ASU Field Trip

We covered a lot of different things for the three hours we were there.  We went from liquid nitrogen experiments to glass-blowing.  Firstly, we went to Gary.

Gary showed us a variety of experiments, some you can perform at home and others are higher tech or harder to get the materials.  I liked the liquid nitrogen experiments the best out of all that were performed.  I found it astonishing that if you pour the nitrogen onto the floor, it instantly changes form into vapor and lifts off of the floor.  The liquid nitrogen must be at -350 degrees Fahrenheit for it to maintain a liquid form.  Since the ground is room temperature, it instantly heated up to its boiling point and turned back into gas form.  The next thing he did that I liked was called the "electron gun."  It was a green beam of electrons.  He could control it using a magnet.  He moved it in the opposite direction because the magnet and the electrons repelled each other.  He did this with a different device, but the beam was purple.  You can change the color of the beam by having a different gas inside of the tube.  Next, we went to a woman in a subject called "Science is Fun."

In this experiment she dropped a bouncy ball into liquid nitrogen.  Since the nitrogen is so extremely cold it froze the ball.  When she bounced it, the ball broke into pieces because it changed it's composure to a glass type.  After letting it thaw out back to room temperature, it went back into its normal form.  After the last test, she showed us her hover board she created.

We moved on to Tim Kartcher after we were done here.  He told us about air pressure and vacuum.    He inflated tied balloons inside a glass jar by removing the air inside of it.  Since, the pressure in the balloon is now greater than the air pressure out side of it, it began to inflate.  Although, once air pressure returns they shrink again.

In the next picture, he shows how machines sped up the process of measuring air pressure(psi) compared to hand pumping.

Next we went to be shocked by 50,000 volts of electricity.  We all held hands and one person put their elbow where the boy's hand is.  It sent a jolt through your bones.  Unfortunately, we ran out of time for anything else with him or an explanation.

Finally, we went to the ASU glass blower for their chemistry equipment.  She made a Barometric Swan for Mrs. Binder.  Her glasses let her see threw the fire to tell if the glass is ready for bending yet.  This ended our trip to ASU for our group.