July 30, 2008
A few weeks ago on my 9News segment I featured a Seven-Layer Density column. It’s a colorful way to talk about density in the classroom. Well… we thought we had all of our facts straight, but when we inadvertently put in the experiment write-up that oil and water don’t mix because they have different densities, my email box was flooded with concerned teachers, parents, administrators and more, who wanted to set the record straight. Yes, it’s true, oil and water don’t mix because of their intermolecular polarity, not because of density. I love when people actually get involved with the experiments we are posting and care enough about the information to let me know when it isn’t quite up to par.
So, we had our density problem solved, it would seem the Seven-Layer column had experience its fifteen minutes of fame, but, no… this one just wouldn’t die. The day after my news segment, some of our staff noticed that the vegetable oil and rubbing alcohol layers had switched places! Knowing the great response we received before, we opened it up to
…
Continue Reading…
April 8, 2007


Thousands of science teachers found their way to St. Louis for the 2007 National Science Teachers Association convention, and we wanted to make sure they had something to take back to their students. So, we loaded our trucks with experiments and products from the website along with 5,000 rolls of MENTOS stuffed into plastic test tubes and headed for the Gateway City. We were fortunate to have 14 teacher ambassadors from the Hands-on Science Institute join us in the booth to each share their favorite science activities. Aside from 500 bottles of Diet Coke and a mountain of MENTOS, all eyes were on the 18 foot tall soda eruption chamber. We were demonstrating the new Geyser Tube by triggering a MENTOS geyser as fast as we could set-up a launch (about every 2-3 minutes for 3 full days). At the end of the convention, the soda was gone, the rolls of MENTOS were in the hands of 5,000 teachers, the truck was cleaned out… and we all had a blast. It’s back to the classroom for the 14 ambassadors to start working on cool stuff for
…
Continue Reading…
Tags: 2007 National Science Teachers Association convention, Coca Cola, Coke, coke and mentos, diet coke and mentos, diet coke mentos, Diet Coke Mentos Experiment, experiment, experiments, Geyser Tube, Mentos, Mentos and soda, mentos diet coke, Mentos Geyser, Mentos Geyser, National Science Teachers Association, science experiment, Science Experiments, science fair projects for kids, science fair projects ideas, science for kids, science lesson plans, Science Teacher, science teachers, Spangler, spangler science labs, St Louis, Steve Spangler Science, Teacher Training, teaching science
Filed under: Mentos Geyser, Teaching Moments
March 19, 2007
I’ve always been a fan of Apple Computers (now Apple Inc.). From my very first Apple IIe to my current MacBook Pro (and about a dozen in between), these computers and products have helped me and our employees to do some very amazing things over the years. That’s why it was an honor to be invited to visit Apple last week and speak with a group of their employees about my experiences running our business on a Mac platform. During my visit, we also taped some online seminars that will be posted on apple.com/business in the near future.
Okay, the secret is out… we’ve been in business for 16 years and never had a PC in the office. So, I know your next question… “Did you shoot off a few Mentos Geysers during your visit to the Mothership?” While the thought crossed my mind, there were just too many unknowns to haul in a bunch of Diet Coke and Mentos. However, I did give everyone a Mentos Test Tube Geyser to take home. One of the employees shared his “accidental” discovery on his personal blog.Pretty funny stuff.
Aside from doing a
…
Continue Reading…
Tags: Apple, coke and mentos, diet coke and mentos, diet coke mentos, Diet Coke Mentos Experiment, experiment, flying eggs, Geyser Tube, huge fountain of soda, Mentos, Mentos and soda, mentos diet coke, Mentos Geyser, mentos geysers, mentos test tube geyser, spangler science labs, steve spangler, Steve Spangler Science
Filed under: Teaching Moments, What Happens on the Road