Science Fair Project

[Sondra]

Here it is, finished and WORKING!! We had some weather problems so the kids had some snow days instead of the Science Fair, so it was postponed until this Saturday, so we don't know the outcome, yet. I will keep you all posted. I just want to thank Brian for all his help in getting this thing working and thanks to Mark for this website. Without you both, we would have been lost. I couldn't get the video function working without it ceasing up the computer so here is the link to the video on YouTube. It is quite boring since we were just making the video for the judges so we didn't have to worry about getting the lamp warmed up 2 hours before and while no one was there to watch it. Enjoy!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbSxLAYE648

Thanks,
Sondra and Maycie

[agentchillypig]

I made my first one just last week for my science fair and my poster. We were supposed to do the scientific method. Well I could not think of anything......so i just did a isopropryl alcohol thing. I have no idea what will happen because it is this saturday. Well wish me good luck.

[Brian]

looks like a nice first lamp :) I hope the science fair goes well!

[agentchillypig]

i hope so!

[Sondra]

good luck!

[Sondra]

We got a blue ribbon, but not best in show, which means we don't get picked to go to regionals. They pick 4 kids to go. They picked some very bad ones if you asked me. They looked like they were done in a week and one was a laundry detergent test, and one was tap water versus bottled. We actually worked everyday and night on this and we even used colored paper on the board!! Iliinois Junior Acadamy of Science or IJAS have their heads up their butts. Can you tell we are a little bitter here. These were very bad choices and looked thrown together last minute and everyone that came said so, even the kids and parents of the kids that won said that we should have won best in show. Oh well, I'm kinda glad I don't have to drive to Springfield myself :D, we live close to St. Louis, so that is a bit of a drive, my daughter just would have appreciated more for working harder because it was so noticable that we spent more time and effort on ours only to get the same ribbon as most of the other kids, ya know. Well, we are going to go lick our wounds. Thanks for all the compliments. We really needed them. Here's to REAL science, ya know, chemistry, not mentos and soda or chewing gum and waiting for the flavor to run out or asking everyone what they think of the flavor of their water, ugh!! When my 4th grader has a science fair in 2 years, should I make the glow sticks, Brian, or should I just smear some mustard on my kids socks and wash them in 4 different detergents and be sure to go to state??? LOL!!

Thanks for letting me vent,
Sondra

[Brian]

you know, I just had some flashbacks of my science fair as a kid. I made a lot of neet stuff to demonstrate things that I had learned and the closest I recieved was second place. Looking back, the judges didn't care how much science you knew or could demonstrate, it was what you can show them that has an impact on the working class. like the one that had the socks and tried different detergents to see which one worked better. People of the working class get all giddy for that stuff because it affected them in a positive way. Now, if someone knew a lot of science and made something new that had an affect on the majority of people, that scientist would be more well known than the one that found a wormhole in space or someone that found a new mineral on the moon. I think that the lava lamp made the judges think about thier stoner days that they didn't want to remember LOL I am sorry that they didn't look deep into your project for the science that it is. I thought it was a great lamp and for a kid to make it is a great feat. I have problems making a lamp and I'm 30 LOL.

[Sondra]

Thanks for making us feel better. You have a real way with words, ya know, otherwise, we would have given up a long time ago :) I guess we can't be mad at them for going with the dumb ones because the majority of them are not as upper IQ as we are :D. We can't all have an IQ of mid 100's right? I'm not bragging but mine was 157 so some of the things I say go right over most people's heads. Drives me nuts sometimes though because I just can't understand how people don't see the logic in things, even after I explain it to them, UGH! Oh well, such is my plight, huh? Well, keep me informed on any new lava adventures and I will do the same, if there are any :).

Thanks again,
Sondra n Maycie

[agentchillypig]

cool but I was the only one who did a lava lamp and not rocks or hovercrafts or whatever you call them.

[Jonas Clark-Elliott]

I, too, say great job on making a lamp that actually flows! I've been posting on these forums for many years, and nearly every week we get posters saying "Hi, I need to build a lava lamp for my science fair project, it's due tomorrow, please help!!". We do our best, but it's not usually the simplest project by any means. Your lamp looks good, has showy colors, and flows. Any formula you try is going to be a bit tough, but making a lamp can indeed be done. Agentchillypig, it seems, also finished a lamp - congrats!

Warning, opinions ahead:
If I were doing this, I would probably explain the workings. I'm not sure if you did, but... Say, explain why/how the lamp does what it does, why the heat coil is necessary (it has two important functions) etc. as well as noting which ingredients you used and what each's purpose is.

[Sondra]

Oh, we did, explained everything in detail. I guess it was too good, LOL! I really think they didn't want to move all the equipment and retape everything down, that's really the bottom line, laziness. I had to do all that stuff for them the night before and if you get best in show, they have to move it to the front of the showing. Just plain lazy!! Thanks for the compliment and ideas for future science projecteers. I have to agree, this is not a one nighter! We worked on this for 6 weeks without a break, no days off! It is not a light project by any means!! To get a good grade on any project takes more than one day or night or even one week. Parents also need to teach their kids to take some dang pride in their work. I wondered this whole time, "where were these parents, and why didn't they make them do a better job?" This was not an optional science fair, it actually counted as a third of their science grade for the quarter!! it's terrible
Anyway, sorry I went on a tangent again :). Thanks again!

[João Roberto Gabbardo]

It is another proof that the retro basic formula really works! Another team of students made working lava lamps some time ago using this formula and posted the video at YouTube. The ttle of the video is "How tomake a lava lamp" Look it at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAJG8jh2SJA

The vide explain how the lamp was made.

Kindest regards,

João Roberto Gabbardo