Branching Colors

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Materials

4 Square Petri Dishes

2 Large Tubes of Liquid

2 Large Tubes of Powder

1 Small Tube of Soap

4 Bottles of Food Color

Instructions

STEP 1

0:00

Reach into your kit & pull out the bag that says Experiment 12. Place everything around the white mat and put the bag back in your box.

STEP 2

0:21

Place one of the square Petri dishes in the center and pour in one of the large tubes of liquid. Make sure to pour it all out, then tilt the dish around to fill in all the empty space.

STEP 3

1:13

Next, grab your 4 bottles of food coloring, and starting with red, squeeze one drop into the center of the dish.

STEP 4

1:48

Take the pipette and open the small bottle of soap. Suck up some of the soap and squeeze one single drop onto your red food color spot.

STEP 5

2:21

Now wait just a few seconds and your color will start to grow and create spikes as it gets bigger. Bring your face close to the dish to see it best.

STEP 6

2:44

Grab the next color and repeat the steps above. Continue adding one color at a time with a single drop of soap until you’ve used all 4 colors.

STEP 7

3:44

Next grab one of the large tubes of powder and fill it with warm water up to the 40 mark. Then as fast as you can, put the cap back on and shake it very hard for 20 seconds or until fully mixed.

STEP 8

4:30

Now pour the liquid into the other empty Petri dish and tilt it around to fill in all the empty space like before. Let it sit for 2 minutes.

STEP 9

4:55

Repeat the same steps as before, adding one color at a time with a single drop of soap on top until you’ve used all 4 colors.

How It Works

In this experiment, we used simple ingredients like glue, food coloring, and soap. On the surface of a liquid, molecules form a spider web of connections, called surface tension. Soap can break this surface tension, so when a drop of soap lands in the liquid, all the molecules in the liquid move outward dragging the food coloring along for the ride.

Even though Dr. Jeff doesn't know how the spikes are formed, in science we can attempt to change one thing at a time in order to find out. You can also try changing something about the experiment to see if you get a different result such as using a different type of food coloring, or glue that is warmer or colder. Since you have extra materials in this kit you can investigate different changes to learn about how this works.

Branching Colors

Materials

Instructions

How It Works

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Branching Colors

Materials

Instructions

How It Works

Back to AllExperiments in The Kit

Watch NextExperiment

Start Your 30-Day Free Access

Last Step:Create Account

Back to All
Experiments in The Kit

Watch Next
Experiment

Start Your 30-Day
Free Access

Last Step:
Create Account