Demo Shows

We design our demo shows to fit your needs. Give us a time frame, age group, size of audience and we'll make it work. Typically we like to organize our shows around a specific theme so we are able to build off of the concepts taught in other demos. Examples of themes are "solids, liquids and gases," conductivity or gas expansion. Let us know if there are any specific demos or themes you would prefer. Below is a list of all the demos we train our members to perform. When planning your event, you can suggest experiments/theme or just let us organize the show.

Elephant's Toothpaste
Purpose: To show the importance of catalysts in reactions. (Usually done together with Genie in a Bottle)
Description: Hydrogen Peroxide is decomposed using a catalyst, and the gas is captured using soap to make foam. For younger audiences, this is how we make "toothpaste" for our elephant at the University.

Genie in a Bottle
Purpose: To show the importance of catalysts in reactions, and to show how shrink-wrap works. (Usually done together with Elephant's Toothpaste)
Description: Hydrogen Peroxide is decomposed rapidly using a catalyst, and the water vapor condenses upon contact with the air, making it look like smoke.

Ethanol Cannon
Purpose: To demonstrate combustion and the fire triangle.
Description: Using a tesla coil, ethanol vapor inside a corked bottle is ignited, launching the cork into the air. Usually done with three different sized bottles for bigger explosions. *Requires tall ceilings.

Filter Flask Cannon
Purpose: To demonstrate the different states of matter, and to show the difference between physical and chemical changes.
Description: Liquid nitrogen is poured into a side-arm flask with the top corked. The outlet is then plugged, causing pressure to build up and launch the cork.

Liquid Nitrogen and Helium Balloon
Purpose: To demonstrate the states of matter and densities.
Description: A helium balloon, which normally floats, is put in liquid nitrogen. The gas particles slow down and become denser than the air, and the balloon will sink to the ground.

Liquid Nitrogen and Racquet Ball
Purpose: To demonstrate the properties of liquid nitrogen.
Description: A ball or other object is dunked in liquid nitrogen and then smashed or thrown. The extreme temperature causes the object to become brittle, and will shatter on impact.

Hydrogen and Helium Balloons
Purpose: To demonstrate combustion, the fire triangle, and the different chemical properties of two similar elements.
Description: A helium balloon is popped using a candle, which causes no explosion and blows out the candle. Then, a helium balloon is popped, causing a large explosion and the candle stays lit. *Requires tall ceilings.

Luminol
Purpose: To demonstrate chemiluminescence - a reaction that gives off light and no heat, unlike many other light-producing reactions.
Description: Two solutions are poured into a large apparatus. When they mix, they produce a bright blue-colored light.

Oscillating Reaction (Briggs-Raucher)
Purpose: To show a reaction that oscillates between multiple states, and to demonstrate the importance of observations.
Description: Three solutions are poured into a beaker, and the resulting solution's color changes from clear to yellow to blue and back to clear in a continuous cycle.

Microwave Demos 
-Light Bulb
Description: A normal incandescent light bulb is placed in a beaker full of water inside a microwave. As the microwave plate spins, the light bulb will flicker as a result of the different intensities of energy within a microwave.
-Bar of Soap
Description: Bar soap is put in a microwave for several minutes. The water in the soap evaporates creating water vapor, and the soap captures the vapor in bubbles, making the soap expand and "grow."
-Tin Foil
Description: A circular piece of foil is put in the microwave, which functions as a mini-transformer. Since the energy has nowhere to go, it is discharged as bright blue sparks. This shows why you should never put metal in a microwave.
-Plasma Storm
Description: A toothpick is stood upright in a microwave and the tip is ignited. When the microwave turns on, large fireballs appear to be produced from the tip.
-CD Lightning
Description: A CD is microwaved, which induces a charge separation. The energy jumps from one part of the CD to another, which appears as lightning that scores the surface of the disk.

Metal Salts in a Flame
Purpose: To demonstrate qualitative chemistry, and to show the different characteristics of metals.
Description: Several metal salt solutions are sprayed over an open flame, and each one produces a different color based on the energy absorption of its electrons.

Happy/Sad Balls
Purpose: To show the differences between polymeric compounds.
Description: One ball (Happy) will bounce upon impact, but the other (Sad) does not bounce, and rather distorts on impact to absorb the energy so that it does not bounce. When the sad ball is frozen, however, it is unable to distort as well and will bounce.

Conductivity of Solutions
Purpose: To demonstrate how conductors such as ions are used to complete a circuit, and to show the difference between electrolytes and non-electrolytes.
Description: A bulb with two electrodes is plugged in to show that even though it has electricity, it does not light up until the circuit has been completed. The electrodes are then dipped into a series of solutions (distilled water, tap water, salt solution, sugar solution, etc) to show how ions play a role in conducting electricity from one electrode to another.

Conductivity of People
Purpose: To demonstrate that humans too are conductive and therefore have many ions throughout our bodies.
Description: One person places a hand on a visualizer bulb, and holds the end of a flourescent light bulb in the other. When another person holds the opposite end of the light, the bulb will light up.

Group I Elements in Water
Purpose: To show how the periodic table is organized not only by mass, but also by how elements of the same column (group) react in similar ways.
Description: Pieces of group one elements are dropped into water and the resulting (violent) reaction is observed. As elements further down the group are added to water, the students are asked to see if they can predict a trend in the reactivity of the metals.

Magic Sand
Purpose: To demonstrate hydrophobic materials.
Description: Water is dumped onto normal sand and observations are taken from the audience. Then water is poured onto "magic" sand, and the audience can see that the water is not absorbed and the sand remains dry.

Memory Metal
Purpose: To show how alloys have special and useful properties.
Description: A piece of memory metal in a specific shape is shown to the audience and is then distorted. Upon dunking in boiling water, the original shape of the metal returns.

Polyurethane Foam
Purpose: To demonstrate how polymers are formed from monomers.
Description: Two monomers are mixed together and stirred until they begin to combine. These monomers produce a gas when combined, which causes bubbles, and the mixture rises or "grows."

Dust Can Explosion
Purpose: To show how surface area effects a reaction.
Description: A flammable pollen-like substance is pumped into the air near a flame, causing an explosion to show that the greater surface area of the particles allowed them to burn much faster than if they were combined in a solid object. *Requires tall ceilings.

Silver Mirror
Purpose: To demonstrate a redox reaction.
Description: The silver from a silver nitrate solution is reduced to solid silver is a redox reaction, and coats the inside of a beaker to create a shiny "mirror." This process is called electroless plating.

Supersaturated Sodium Acetate
Purpose: To demonstrate how a supersaturated solution works and how it can be useful.
Description: A supersaturated solution of sodium acetate is poured onto a small pile of sodium acetate crystals and forms a tall crystal sculpture. This process is exothermic and is used in hot packs.