With just a bit of standard air pressure, NOT compressed air, you can accelerate a ping pong ball to amazing speeds. Read more →

We live in a ocean of air, in fact, we live at the bottom of that ocean of air. All those miles of air above us end up exerting a force of about 14.7 pounds over every square inch of our bodies. We take it for granted since the force per area (pressure) is the same all around us. Things start to get interesting when there is an imbalance in that pressure. What better way to find out what an imbalance in pressure feels like than to vacuum-pack WTVG-13 weekend anchor Christina Williams? Read more →

Disappearing ink is one of those classic back of the comic book toy pranks. There is some nice science behind the prank in the form of acid-base indicators. Read more →

Is there a better way to celebrate Mother’s Day than to freeze some flowers in liquid nitrogen? Probably, but flash freezing flowers and then watching them break like glass is pretty cool.
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Making an Air Cannon is super easy and you probably have everything you need at home or in the garage right now. Learn how it’s done. Read more →

Some people color eggs for Easter, I think it’s more fun to fill them with hydrogen gas and see what happens when you bring a flame nearby.
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Ripping a pop can in half with your bare hands is not all that hard if you know a bit of chemistry and a little about how soda cans are fabricated. The key, is the plastic liner that coats the inside of the can. In order to protect the aluminum can from the carbonic acid in sodas, can manufacturers coat the inside of a can with a plastic liner. The liner also protects the inside of beer cans as well.

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We have just passed through the 2011 peak flu season according to Google flu trends as well as the Center for Disease Control. This reminded me that washing your hands is one of the simplest things anyone can do to stop the spread of disease. It’s also one of those things that most people don’t do as often as they should. I thought it would be interesting to test some common surfaces around an office for bacteria. Even better would be to test some spots at abc13 – the host of our Imagine It segments. What do you think would have the highest bacterial count – the toilet seat or the microwave start button? Read more →

A new exhibit at Imagination Station, the earthquake platform. As part of engineering week I challenge local meteorologist Jay Berschback to build a stable tower on the Earthquake platform exhibit. Using only foam noodles and some cross-bracing he must construct a stable tower at least 5 stories tall. Find out if he can meet the challenge. Read more →

Learn about the various kinds of glass that material scientists use to create a safe automobile environment. Read more →