Education

How To: Make This Amazing 9-Layer Density Tower from Things Found in Your Kitchen

Ralph Waldo Emerson once observed that "the seed of science" was "wonder," and taking a look at this nine-layer liquid tower from Steve Spangler's Sick Science! channel, one can't help but do just that — wonder. How is this possible? Is this magic or what?

How To: The Best Investigatory Projects in Science: 16 Fun & Easy Ideas to Kickstart Your Project

Most of us have conducted an investigatory science project without even knowing it, or at least without knowing that's what it was called. Most science experiments performed, from elementary to high school students and all the way up to professional scientists, are investigatory projects.

Find the discriminant (DELTA): quadratic equation

The discriminate of any equation in any degree plays an important role in determining the roots of that equation.

How To: Make hydrochloric acid from salt

In this tutorial, we learn how to make hydrochloric acid from salt. First, you will pour some salt into a distil flask. After this, you will add in some concentrated sulfuric acid to the salt. Next, you will let these react with each other. You will start to see gasses bubble up and the excess hydrogen chloride gas come out through the top of the tube. To create a stronger reaction, you can add heat underneath the reaction. Then, test this by exposing it to ammonium chloride. If it's the righ...

How To: Make a Paper Plate Speaker That Actually Works for Under $1

Back in 2007, YouTube user HouseholdHacker posted a parody video on how to make a high-def speaker for under a buck. MythBusters took on the challenge and busted it.

How To: Make Soap Out of Guava Leaf Extract for a Science Investigatory Project

Unless you're a high-schooler building a nuclear fusion reactor, the hardest part of a science investigatory project often is coming up with a good idea. You want it to be cool yet feasible, novel but still useful.

How To: Make iodine from sulfuric acid and alkali metal iodide

Watch this science video tutorial from Nurd Rage on how to make iodine from sulfuric acid and alkali metal iodide. This is the best way to make elemental iodine from sulfuric acid and sodium or potassium iodide.

How To: Build a Simple Paper Bridge as a Science Experiment

Every day we pass bridges, whether it's a foot bridge, a highway overpass, a span over water, or a viaduct over a valley. We pass on these structures without even thinking of the engineering genius that went into their design and construction, let alone the science behind their strength.

How To: Make a Crazy Foam Explosion Science Experiment

Check out this video to see our Fantastic Foamy Fountain in action. The experiment uses Hydrogen peroxide and dry yeast. Hydrogen peroxide is similar to water but has an extra oxygen atom. This makes it more dangerous, and only adults should handle the hydrogen peroxide.

How To: Determine volume measurement

In this how to video you will learn how to measure the volume of solids and liquids. The formula for determining volume is width x length x height.

How To: Find the perimeter & area of a complex figure

In this video tutorial the author shows how to find the perimeter and area of a complex figure. He shows that a complex figure can be subdivided into standard geometric figures. In the current example he divides the complex figure into a rectangle and a triangle. Now he computes the perimeter by adding the three sides of the rectangle and the two sides of the triangle. Similarly he computes the individual areas of the rectangle and the triangle and finally adds then up to find the area of the...

News: Vortex Cannon Demolishes House

Jem Stansfield from BBC's Bang Goes the Theory has "put scientific theory to the test" with his Vortex Cannon. Filmed at 1300-fps, you can see the cannon knock down three different houses made of straw, stick, and brick with an explosive vortex ring.

Classic Chemistry: Colorize Colorless Liquids with "Black" Magic, AKA the Iodine Clock Reaction

Want to make boring old colorless water brighten up on command? Well, you can control the color of water with this little magic trick. Actually, it's not really magic, but a classic science experiment known commonly as the iodine clock reaction, which uses the reactions between water and chemicals to instantly colorize water, seemingly by command. You can use different colorless chemicals to produce different colors, and you can even make the color vanish to make the water clear again.

How To: Solve an equation with a radical under a radical

In this video the instructor shows how to solve an equation with a radical under a radical. If you have an equation with a square root on both sides, with one of the sides having another inner square root under the original square root, it can be a little tricky to solve it.

How To: Calculate Faster Than a Calculator

When you need to crunch numbers quickly — and I mean really quickly — there's a cool method you can use to multiply two numbers together in just a few seconds.

How To: Make iodine easily

In this video, we learn how to make iodine easily. You will need potassium iodine and sulfuric acid to make this. First, add the acid into the potassium iodine slowly. After you add in each part, swirl the beaker slowly so it gets mixed together. After you have added in all of the potassium, you will place this into a beaker filled with ice water while you add in more, because the mixture gets really hot. When finished, you will end up with a mixture that is iodine and nothing else. Fill with...

How To: Make elemental sulfur (sulphur)

This video tutorial is in the Education category which will show you how to make elemental sulfur (sulphur). The chemicals you need are nitric acid and sodium thiosulphate. The reaction produces toxic SO2 gas so keep it coved with a watch glass. Put 12.9 grams of sodium thiosulphate in a beaker and dissolve it in minimum amount of water. Pour about 15ml of nitric acid in to the beaker. Let it sit in a warm place for a couple of hours and the sulphur will settle at the bottom of the beaker. Th...

How To: Use ">" (greater than) and "<" (less than) symbols

In this video the author explains how to identify the less than (<) and greater than (>) symbols and when to use them. She explains to us to relate the numbers to animals stating that the smaller numbers are smaller animals and bigger numbers are bigger animals. Now she tells us to imagine that smaller animals are eaten up by the larger animals. So she shows a smaller number comes on the left side of '<' sign and bigger number comes on the right side of '<' sign stating that the bigger number...

How To: Extract DNA from a Strawberry with Basic Kitchen Items

We all know that DNA is pretty amazing, but it's not something that most of us get much hands-on experience with. Even though it's in every living thing around us, we never see it, so we rarely think about it either.

How To: Determine the empirical and molecular formulas for a compound in chemistry

In this free video science lesson from Internet pedagogical superstar Salman Khan, you'll learn how to determine the empircal and molecular formulas of a substance given percent composition. Whether you need help studying for that next big test or could just use a hand finishing your homework, you're sure to be well served by this video lesson. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, take a look.

Make Slime Without Borax: 5 Easy Recipes for Gooey Homemade Ooze

One of the only things I remember from watching Nickelodeon as a kid is the epic green slime. Looking back, I don't know what was so great about it, but every kid my age thought that being drenched in slime would be the coolest thing on earth.

How To: Find extra points for a parabola (quadractic equation)

This is a mathematical educational video on how to find extra points for a parabola. In the first two examples there is no need for finding extra points as they have five points and have zeros of the parabola. In example 3 we need to find extra points. The equation is y=4xsquare-4x+4. You can take x= -1 and get the value for y. You will get a point now. Similarly you can substitute -2 for x in the same equation and get the value for y. Now you get another point. Now you can draw the parabola.

How To: Turn Milk into Strong Natural Glue with Baking Soda and Vinegar

You can do all kinds of unexpected things with milk, like make your own pore strips and invisible ink, or even get rid of red wine stains with it. But did you know that you can also use it to make your own glue?

How To: Tie off a suspension ring for rope bondage

If you're planning on doing some bondage knots, you better learn how to do it right. This video shows you how to properly tie off a titanium suspension ring for use in your bondage activities. This video is clear and straight forward, using a large piece of rope, making it easy to see exactly how it's done. Remember to be careful with your S&M knots, especially if you're suspending someone's weight.

How To: Write a sum/difference of logarithms as a logarithm

To write the sum or difference of logarithms as a single logarithm, you will need to learn a few rules. The rules are ln AB = ln A + ln B. This is the addition rule. The multiplication rule of logarithm states that ln A/b = ln A - ln B. The third rule of logarithms that deals with exponents states that ln (M power r) = r * ln M. Using these three rules you can simplify any expression that involves logarithms to arrive at a single logarithm. The instructor shows how to apply these rules to a f...

How To: Find a slope of a straight line with: Ax + By + C = 0

In this video the instructor shows how to find the slope of an equation which is in the form Ax + By + C = 0. He says that the formula to find the slope of a line in the above form is slope m = -A/B, where A and B are the numeric constants of the variables x and y in the given equation. He goes on and further shows how to do this with a couple of examples. He shows how to reduce any equation into the general form and how to apply the slope formula then. This video shows how to find the slope ...

How To: DIY Ninja Turtle Ooze! Make Your Own Radioactive Canister of Glowing Green Slime at Home

There's a broken canister of mutant ooze leaking down into the sewers! But don't worry because this sticky slime is non-toxic, and it's so easy to make, a three-year-old can do it!

How To: Remember "greater than" & "less than" symbols

This video shows you how to easily remember "greater than" and "less than" math symbols. The first thing you have to remember is that "less than" symbol looks like the letter L ("less than" symbol is "<"). When you see this sign, remember that < looks like L and means "less than". The other symbol, "greater than" does not look like the letter L, therefore it cannot be "less than" and it's easier to remember. The "greater than" symbol is ">". That's it! Good Luck!

News: Dissecting a Human Head Through Anatomical Illustrations

Human anatomy is something every physician must undergo as a medical student. Some move on to become great doctors, some move on to become great artists, helping to better educate students and improve upon many illustrated representations of the human body since the days of medieval medicine. But thankfully, you don't have to be in the medical profession to enjoy the beautiful art of the human body created for teaching purposes.

How To: Find the circumference of a circle

Use a simple mathematical formula to find the circumference of a circle. The circumference of a circle can be determined by using the formula 2 times pi times the circle's radius. Pi is equal to 3.14. If a circle's radius is 10 centimeters, first multiply pi times 2. Pi, or 3.14, times 2 is 6.28. The next step then is to multiply 6.28 times the circle's radius. Since the circle's radius is 10 centimeters, multiply it by 6.28. This gives you 60.28. 60.28 inches, then, is the circumference of t...

How To: Make sulfuric acid - electrochemically

You already know how to make sulfuric acid with the metabisulfite and oxidizer method and you saw how to make copper sulfate from copper and sulfuric acid, so now try making sulfuric acid with these two in mind… with sulfuric acid by electrolysis of copper using an inert anode.

How To: Find the equation for a growth pattern

From Ramanujan to calculus co-creator Gottfried Leibniz, many of the world's best and brightest mathematical minds have belonged to autodidacts. And, thanks to the Internet, it's easier than ever to follow in their footsteps (or just finish your homework or study for that next big test). With this installment from Internet pedagogical superstar Salman Khan's series of free math tutorials, you'll learn how to find an equation that describse the growth pattern of a sequence of blocks.

How To: Convert temperature using y = mx + b

In this video the instructor shows how to do temperature conversions using y = m*x + b. Now if Celsius is represented by the variable C and Fahrenheit is represented by the symbol F, you can replace then in the previous equation in place of the variables x and y giving you the equation C = m*F + b. Now to solve for the values of the constants m and b you need to have values of two sample temperatures in both Celsius and Fahrenheit. Take the first sample and substitute in the above equation gi...

How To: Find the slope from a set of points

To find the slope of a line you must have two points and then you must plug in the two points into the slope formula. The slope formula is m= y2-y1 over x2-x1. If the slope is a fraction be sure to reduce to the lowest. Remember if a number is divided into zero it is zero, if zero is divided into the number it is undefined. A calculator can help one remember this. Horizontal lines have slopes and vertical lines do not. Drawing the lines on a graph can help you see the actual slopes and which ...

How To: Extract DNA from a banana

Check out this instructional science video that demonstrates how to extract DNA from a banana. This is a great science experiment for students and kids to perform by following the simple step by step instructions outlined in this science tutorial video. Extract real DNA from a banana and analyze it under a microscope.

How To: Use a Peltier module to create free electricity from heat

A Peltier module allows you to turn heat into electricity. Because you can place it in areas that are normally warm anyway, the electricity created is "free" in a sense, though it does work best when one side of the module is cold and the other is hot. In other words, all you'll need for this project is the Peltier module and a cooler surface such as soil or water, and a warm area such as a well lit window or warm pan.

How To: Make ammonium chloride from hydrochloric acid and ammonia

This free video science lesson from the Home Scientist demonstrates a simple technique for creating ammonium chloride from hydrochloric acid and ammonia. For all of the relevant details and detailed, step-by-step instructions, as well as to get started trying this experiment yourself, watch this home-science how-to.

How To: Understand chemistry & chemical equilibrium

A video which shows a reaction in which cobalt chloride reacts with water to form a hydrated form of cobalt and chloride ions.

News: Jane Goodall Was a Babe (and One of History's Greatest Conservationists)

National Geographic recently published a retrospective of the lovely Jane Goodall, one of the world's most accomplished conservationists. The feature includes every image of Goodall to ever appear in the magazine for the past fifty years.

How To: Use vertex formula to find the vertex of a parabola

Looking for a guide on how to find the vertex of a parabola using the vertex formula? Learn how with this free video algebra lesson. From Ramanujan to calculus co-creator Gottfried Leibniz, many of the world's best and brightest mathematical minds have belonged to autodidacts. And, thanks to the Internet, it's easier than ever to follow in their footsteps (or just finish your homework or study for that next big test).