| Cool science fair projects can be difficult to track | | | | strings. It's not magic, it's static electricity and it's one of |
| down because children today seemed to have heard it | | | | the coolest of cool science projects ever. |
| all, seen it all and experienced it all. Parents and | | | | You only need clear balloons, small Styrofoam balls, a |
| teachers can blame the pervasive influence of | | | | piece of wool sweater, packing wrap, a piece of PVC |
| television and the Internet. Don't lose hope, however. | | | | pipe about ¾ inches in diameter and 3 feet long, a |
| You can still make your child come up with cool | | | | pencil and tape. You will start by taping the pencil into |
| science fair setups that will make their classmates and | | | | the PVC end. Then, you will cut the packing wrap into |
| teachers amazed at the power of nature and science | | | | 1"x2"x12" strips and join them to make a ring. |
| as well as the wonder of life. Here are three of them. | | | | Now, build up static electricity by rubbing the |
| Strong Sand | | | | Styrofoam band against the wool sweater. Also, build |
| You will demonstrate two things with this experiment. | | | | up a similar static charge in the PVC pipe by rubbing |
| First, you can show how sand can be used to stop | | | | the wool sweater against it. Using the pencil at the |
| the force of a speeding bullet from fatally harming an | | | | PVC pipe's end, carefully pick up the band and toss it |
| object. Second, you can illustrate the principle behind | | | | in the air. Just be sure that you have positioned the |
| seismic waves moving slowly through sand. These | | | | pipe below the band in order to make it float. Let your |
| objectives do make for cool science fair projects in a | | | | child practice, practice and practice until he gets it right. |
| killing-the-bird-with-one-stone kind of way. | | | | Celebrate Life |
| You will need the following materials: small cardboard | | | | Arguably, when your child demonstrates the wonder |
| tube, sand, sheet of tissue paper, rubber bands, | | | | of life itself, he will be judged by his peers and |
| scissors and 1-foot dowel rod. Initially, you will instruct | | | | teachers as having one of the coolest of the cool |
| observers to punch a hole through the empty one-ply | | | | science fair projects. After all, there is no greater |
| tissue-covered cardboard tube, which is very easy | | | | wonder than the fact that creatures great and small |
| indeed. | | | | inhabit the Earth they way they do! |
| Now, fill the cardboard tube with sand three-quarters | | | | You can bring a nest of eggs that are about just |
| of the way up and replace the tissue paper. Again, | | | | ready to hatch. You can then focus warm lights upon it |
| instruct the observer to punch a hole, which will be | | | | to hasten the process and hope for the best, the best |
| impossible now. This is because the sand will push | | | | being that the eggs will hatch in time to awe the |
| against the sides of the cardboard tube, thus, stopping | | | | judges, teachers, children and parents. Definitely, your |
| the force of the "bullet". | | | | child's cool science fair projects will be the star of the |
| Floating Objects and Static Electricity | | | | show for not even the most advanced technology |
| Ancient Greek scientists awed their fellowmen by | | | | known to man can rival the wonder of that we call life. |
| making objects move and float in mid-air with no visible | | | | |