Science Demonstrations
This page is a collection of science demonstrations we have done to use how you see fit in your instruction. We hold no responsibility for injuries due to someone attempting to do one of the demonstrations themselves. Please use all typical lab safety and special precautions for individual demos if you attempt to perform a demo.
Title | YouTube Video Link | Description | Keywords | Subject |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aeolipile the Worlds First Steam Engine | Aeolipile the Worlds First Steam Engine | Short Demo: Heron, the great inventor of Alexandria, described in detail what is thought to be the first working steam engine. A Hero's Engine or an aeolipile, is a bladeless steam engine that rotates. Austin shows us how one works. | Aeolipile, Heron, Alexandria, Hero's Engine, Steam | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Air Pressure: Person Crush | Air Pressure: Person Crush | Short demo: The fan in a vacuum pushes air out, creating a system of low pressure. This in turn creates a system of low pressure within the bag, allowing for an entertaining demonstration of the power of our atmospheric air pressure! | Air pressure, atmospheric pressure, vacuum, low pressure, air particles, gas | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Alkali Metals: Dropping Potassium, Lithium, and Sodium in Water | Alkali Metals: Dropping Potassium, Lithium, and Sodium in Water | Short demo: A demonstration of the difference between the reactivity of lithium, sodium, and potassium, and further that the activity of main-group metals increases as we go down a column of the periodic table. | reactivity, alkali metals, single replacement, activity series | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Alkali Metals: Dropping Potassium, Lithium, and Sodium in Water, Extended Real Time Video | Alkali Metals: Dropping Potassium, Lithium, and Sodium in Water, Extended Real Time Video | Full demo: A demonstration of the difference between the reactivity of lithium, sodium, and potassium, and further that the activity of main-group metals increases as we go down a column of the periodic table. | reactivity, alkali metals, single replacement, activity series | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Angular Momentum and Ice Skaters | Angular Momentum and Ice Skaters | Full Demo: For this demo, Austin spins Sarah on a stool to visualize conservation of energy and angular momentum. | Rotation, Angular Momentum, inertia, motion, conservation of energy, torque, | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Atmospheric Pressure Model | Atmospheric Pressure Model |
| Air pressure, Earth, weather, atmosphere, model, Physics, Purdue, EAPS | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Balloon in a Bottle: There is no such thing as an empty bottle! | Balloon in a Bottle: There is no such thing as an empty bottle! | Full Demo: How fast can you inflate a balloon inside an "empty" bottle? What mind prevent the balloon from inflating? | air pressure, gas, air particles, expand, inflate | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Bed of NAils | Bed of NAils | Full demo: The human body is designed to distribute weight evenly across its surface. When a person lies on a bed of nails, the force of their body weight is distributed across many nails, each of which exerts a smaller force on the skin than a single nail would if it were the only one in contact with the body. The pressure is spread out over a larger surface area, which reduces the amount of pressure exerted on each individual nail. | Pressure distribution, Pascal's law, Contact mechanics, Force transmission, Weight distribution, Surface area, Mechanical stress, Biomechanics | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Bricks in a Tub | Bricks in a Tub | Short Demo: What is Buoyancy? Demo using Bricks in a tub of water | Buoyancy, physics, Purdue, density, water, displacement | Biology,Chemistry,Environmental Science,Earth Science,Physics, |
Briggs-Rauscher Oscillating Reaction (Blue/Amber Oscillating Clock) | Briggs-Rauscher Oscillating Reaction (Blue/Amber Oscillating Clock) | To demonstrate reversible reactions and the concept of equilibrium. | reversible reactions, oscillating clock, equilibrium, blue amber oscillating clock, Briggs-Rauscher oscillating reaction | Chemistry, |