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Spiders:Communication

By Janice VanCleave

Janice VanCleave's Physics for Every Kid

I am a scientist that still has a child-like love for make-believe. In fact, I am guilty of telling stories to one of my grandchildren about pet spiders that live only at our farm. This started when a black fuzzy spider dropped down from a light fixture directly in front of Kimberly’s face. She screamed, […]

Filed Under: Physics, Sound Tagged With: Charlie and Elizabeth talking spiders, spider web, spider's communicate, string telephone, vibration

Sound: Bottle Organ

By Janice VanCleave

Blowing across the open mouth of a bottle causes the air inside the bottle to vibrate. The vibrating air produces sound. The pitch of the sound is determined by how fast the air vibrates. As the air inside the bottle decreases it vibrates faster and produces a higher pitched sound. You could write the relationship […]

Filed Under: Physics, Sound Tagged With: pitch, SOUND

Thomas Edison

By Janice VanCleave

Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931), was one of the most prolific American inventors of the 19th century. He was born on February 11, 1847, Milan, Ohio; the seventh and last child of Samuel and Nancy Edison. Edison did not learn to talk until he was almost four years of age.  His delay in speaking was not […]

Filed Under: electricity, Physics, Scientists

Spy Pen with Invisible Ink

By Janice VanCleave

teachersource.com

The spy pen contains ink that is invisible, which means that under ordinary lighting the ink does not reflect visible light to your eyes. Visible light is one of seven different types of light energy (also called electromagnetic energy) and is the only type of light that you can see. Visible light is a band […]

Filed Under: Light Tagged With: fluorescence

Energy Ball: Science Challenge

By Janice VanCleave

The Energy Ball is a fun, easy, and safe way to introduce kids to electric energy. On the outside of the Energy Ball are two metal strips. If you touch these strips with your fingers, the ball will flash a red light and buzz.  This happens because something inside the ball produces an electric current […]

Filed Under: electricity, Energy Tagged With: battery, closed circuit, electric circuit, electric energy, electrodes

Perception of Color

By Janice VanCleave

Iridescence Clouds

Vision depends on a small part of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Called Visible Light. The only type of light energy that you can visually perceive is called visual light. Visual light can be broken into seven parts, each part with a different amount of energy, and each amount of energy is perceived as a different color. […]

Filed Under: Light, Physics Tagged With: electromagnetic spectrum, visible light

Luminescence

By Janice VanCleave

Luminescence Is Cold Light Cold light is visible light produced by processes other than heating. Light sticks are an example of cold light, which is produced when chemicals are mixed together and the energy released is in the form of visible light. The firefly in the photo gives off light that like the light stick […]

Filed Under: Light, Physics Tagged With: bioluminescence, cold light, luminescence

Energy: Electric, Light, Sound

By Janice VanCleave

Safe Tool for Teaching Electric current.

Preview in new tab A “Mystery Ball” is used to demonstrates three types of energy: electric energy light energy sound energy Objectives: 1. To describe the physical properties of the energy ball.2. To identify the the types of energy produced by the Energy Ball: electric energy, light energy, and sound energy.3. To describe the difference […]

Filed Under: electricity, Energy, Light, Sound

What Are Chromophores?

By Janice VanCleave

Leaves are green because they contain chlorophyll, a pigment whose molecules absorb all the light energy in the visible light spectrum except the parts producing the green color of the leaf, which is reflected.  Chromophore is the name of the chlorophyll functional group (aka moiety) of the chlorophyll molecule.Organic pigments (chemicals that have color) have […]

Filed Under: Chemistry, Light

Energy: Radiation

By Janice VanCleave

Electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a stream of photons each traveling at the speed of light. Photons are massless bundles of light energy. The higher the energy of photons the more they behave as particles and can be harmful. The symbol shown with what looks like three blades of a fan notifies you that the radiation […]

Filed Under: Energy, Physics Tagged With: EMR, photons, radiation

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Welcome to Janice’s Science Extravaganza!

The spoon hanging from the string vibrates when struck and these vibrations are transmitted through the string and the sound is amplified by the plastic cups. ABOUT ME: Hi, I am Janice VanCleave, author of 50 best-selling science experiment books for children ages 4 through high school. I taught science for 27 years. MORE.....

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