01.30.2015
Written By: Ralm Ricarte
Hey sports fans,
Today’s lesson focused on the wonderful world of polymer science. First, we started with a short lecture that defined what polymers are: GIANT molecules that are made by connecting many small pieces together. To emphasize that polymers are everywhere, we asked our students to study a picture of the honorable Beyoncé Knowles and identify every item that was a polymer (spoiler alert: there were a lot).
Next, we demonstrated the diverse properties of polymers by using Happy-Sad Spheres. Though these spheres look identical, they each have different mechanical properties (i.e., one bounces, the other does not) because they are made of different polymers.
Finally, we asked the students to learn about the effect of temperature on the Happy-Sad Spheres’ bounciness by doing a simple experiment; they cooled or heated the spheres by soaking them in various liquids and then measured the bounce height. Though the students hypothesized that the bounciness would increase as the temperature increased, their data showed a completely different trend. This cliffhanger will be resolved during the next lesson.
The students enjoyed this lesson; one student even said it was “on fleek” (I don’t know what this means, but I assume it’s good). At the end, we gave each student a pair of Happy-Sad Spheres so that she may perform this experiment at home.
– Ralm Ricarte