Tag - SF6

Science Experiments on the Radio – Visit to the Dom & Jane Show on MIX 100.3

Got a call from the producers at MIX 100.3 in Denver for the Dom & Jane Show. These local radio celebrities are always up for something new… and it was my job this morning to come up with a few science experiments that would play well on the radio. What could be better than changing the sound of your voice with the heavy gas – sulfur hexafluoride? I was even able to sneak a balloon of SF6 gas to the traffic reporter. The report on southbound traffic on I-25 never sounded so weird. When we came back from break, it was time to play with some explosive hydrogen gas and a can of Pringles potato chips. In just a few seconds, the studio audience enjoyed a shower of chips. Dom calls it… getting your nerd on… but I like to think of it as another way to share our passion for making science fun.

Listen to the interview

Flying Potatoes in Ireland – Irish Science Teachers Focus on Student Engagement

We just arrived in Shannon, Ireland and we’re headed to the University of Limerick for the Irish Science Teachers Association meeting. I’ve had the great fortune of speaking at this conference twice in 1997 and 2000 where I made some fantastic friends in the science education world. When I spoke the first time in Cork, I can remember taking all of my demos over with me on the plane (oh how times have changed). Twelve years later, FedEx delivered my demos after signing my life away and, I’m happy to report, everything arrived in one piece. But there are a few things that are difficult to ship over for one reason or another. When I arrived at the University of Limerick today, I was greeted by Bob Kelly who had a 220 volt smoke machine in hand, a bag of balloons filled with sulfur hexafluoride (SF6 for the Reverse Helium demo), and a large trash can. I just can’t remember if I asked them to turn off the smoke
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Dallas Fox 4 News Anchors Experiment with Insta-Snow and Reverse Helium (SF6)

The news anchors at Fox 4 News in Dallas wanted to see if I could find a few ways to make science fun on their Good Day show. Let’s see… I could show them pictures of my science project from 3rd grade… or discuss freezing point depression… or make it snow and change their voices. I’ll pick door number 3. As you’ll see in the video, we covered the interview counter with erupting Insta-Snow and allowed Tim and Megan to experience the “reverse helium” effect using sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).

This appearance on Good Day Dallas is the kick-off to a week of science workshops and presentations at NAEYC and the Texas Association of Science Teachers annual convention.

The Deep Voice Gas – Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6)

It was fun to see David Willey on The Tonight Show this evening doing some nice variations on the classic sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) demo. This is the inert gas that is six times heavier than the air we breath. If you breath in helium (six times lighter than the air we breath), the pitch of your voice goes up. However, if you breath sulfur hexafluoride (six time heavier than normal air), your voice sounds low. You’ll find a complete explanation of the sulfur hexafluoride demo or anti-helium experiment as some call it in my experiment library.

For the Tonight Show, David filled an open top plastic box with the gas and proceeded to float aluminum foil boats and bubbles on this very dense gas. These demos got a nice reaction from the audience. Instead of inhaling the SF6 gas from a balloon, David had Jay Leno dip his head down into the box and inhale some of the gas. As you might imagine, Jay had fun with his “Barry White” voice.

After showing the heavy gas demo on 9News last year, Scott Merrick from Snacks4thebrain visited our lab in Englewood, Colorado to
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