Australia's Science Forum

Hi Dee I bought some powdered food colouring from Q Stores. I just bought red, blue and yellow and mix colours as needed. Enough to last a lifetime in our small school, and as we are not making food for consumption it doesn't matter if it gets out of date. The colours are quite strong and it's easy ...

To all you knowledgeable labbies out there, I have a question for Science Week. As an activity for Science week we are hoping to conduct an outreach program to three very small and rather isolated feeder primary schools in our area. We would like to bus the students to our school and introduce them ...

Hi Robyn This is an extract from some notes that I took at the 2006 Science SASS conference in St Marys: Hexanoic Heptanoic Stearic Octanoic - dispose of smelly Butyric acid – it is not needed. The above acids make esters with fruity smells. I still have a small amount of butyric acid stored ...

Our chemistry teacher always requests the organic waste bottle and she takes care of the waste and returns the bottle.

Filter paper works fine here.

Julie

Sorry guys. I didn't realise that my old dinosaur microwave means that I'm actually privileged! Someone must know someone who has an old one they want to get rid of. That's how mine got here. Wouldn't dream of using it at home, but it does the job here.

Julie

Hi Laurina

I'll fax that recipe to you as soon as I can get to the office today.
Sorry, I've been on a few days' long sevice leave and only just catching up on the latest posts.

Julie

Hi Laurena

There are a couple of good slime recipes in 'The Laboratory - a science reference and preparation manual for schools' page 87 if you have a copy. If not let me know and I can attach or fax a copy to you.

Julie

Bacillus BloodyHelli?
Streptococcus DamnAndBlastius?
Sorry, some of my more imaginative expletives would be inappropriate on this site.

Julie

We just successfully completed this prac with agar that I made in the microwave.
Try it, you'll never go back to your old stirrer!!

Julie

From 'The Laboratory' page 71: Reaction Buffer: 0.9% sodium chloride at pH2: acidify the saline with glacial acetic acid, added drop by drop. Recommended working strength: 0.1 - 0.5g pepsin powder per 100ml of buffer ie. 0.1 - 0.5% solution Use 1 volume enzyme solution with 4 volumes substrate suspe...

We get those too. Because of our location they can't guarantee the frozen ones will be delivered frozen and in a fit state to use. Unfortunately the preservative they are in is REALLY smelly. :cry2: I'd rather handle a fresh rat any day. Thank goodness we only have to do it once a year. \:D/ Julie

Thanks Smiley.
I actually have one of those things at home, never thought of that. So potassium permanganate, sugar, glycerol etc are out of the question?

Julie

Welcome back everyone! I have a quick question for all the knowledgeable people in Labby Land. :wink2: I have had a request from our HT for some very old Chemistry experiments. Some I have already told him we can no longer do. Are ANY exothermic experiments allowed? :oops: If so, which ones? :unsure...

Hi Liz

I seem to remember something like that coming up at St Mary's, now that you mention it. I'll see if I can find it in my notes and get back to you.


Julie

I don't keep any carnivorous plants, but if it is living in an enclosed environment, is it getting insects to eat? Seems to me that fertiliser wouldn't help at all.

Julie

Me too please Estelle
julie.reimer1@education.nsw.gov.au

Julie

I wrote a pleading letter to the P&C for the money to pay for my dishwasher. [-o< They were happy to oblige. I entertain them regularly with my literary skills, and as a result I now have a new dishwasher, new lifesize human skeleton, new van De Graaff machine. I've even been recruited on the sl...

Hi Barbara If they were waiting for me to have ESP and know what they wanted next, they'd be waiting a while. :? :unsure: We have order sheets that they pin on a board labelled with each day of the week. Sometimes I even get notice a week in advance, although certainly not all the time. Some teacher...

Sorry Lita. My previously expressed opinion was instant and based on nothing. I'm too long in the tooth for this pregnancy thing and wasn't working in Science when it would potentially have been a problem. It poses some issues that I've never had to consider, as I was not working in this area during...