Which Slime Is Better

SLIME TIME: 1/31/08 By RT Tourek

Key Concepts: With different substances have different characteristics, and with these different characteristics can be used for different purposes. Students will be performing different test on two separate slime types in order to understand special applications for each.

Objective: Ideas to take from this exercise are:  Viscosity: The resistance of fluid to its natural flow.  Non-Newtonian Fluid: A fluid whose apparent viscosity changes with applied shear force.  Density: The quantity of something per unit measure, especially per unit length, area, or volume

Green Goop Materials for each student:  Measuring Cup  Teaspoon measuring utensils  Plastic shoebox or mixing apparatus  Borax powder  4 oz of Elmer’s glue (not the school version)  Green food coloring  Water  Small bowl  Stirrer

Creating Green Goop mixture: 1.) Place four ounces of the glue into a small bowl. 2.) Add 4 ounces of water to the small bowl and begin to mix into a solution. 3.) Add a few drops of food coloring to the glue- water solution and mix until the coloring is evenly spread amongst the mixture. 4.) Add 1 cup of water into the plastic shoebox. 5.) Add 1 teaspoon of borax powder to the shoebox and mix until powder has dissolved. 6.) Slowly add the glue-water solution in the bowl to the borax-water solution in the shoebox while constantly mixing the new solution. 7.) Take out the precipitate that is formed and knead it in your hands to allow for proper mixing.

Blue Blob Materials for each student:  Measuring Cup  Teaspoon measuring utensils  Plastic shoebox or mixing apparatus  Borax powder  4 oz of Elmer’s glue (not the school version)  Green food coloring  Water  2 small bowls  Talcum Powder (most baby powders will do)  Stirrer

Creating Blue Blob mixture 1.) Mix four teaspoons of water with five teaspoons of Elmer’s glue in a small bowl. After mixed add drops of blue food coloring. 2.) Add one teaspoon of talcum powder to the solution and continue to mix. 3.) Add two teaspoons of borax powder to a second bowl containing one cup of water. Mix this solution until the water is completely saturated. 4.) Add the two separate solutions together in the larger shoebox and mix the bowl together. 5.) Remove the produced precipitate and knead well until the slime no longer seems wet. 6.) If after 5 minutes the slime is not dry, a small/thin coating of talcum powder may be added.

Applications: Non-Newtonian liquids are used in everyday society. Examples include glues, gelatin, ketchup, putties, paints, and many other substances, and do not conform to the definitions of liquids that most children are taught.

Messy Factors and Hazards: This can become a messy exercise. The greatest opportunity for a mess to occur would occur during the mixing and kneading steps. While kneading the slime, make sure that it is done over the given shoebox so that if any water from the slime were to fall off, or for that matter, any of the watery slime, it would not go onto the floor or the desk. As soon as the water has been kneaded out of each of the slime mixtures, the created slimes are not as messy. It is advisably to store the slime after it’s creation into a plastic bag for keeping. If slimes are not going to be kept, it should not be placed in the trash, not put into the sink because it has the potential to lead to a blockage.

Reference: http://bizarrelabs.com/slime.htm Which Slime is Better? R.T. Tourek 1/31/08

Put a + in the box for which slime works best.

Bouncing

Stretching

Making Bubbles Fingerprints

SLIME TIME (5-6 graders) 1/31/08 By R.T. Tourek

Background: Your company has just come up with a revolutionary slime product that has many different commercial product uses. While in the laboratory one night you and your partner start mixing different chemicals together for fun. A large puff of smoke erupts from both of your work stations simultaneously. One of you created a blue slime and the other a green slime. You both decide to name them the Blue Blob slime and the Green Glob slime respectively and realize that these slimes could make your company very rich. After testing the two for different characteristics, you both mark the results in your notebook. After you both leave for the day, the notebook with all the information was left out and while the janitor was cleaning, he mistook it for trash and threw it away. The next morning you both realize that the notebook is gone and that do not remember which slime was had what characteristics. It is your job to find the characteristics of each slime and which would benefit the needs of potential customers.

1.) Men In Black 3 is in production to be filmed and the director wants a slime that appears to ooze for an alien. He wants it to easily bend into different shapes with great ease.

2.) A bouncy ball company wants to try to make a new bouncy ball that can also be pulled apart and turn to slime, and would like to have the bounciest slime possible.

3.) The Waterville Police Department wants to make imprints of suspect’s fingerprints and would like to know which slime would be best for them. The slime not only needs to maintain the fingerprint, but also not be warped as to insure that the evidence is preserved

4.) Bug Be Gone, an insect repellant company decides that the newest way to catch flying insects is to trap them within the slime so they ask specifically for slime that is able to stretch to create a thin layer that can be converted into netting. 5.) An air bubble company wants to create a mixture that will allow them to trap air within the slime

Describe the differences and similarities between the two slimes for your boss so that he may understand the characteristics of each.