Science Projects About Gum
Gum first originated in the 1860's from the sap of the sapodilla tree called chicle. At that point in time it was used in place of rubber. Today, gum is used as a chewing device. Chewing gum will clean teeth, moisten the mouth and freshen breath. Many science projects can be conducted to learn about the concoction that's origins stem from sap.
Biggest Bubble
The "Biggest Bubble" science project encourages participants to chew different types of gum and blow bubbles to determine which gum makes the biggest bubble. To do this project, choose at least two different brands of gum. Measure and weigh the gum before chewing it to make sure that each piece of gum is the same size. Chew one brand of gum for 10 minutes. Blow 10 bubbles, measure and record how big each bubble is. Add up the 10 measurements and divide that number by the number 10 to get the average size of bubbles that were blown for that brand of gum. Repeat this process for the other brands of gum. Compare the average size of bubbles that were blown with each brand of gum to determine which brand of gum produced the biggest bubbles.
Improving Test Scores
Some students find that chewing gum while doing homework helps them concentrate and perform better. To find out whether or not chewing gum will help students concentrate and improve math test scores, gather a group of 10 students. Have them take a math test while chewing gum. Then give them a similar test without chewing the gum. Grade the results of the test and record whether each student did better on the test with or without chewing gum. Compare the results to determine if chewing gum improves test scores.
Homemade Gum
The "Homemade Gum" experiment will prove that not all gum is created equal. To start this project, have the students read three different gum recipes and form a hypothesis as to what gum they think will be the best and why. To do this, first figure what qualities of gum will be compared such as the brightness in color and stickiness. Each quality will be a category. Make each type of gum and examine it to determine which gum ranks the highest in each category and assign each gum type a number 1 to 3. The number 1 is assigned to the gum that is the best in that category and the number 3 is the worst. After each gum has received a score in every category, add up the scores for each type of gum. The gum that has the highest score is the best gum. Have students compare their hypothesis to the outcome.
Tags: determine which, each type, average size, average size bubbles, Biggest Bubble, bubbles that