Polymers

Don’t let the term polymer scare you. Making polymers is great fun, but a bit messy. Even so, it is worth it.

It you have not made Slime using glue and borax, you are in for a treat. If you have made it, try adding a secret ingredient so that it fluoresces. OOPS! Another one of those pesky science terms. Not to worry, I will give you all the information you need not only to make slime–the fluorescent kind–as well as to explain all the science behind it.

First, let me acknowledge the source of the photos, Amida and her sons, Boo and Zee. Each photo is linked to their website where you can discover how they prepared the models shown.

Now let’s see what a polymer is all about. Polymers are long chains of monomers. How about that for a definition. OK, I’ll back up….

A monomer comes from the Greek prefix– “mono”–which means one. “Mer” is from the Greek suffix –meros–which means “part.” So by putting these together we get–monomer, which means one part.

Polymer–I am not sure if it is Greek or not, but “poly” means many. So, polymer means many parts. To be more precise, a polymer is made up of many monomers all connected together. The photo shows how the monomers are connected to form a polymer.

Now  for the SLIME!! There are different recipes. You will find more facts about polymers and a fun slime recipes   HERE