why? The answer lies in the solubility of gases in liquids. The warmer the liquid, the less gas can be dissolved in that liquid. The colder the liquid, the more gas can be dissolved in that liquid. This is because as the liquid is heated, the gas within that liquid is also heated, causing the gas molecules to move faster and faster. As the molecules move faster, they diffuse out of the liquid, leaving less gas dissolved in that liquid. In colder liquids the gas molecules move very slowly, causing them to diffuse out of the solution much more slowly. More gas tends to stay in solution when the liquid is cold. This is why that at the bottling plant, the CO ₂ is pumped into the cans or bottles when the fluid is just above freezing - around 35 degrees Fahrenheit. This low temperature allows the maximum amount of CO 2 to dissolve into the soda, keeping the carbonation levels as high as possible.

Take It Further
Take it Further
Simply dropping Mentos mints into a bottle of soda to make a geyser isn't really science - it's just a fun trick to do in your backyard. The real learning takes place when you start to change one variable at a time to see how it affects the performance of the geyser.
The Big Blast
After completing all of these tests, you've become somewhat of a Mentos Geyser Experiment expert who has the research to support the answer to this question: "How can you make the highest-shooting Mentos geyser?" Each test isolated an independent variable. Combining all of the information you observed into one launch is a great way to wrap up your science fair project! For example, based on your individual test results, you might have arrived at this recipe for the best Mentos Geyser:

Use a bottle of Diet Coke

Make sure the soda is at least 85 degrees Fahrenheit

Drop seven Mentos into the soda all at the same time

By using the scientific method and some critical thinking skills, you've successfully turned a great gee-whiz science trick into an exciting and explosive research-based science fair project!

Science Fair Connection
Science Fair Connection
You may be asking yourself, "Can I use the Mentos Geyser for my science fair project?" The answer is YES, but you'll need to learn how to turn a cool science activity into a real science experiment. The secret is to turn your attention away from the spraying soda and concentrate on setting up an experiment where a single variable is isolated. Then, observe, record and report the results.

To get the best results in a science experiment, you will need to standardize the test conditions as much as possible. The biggest challenge in the Mentos Geyser Experiment is finding a consistent way to drop the Mentos into the soda every time. This was the original reason I invented the Geyser Tube toy: to find a way to standardize the actual drop of the Mentos mint candies. If you're not using the Geyser Tube, make sure to come up with your own method for dropping the Mentos mints into the soda exactly the same way each and every time.

Mentos and Coke Geyser Phenomenon History

As strange as it might sound, the Mentos Geyser Experiment never actually started out using Mentos chewy mints. This science demonstration was popular among chemistry teachers back in the 1980s. Instead of Mentos mints candy, however, they used a roll of Wintergreen LifeSavers and a pipe cleaner. Teachers threaded the roll of Wintergreen LifeSavers onto a pipe cleaner as an easy way to drop all of the LifeSavers into the soda at the same time. Within seconds of dropping the candies into the soda, a huge geyser would erupt from the bottle.

By the end of the 1990s, however, the manufacturer of Wintergreen LifeSavers increased the size of the mints (no one was ever certain why). This made the diameter of the candy too large to fit into the mouth of the soda bottle. Science teachers started experimenting (as they like to do) with other candies and mints that would have the same effect when dropped into a bottle of soda. As luck would have it, the solution to the problem was within arm's reach of the Wintergreen LifeSavers in the candy aisle: Mentos chewy mint candies!

Because Mentos mints didn't have holes in the middle like LifeSavers, getting them into the bottle was a little tricky. Everyone found their own method for quickly dropping the Mentos into the soda. Some people fashioned a tube out of paper; others used a piece of plastic tubing to load the Mentos. At the time, my solution was to load the Mentos candies into something called a "Baby Soda Bottle" - a test tube-like container that held an entire roll of Mentos perfectly. Oddly enough, this container was actually a "pre-form" or 2-liter soda bottle before it was blown up into a big bottle. That's why it's called a Baby Soda Bottle!

Troubleshooting Ensued

I must admit, however, that even with the Baby Soda Bottle method, the results were not very consistent. It proved challenging to get away from that bottle before it exploded. For that reason, I solicited help from our creative team at Steve Spangler Science to come up with a Geyser Tube - a better, more consistent way to drop the Mentos candies into the 2-liter bottle. Better yet, if we could trigger the drop of the Mentos from a distance, we wouldn't get as wet.

Experimenting with Trigger Devices

The next few months were spent building trigger devices that ranged from plastic tubes with sliding doors and magnets that held metal stoppers in place to an elaborate battery-operated switch that was triggered by a motion detector. We even played with ways to use the Geyser Tube to trigger multiple soda geysers in a method similar to a Rube Goldberg machine. The bottom line was that we needed to find a way to standardize the drop of those Mentos mints.

As they say, the simplest design usually turns out to be the best and most elegant solution to the problem. The winning Geyser Tube design was a clear plastic tube with a special fitting that twisted onto any soda bottle. The trigger pin at the bottom of the tube prevented the Mentos from falling into the bottle until you pulled the string attached to the pin. The moment the pin was pulled, a slider ring resting above the pin fell into place and covered the holes where the trigger pin once was. The Mentos mints then dropped into the soda. But there was one added bonus: the restricted hole at the top of the plastic tube helped to build up more pressure in the bottle and launched the soda up to 30 feet into the air!

Fortunately, the maker of Mentos (Perfetti Van Melle) also liked our Geyser Tube design. We launched the Mentos Geyser Tube toy at the New York Toy Fair in February 2007.

A Television and Live Stage Phenomenon

The Mentos Geyser Experiment became one of my featured demonstrations - both on television and during my live stage presentations. While I had performed variations of the Mentos Geyser Experiment on television many times from 2001 to 2004, my performance of the demo in the backyard of Denver's NBC affiliate KUSA-TV in September of 2005 proved to be the tipping point. The demo went from relative obscurity to an internet sensation!

My cohost for the KUSA-TV science segment was the lovely Kim Christiansen. During the commercial break, I told Kim what was going to happen and reminded her to pull her hand out of the way of the erupting geyser and to run backward. Unfortunately, Kim got so caught up in the fun that she forgot to do both - and got soaked in Diet Coke on live television! To add insult to injury, she did it two more times. Each time, she was covered in more soda until her once-pink dress was now more Coke-colored than pink!

KUSA-TV News posted that original video on their website along with my blog post titled, "News Anchor Gets Soaked!" Within a few weeks, links to the video and my blog entry numbered in the thousands. I also posted the video on a new online video-sharing site called YouTube (YouTube was only seven months old at that time). As they say, the rest is history. Within the next 12 months, over 800 Mentos Geyser Experiment-related videos were posted on YouTube, making the demo one of the most popular pop-culture science experiments in recent history.

The Million Dollar Question

We knew the Mentos Geyser Experiment was a popular experiment when a producer from ABC's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire called for help when writing a question. Here's the question we came up with:
In an experiment popularized online, what candy creates an explosive geyser when dropped into a 2-liter Diet Coke bottle?
The question was asked on a special College Week episode of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. The participant got it right for $8,000, saying: "I saw it on TV, and I bought Mentos and a 2-liter bottle of Diet Coke. So, I'm going to go with Mentos. That's my final answer."

The contestant ended up doing really well, going all the way to the $250,000 question; however, he walked away with $125,000.

Steve Spangler Science Online Experiment Library

Don't miss our other super-fun and hands-on experiments in our huge online experiment library! From after-school activities and science classroom activities to STEM club experiments, our website is one of the most trusted resources for fun, age-appropriate experiments for kids of all ages.

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Mentos Geyser Experiment Steve Spangler Science

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Experiment Geysers of Fun Why do Mentos mints turn ordinary bottles of diet soda into geysers of fun? The answer is a little more complicated than you might think. Let's start with the soda: soda pop is made of sugar or artificial sweetener, flavoring, water and preservatives.

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The Science of Rockets STEM Program PFi Aerospace

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The Science of Rockets STEM Program PFi Aerospace

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Science of Rockets STEM Program

PFi Aerospace

Age: All ages
Time: 90 minutes
Format: Design challenge and live panel

Calling all budding world problem solvers: Are you up for this Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Design Cycle challenge? After all, it’s only rocket science!

Check out this video of a PFI Rocket Engineer breaking down a hybrid rocket motor. How do you think you would go? Now is your chance to find out!

On Thursday 19th August at 10am, be inspired by a live chat with a specialist STEM panel, featuring women in STEM leadership, IT professionals and Rocket Engineers (real-life Rocket Scientists!). Hear about how design challenges are completed at aerospace and what you should focus on throughout the design challenge!

Then straight after the team at Science of Rockets will guide you through a 30-minute design challenge, inspired by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Design Thinking processes.

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Hybrid Rocket Motor unpacking with our female engineer – Harriet Angus

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National Science Week is Australia’s annual celebration of science and technology and thousands of individuals – from students, to scientists to chefs and musicians – get involved, taking part in science events across the nation.

Science Week is designed for everyone – it’s definitely not restricted to schools and universities – with events and activities and talks and shows for every age group.

It provides an opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of Australian scientists’ to the world of knowledge. It also aims to encourage an interest in science pursuits among the general public, and to encourage younger people to become fascinated by the world we live in.

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WHAT IS A SCIENTIST? | 2021 National Science Week

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The school theme for National Science Week 2021 is Food: Different by Design. It honors the United Nations International Year of Fruits and Vegetables and the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development.

This week is Science Week and the theme for 2021 is 'Food: Different By Design' (who doesn't love food?) and encourages teachers and students to look at new ideas, technologies, and possibilities to produce food sustainable as well as the communities and economies that it supports

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Join Mr Richards and Mrs Constanti for a Science Brain Break each day where we will discover a science through experimentation and discussion.

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Tune in for these exciting Science Incursions at the following times.

Tuesday | 9:40 – 10am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mr Richards

Wednesday  | 10:10 – 10:30 am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mrs Constanti
11am-12 Deeper into the STEM of our Oceans with Vanessa Pirotta (Whale Snot Scientist) and Dr Sylvia Earle (from the first ever women’s research diving team) Live event

Thursday | 8:40-9am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mr Richards
10am Science of Rockets STEM Program hands on virtual excursion

Friday | 8:40-9am Brain Break Science in the Kitchen with Mrs Constanti
10am Q&A with Dr Karl Live event

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Why not conduct an experiment of your own? Please upload it here.

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To celebrate the start of National Science Week, Melbourne University Press have an exciting pack of eight titles to entice curious minds. The Chloroformist by Christine Ball Made by Humans - the

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Dr Karl | an answer looking for a question

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The Surfing Scientist › The Surfing Scientist (ABC Science)

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All the latest surfingscientist and latest science news, in-depth features, games and conversations as they happen from around Australia and the world.

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This site has been archived and is no longer being maintained.

You can do experiments from each episode of the experiMENTALS...

battle of the bouncing balls
"You'll never guess what happens when you drop a tennis ball and a basketball stacked together!

keys on a shoelace
"What will happen when you let go of the ring?

making balloon animals
"The secrets of balloon animal-makers are revealed at last!

freaky frozen hand
"Coloured ice has never been this spooky! Note: this one takes a day to prepare.

spooky slime
"Gross gross gross! This stuff is slimy, spooky and laws-of-physics-defying!

straw propellor
"Bemuse your friends with this weird show-offy trick.

trumpet straw
"You don't need to be Louis Armstrong to master the trumpet straw.

disappearing coin trick
"Which hand are the coins under?

paperclip joining trick
"Can you join two paperclips without touching them? We'll show you how!

holey leakproof bag of water!
"You can poke holes in a plastic bag of water and it won't leak! Plastic: bad for the environment, great for science tricks!

recycling plastics and glass
"Recycling is great for the environment and for us. But how do you know what you can and can't put in your recycling bin?

gravity-defying wheel
"What kind of wheel doesn't fall over when you let go of it? A spinning wheel!

relightable candle
"Relight a candle without touching the wick!

levitating balloon
"Is it science or is it magic??? (Hint: it's not magic)

magic potion
"No eyes of newts here, but it's still a spooky little number!

magic rocking candle
"A swinging candle? Ga-roovy!

balancing nails
"Can you balance 9 nails on the head of a tenth nail? More importantly, can your friends do it???

haunted balloon
"Make a great spooky noise with a balloon and a nut. (The tool kind of nut, not the wacky friend kind).

round vs square column strength
"Test how strong paper columns of different shape are by loading them up with a whole stack of books.

bubble 07 diversion 'grenades'
"Make a mess with these diversion 'grenades'!

energy in soft drinks
"How far should you walk to use up the energy in your soft drink or fruit juice?

ink chromatography
"Use a forensic technique to solve pencil case crimes!

dr who timewarp special effect
"You too can travel at warpspeed without leaving the loungeroom. Sort of ...

laser canon sound effect
"Create very spacey sound effects for those Star Wars at home moments.

morphing marshmallows
"The great thing is, even after all that morphing they're delicious!

oil and ice
"Watch out: it looks great, but tastes foul!

psychedelic milkshake
"If pretty stuff doesn't do it for you, pick another experiment!

hot air expands, cold air contracts
"WATCH OUT! This experiment involves hot water, so make sure you've got an adult to help you out with it.

poking holes in balloons
"In this trick, you can poke holes in a balloon without bursting it!

extreme fountain
"Make your own mini and maxi rockets from some bits and pieces around the house.

extreme mini-rocket
"Make your own mini from some bits and pieces around the house.

very extreme maxi-rocket
"Make your own maxi-rocket from some bits and pieces around the house.

balloon metamorphosis
"The ugly balloon becomes the beautiful swan...

counterintuitive balloons!!
"What do you think will happen?

firefighting balloons!
"A balloon that survives naked flame? Yes!

cheeky ping-pong balls!
"you can huff and puff, but you'll never blow them out!

gravity-defying cordial!
"Whoever heard of blowing liquid up a straw?

sticky balloons
"Wind-defying balloons!

unsinkable egg
"Doh! Doesn't that egg get that the water should weigh it down???

wind-loving balloons?
"Balloons just love hairdryers!

make a cube-shaped bubble!
"Whoever thought you could make square bubbles?

make an anti-bubble!
"You too can create the opposite of a bubble!

make a bubble with a hole in it
"Poking holes make bubbles burst, right? Not this one!

make unsinkable bubbles
"It's spooky and amazing, and easy to make.

drop a pen in a bottle trick
"Do you have super-Zen powers of concentration? With a little practice you can stun your friends with this trick.

super-lung test
"Nobody's got super-powered lungs, but with this trick you can make it look like you do.

test your reflexes
"Have YOU got Super Human Reflexes? Hmm, very unlikely!

unbreakable egg trick
"Can't break a raw egg by squeezing it? You can if you know this little trick...

make a cardboard boomerang
"This four-sided boomerang really flies, baby!

make a lava lamp
"Who needs electricity to make a funky 70s style lava lamp?

make a tightrope walker
"It's tightrope walking, but not as we know it!

make a magic wallet
"Trick your friends [and maybe earn some much needed xmas cash!]

make a mexican jumping bean
"Is it alive?!?

make a popper rocket
"A rocket without vinegar and bicarb? Impossible!

make your own G-force!
"If you're not going on a rollercoaster or the ChaCha anytime soon, here's a simple way of 'feeling' g forces.

make a cartesian diver
"Make this dude dive deep or shallow with a squeeze of your hand.

balance a lolly on a straw
"With a trick like this no one will be able to resist your charm!

make a tea-bag rocket
"Who'd have thought a tea-bag could fly?

make a toothpick star
"Science doesn't get much more romantic than this!

stab a potato with a straw
"You'll never get a straw through a potato... or will you?

make a wineglass sing
"You don't need to be an opera star to make a wineglass sing.

make a wineglass vibrate
"Look Mum - no hands! This is really impressive.

coin in the hole trick
"Win bets and impress friends with this neat trick!

freaky self-healing paper trick
"Move over David Copperfield - you'll be a great magician with this trick! You just need to be a bit organised beforehand.

head through a postcard trick
"Bet you can't fit your head through a postcard... or can you?

folding paper more than 7 times
"Ever heard that you can't fold a piece of paper more than 7 times?

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the experiMENTALS - The Lab - Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Gateway to Science

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This site has been archived and is no longer being maintained. You can do experiments from each episode of the experiMENTALS... battle of the bouncing balls "You'll never guess what happens when you drop a tennis ball and a basketball stacked together! keys on a shoelace "What will happen when you let go of the ring?

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Check this video out on making a density scale using kitchen liquids and making a lava lamp.

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Marine biologist Sylvia Earle on why the ocean matters

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Sylvia Earle: My wish: Protect our oceans

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Legendary ocean researcher Sylvia Earle shares astonishing images of the ocean -- and shocking stats about its rapid decline -- as she makes her TED Prize wish: that we will join her in protecting the vital blue heart of the planet.

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Sylvia Earle: Exploring and protecting the ocean for seven decades

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Sylvia Earle: Exploring and protecting the ocean for seven decades

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How Nat Geo Explorer Sylvia Earle Is Protecting the Ocean

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Dr Vanessa Pirotta - Whale snot scientist!

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Dr Vanessa Pirotta - Whale snot scientist!

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What "whale snot" tells us about whales and the ocean | Vanessa Pirotta | TEDxMelbourne

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Science of Rockets - Design Challenge Brief

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Science of Rockets - Design Challenge Brief

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Will it float or sink? Sugar, soft drinks and density. 

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Will it float or sink? Sugar, soft drinks and density. 

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Sugar, softdrinks and density.

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BOOM! Louise interviews Dr Earl in Science Week 2021!

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BOOM! Louise interviews Dr Earl in Science Week 2021!

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Louise was chosen to represent ASG at a Science Conference celebrating Science Week 2021. What an opportunity. What a great question!

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Great question and even better answer!@

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Learn about all of the incredible job opportunities in the world of STEM and participate in a design cycle challenge inspired by the UN Development goals.

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Mr Richards and Mrs Constanti love Dr Karl's shirts!

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Karl Sven Woytek Sas Konkovitch Matthew Kruszelnicki AM, often referred to as "Dr Karl", is an Australian science communicator and popularizer, who is known as an author, and as a science commentator on Australian radio and television.

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Ever wondered what crude oil, Uranium Bombs, four legged Pterosaurs have in common? Watch here to find out.

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Dr Karl Great Moments in Science on Vimeo

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Join the web's most supportive community of creators and get high-quality tools for hosting, sharing, and streaming videos in gorgeous HD with no ads.

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In this experiment, we are going to turn a regular raw egg into a bouncy egg. The result will be an egg that feel rubbery (like a bouncy ball) and does bounce.

Just be sure not to bounce it too high unless you are ready for a messy result! Watch to the end of the video to see what I mean.

Watch The Bouncy Egg Science Experiment Video
Bouncy Egg Science Experiment
Supplies Needed for the Bouncy Egg Science Experiment

Bouncy Egg Science Experiment Instruction

Step 1 - Get a raw egg and carefully place it into a glass or jar.

Step 2 - Fill the glass with white vinegar until the egg is completely submerged.

Step 3 - Leave the egg in the glass for 1-3 days. Each day, check back on the egg. When the egg has started to become translucent you will know it is ready.

Step 4 - Remove the egg from the glass and rinse it under some tap water. While rinsing the egg, gently rub the outside of the egg and the white film will come off leaving you will a translucent egg.

Step 5 - Examine the egg. You'll notice that it feels rubbery (like a bouncy ball). Then lift the egg 1-2 inches in the air, let go, and watch it bounce.

Helpful Tip: And be sure to do the bouncing on a plate or other container...just in case.

Step 6 - When you are ready for some messy fun, lift the egg a little higher in the air and let it go...SPLAT!

How Does the Bouncy Egg Science Experiment Work

The egg becomes bouncy as a result of a chemical reaction between the eggshell and the vinegar. The eggshell of a chicken egg is made of calcium carbonate, and vinegar is a weak acid. If you've ever mixed baking soda and vinegar together, you know the violent reaction that results. The calcium carbonate that makes up the eggshell will react with the vinegar the same way baking soda reacts with vinegar (just a lot less violently). You know the vinegar and calcium carbonate of the eggshell are reacting because of the small bubbles that form around the egg when it is placed in the vinegar. These small bubbles are carbon dioxide gas, which are the result of the reaction between calcium carbonate and vinegar.

Once the shell of the egg is gone, all that is left covering the egg is a thin membrane. The vinegar begins working on the egg's membrane. The membrane of a chicken egg is selectively permeable. The vinegar is able to cross the selectively permeable membrane of the egg through osmosis. The vinegar toughens up the membrane of the egg making it bouncy!

The selectively permeable membrane of the egg means that some substances can pass through the membrane while others cannot.

Osmosis is the diffusion of solvent molecules through a selectively permeable membrane.

Other Ideas to Try

Try other acids like lemon juice. Does it have the same effect on the eggshell? Try other types of eggs - white vs. brown shells, regular vs. organic eggs, maybe you can even find some unusual egg types at your local grocery store to experiment with (turkey, duck, quail eggs).

I hope you enjoyed the experiment. Here are some printable instructions:

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In this experiment, we are going to turn a regular raw egg into a bouncy egg. The result will be an egg that feel rubbery (like a bouncy ball) and does bounce. Just be sure not to bounce it too high unless you are ready for a messy result!

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Boom! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo

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Boom! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo

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Boom Can! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo

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Boom Can! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo

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Boom! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo

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Boom! Vinegar and Baking Powder Rocket - Slow Mo