Students enrolled in the OLS Bellevue College Critical Thinking Through Science course have been having a great time with some hands-on science.
The first day of the quarter began with their instructor Mark Waldstein showing them a few experiments that can be done using some simple home ingredients.
Here’s an example of refraction using a glass of water and an image on a piece of paper. During the experiment, the light travels from the image through the water, which bends the light, and finally out of the glass cup and into the air once more. As a result, the light paths cross and the image appears to be flipped.
You can try this yourself with this tutorial from Cool Science Experiments Headquarters.
Here’s a demonstration of air pressure and surface tension using a glass of water and a piece of cardboard. The air pressure in the room, pushing up on the cardboard from underneath, is greater than the pressure in the little air pocket that gets trapped when you turn the whole thing over. Try it yourself with this tutorial from Sublime Science.
Students were then tasked with researching an experiment they could show their fellow students the following week. Students didn’t have to worry if they didn’t have the ingredients for a particular experiment. They could choose one that only required what they already had on hand.
Ally had some fun making invisible ink to create hidden messages (and we love the OLS spirit she’s bringing to this). Want to make your own hidden message with invisible ink? Check out this tutorial from ThoughtCo.
Nadine dazzled her fellow classmates with a chemical reaction between vinegar and baking soda. To do it, you put vinegar in the bottle, and baking soda in the balloon; stretch the mouth of the balloon over the top of the bottle; tip the balloon up, so the baking soda falls into the bottle; and the reaction between the two creates a whole lot of gas and fills the balloon. Try it at home with this tutorial from Science Bob.
What a great way to share some simple hands-on science!
Critical Thinking Through Science is one of the many courses OLS Students take to obtain their associate degree from OLS. More information about our curriculum is available on our website. To learn more about our program register for an upcoming Information Session.
[ssba-buttons]Last Updated July 16, 2020