Bonus Biology Projects!

Thanks so much for joining me for the teleclass! On this page you'll find the videos for the robots that we covered in class, plus a few extras. Enjoy!

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Extracting DNA in Your Kitchen

If a cell has a nucleus, the DNA is located in the nucleus. If not, it is found in the cytoplasm. DNA is the genetic material that has all the information about a cell.

DNA is a long molecule found in the formed by of two strands of genes. DNA carries two copies—two “alleles”—of each gene. Those alleles can either be similar to each other (homozygous), or dissimilar (heterozygous).

We’re going to learn how to extract DNA from any fruit or vegetable you have lying around the fridge. Are you ready?

Materials:

pumpkin OR apple OR squash OR bananas OR carrots OR anything else you might have in the fridge
dishwashing detergent
91% isopropyl alcohol
coffee filter and a funnel (or use paper towels folded into quarters)
water
blender
clear glass cup

Simple Microscope & Telescope

Materials:

window
dollar bill
penny
hand-held magnifying glasses, 2
ruler

Did you know you can create a compound microscope and a refractor telescope using the same materials? It’s all in how you use them to bend the light. These two experiments cover the fundamental basics of how two double-convex lenses can be used to make objects appear larger when right up close or farther away.

Laser Microscope

Did you know that you can use a laser to see tiny paramecia in pond water? We’re going to build a simple laser microscope that will shine through a single drop of water and project shadows on a wall or ceiling for us to study.

Materials:

red or green laser (watch video for laser tips)
large paperclip
rubber band
stack of books
white wall
pond water sample (or make your own from a cup of water with dead grass that’s been sitting for a week on the windowsill)

Acids and Bases

Acids are sour tasting (like a lemon), bases are bitter (like unsweetened cocoa powder). Substances in the middle are more neutral, like water. Scientists use the pH (power of hydrogen, or potential hydrogen) scale to measure how acidic or basic something is. Hydrochloric acid registers at a 1, sodium hydroxide (drain cleaner) is a 14. Water is about a 7.

The pH level will tell you how acidic or alkaline (basic) something is, like dirt. If your soil is too acidic, your plants won’t attract enough hydrogen, and too alkaline attracts too many hydrogen ions. The right balance is usually somewhere in the middle (called ‘pH neutral’). Some plants change color depending on the level of acidity in the soil – hydrangeas turn pink in acidic soil and blue in alkaline soil.

Materials:

Litmus paper or pH paper (you can cut into strips)
apple
lemon
vinegar
baking soda
cup with water