Since fireworks are no longer an option, you have to find some way to occupy your time on the 4th of July. I turned to my demo team and brainstormed anything we could do in the backyard at 9News for the celebration. Here’s the classic Elephant’s Toothpaste demo using hydrogen peroxide and potassium iodide as the catalyst to make a red, white and blue patriotic eruption that shot up about 20 feet in the air.
We also learned that Oxiclean is the magic cleaner that will remove iodine stains from the beautifully pressed white shirt of a news anchor (thanks to Mark Koebrich for being the best Science Monday co-host in the world!)
UPDATED JULY 5, 2011 – Mark Koebrich asked photo journalist Brian Willie to share some behind-the-scenes video of this amazing eruption. Yes, everyone was wearing safety glasses. It’s important
…
I’ll have to admit that my Trash Can Smoke Rings routine is not only a signature staple in my stage show, but it’s become one of my all-time favorite science demos to perform. After presenting my smoke ring routine on the Ellen Show, I received a flood of e-mails with questions about the smoke machine and where to purchase the device. Unfortunately, the cost of a good smoke machine can be a deal breaker for many smoke ring enthusiasts. That’s why I’m hoping you try my latest variation… Smoke Bomb Smoke Rings.
Over the years, the exploding pumpkin demo is right up there at the top of my short list for my all time favorite, crowd-pleasing science demonstration. But who wants to wait a whole year just to do the demo again? That’s why we’re working on the fine art of watermelon carving… with the aid of a tiny chemical reaction… okay, it’s an explosion. We just substituted a big, juicy watermelon in place of the pumpkin and pulled the trigger. Since the walls of a watermelon are not necessarily as strong as a pumpkin, sometimes the whole darn thing explodes… but that adds to the fun. Check out the video. (If the video doesn’t play, click on Exploding Watermelon Experiment.)
