VanCleave's Science Fun

Your Guide to Science Projects, Fun Experiments, and Science Research

Changing Density Units

By

Density is a type of conversion factor that compares the mass of a specific volume. The basic metric unit for mass is gram, g.The basic metric unit for length is meter, m.The basic metric unit for volume is L or m 3. Use the density of calcium, Ca, found at Dynamic Periodic TableConvert the units of […]

Temperature Changes Within Earth’s Atmosphere

By

Earth’s Atmosphere can be divided into four layers with distinct changes in temperature as the altitude increases. Starting at Earth’s surface, these layers are: Troposphere: As the altitude increases, the air temperature decreases. The troposphere is hotter near the Earth’s surface because heat from the Earth warms this air. As the altitude increases the number of […]

Food Web

By

The arrows in a food chain are drawn from the food source to the food consumer.  The arrow is a symbol for the words–“Eaten by.” In other words, in the diagram, the little fish is eaten by the medium size fish and the medium size fish is eaten by the big fish. A food chain […]

Sock Classification

By

My feet get very cold, and I wear warm socks most of the time. Yesterday, I managed to put on two different socks. Since my office is in my home, I didn’t care if the socks matched. But, later in the day my husband needed me to attend a business meeting with him. YEP! I […]

Hidden Colors

By

Paper Chromatography Chromatography means to write with colors. Chromatography is a chemical process of separating mixtures of colorants. The first video below demonstrates the following Paper Chromatography procedure steps. The video also has a craft idea for making a butterfly using the colored paper filter.The second video below provides information about paper chromatography as well as more […]

Hair Color

By

Have you ever seen a dog with pink hair?I have! FYI: The Maltese dog shown had white hair before my granddaughter dyed its hair pink. The genetics of hair color is very complex. In the most simplistic sense, hair color from black to white depends on a pigment called eumelanin. The amount and type of […]

Chameleon Dyes

By

Chameleon Dyes Note: I am revising the following information. I had the opportunity to speak with one of the directors of LCR Hallcrest, a company that makes chameleon dyes. The pencils in the picture are called chameleon pencils. While  chameleons change colors in response to different stimuli, such as temperature, emotions, and illness, the dye […]