Science Shorts

This is a growing collection of (1-minute or under) science shorts. They are sorted by general content and can be used as phenomena, bell ringers, engagements, or assigned to students to show concepts.

Chemistry

Title of video (With the link to the video)	What the video is about
What is biochemistry	Purdue Biochemistry student, Mauricio Cortes, explains "What is Biochemistry?"
VSEPR in a Flash	Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion VSEPR
Exploding Hydrogen Balloons with Different Amounts of Oxygen	Exploding Hydrogen/Oxygen balloons
Convection Currents Demo	How weather, oceans, and lava work!
Burning Magnesium inside of Dry Ice	Demo of burning magnesium inside of dry Ice
Feeling the Pressure of the Ideal Gas Law	You might know that the Ideal Gas Law tells us that when the pressure goes up the temperature will too. This short lets us see it happening.
Vanishing water	A quick demo that shows some materials absorb water
Seeding a Supersaturated Solution of Sodium Acetate Trihydrate	Showing what happens in a super-saturated solution of Acetate Trihydrate
Beer's Law	Explanation of Beer's Law
Burn Gummy, Burn!	Ever wonder how much energy is in ONE gummy bear?
Science demo in the lab verse in front of the class	A video showing that demos do not always go as planned.
Titration curves and calculations	Explains titration equations and calculations.
What color will different metals be in a flame?	Flame tests are used to demonstrate the atomic emission spectra of various ions and to relate discussions of the Bohr atom to phenomena observed in the real world.
Elephant Toothpaste (The Giant's Toothpaste) Demo	Elephant toothpaste, sometimes called The Giant's Toothpaste, is a reaction that is used to demonstrate the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide using a catalyst.
Thermite Reaction producing molten iron!	This reaction was performed by experts at Purdue University using proper PPE, apparatus, and safety precautions. The molten iron that pours out of the bottom of the container exceeds 3000 degrees C. DO NOT try this without proper PPE and expertise to perform the demo safely.
Observing a pH Indicator	How a PH indicator works
Using Cabbage Juice as a pH Indicator	A video of making a PH indicator out of a cabbage.
Decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide	A video narrating an experiment demo of the decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide
How to Break a Racquetball	Using Liquid Nitrogen to Break a Racquetball
What is a Clean Room	Dr. Ryan Ickert, Senior Research Scientist. Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University explain how a chemistry clean room works.
What are the Properties of Water?	Explaining water chemistry and how important of a role water plays in our everyday lives
Floating Cube	A floating cube
The pH scale explained	The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 0-6.99 is acidic, 7 is neutral, and 7.01-14 is basic. This helps us determine if something is an acid or a base
Briggs-Rauscher Oscillating Reaction	The Briggs-Rauscher oscillating reaction is a fascinating demonstration of both reversible reactions and the concept of equilibrium
forensics in a nutshell	Forensics is about analyzing what is left behind when a person has entered and exited a room
What is Geophysics?	Everything is created by geophysics. In the major, you take a lot of math, chemistry, coding, etc.
King Midas and the Golden Touch: Is there truth in Greek mythology and alchemy	King Midas is known for having a golden touch and there is evidence that he spent time in copper mines with zinc in it and that element would give off a golden sheen
DNA	DNA is what we are made of
Using PCR to test for COVID	Humphrey Lotana explains how he uses PCR to research a cure for Alzheimer's.
Blood Types Explained	The different types of blood
States of Matter	The different states of matter.
Visualizing X-Rays	An Experiment that tries to explain how X-Rays really works
Alzheimer's to prostate cancer: Using the same science to discover new treatments	Antonio Bonifasi is a biochemist who researches both Alzheimer's disease and prostate cancer
Turning up the HEAT on the Ideal Gas Law	The Ideal Gas Law tells us that when the pressure goes up the temperature will too. Austin (the master of physics demos) demonstrates this with a simple demo.
Rocks Tell a Story	The process of formation of rocks, and how they can tell us about Earth's History
The Wave Machine	This experiment shows the conservation of energy, using a "Wave Machine"
Smoke Convection	This demo uses smoke to trace the air moving through a box with 2 chemistries. When a candle is added to the other chimney, the smoke changes to go up with the hot air of the candle
About Nitrogen and Liquid	What is Liquid Nitrogen
Coulomb's Law	Colomb's Law and where to use it
How many drops on a penny ?	Water has many important properties, two of which include adhesion and cohesion.
Why does water freeze top down?	The physics process of freezing water
Why Research the Sun?	Why is so important to know what is happening in our sun?
Microplastics In Your Bottled Water	Sarah Zack, Pollution Prevention Extension Specialist, discusses microplastics: what they are and where they come from.
Alzheimer's disease: Searching for a cure	Humphrey Lotana quickly explains his role in researching more effective drugs to target and cure Alzheimer's disease.
Another Good Reason to Build a Pond	Forester, Lenny Farlee, explains that ponds are sometimes built as a source of water to put out fires.
What's in the water? Types of Medications and Potential Impacts	Sarah Zack, Pollution Prevention Extension Specialist, discusses microplastics: what they are and where they come from.

Earth Science

Title of video (With link to the video)	What the video is about
Exploding Hydrogen Balloons with Different Amounts of Oxygen	Exploding Hydrogen/Oxygen balloons
Why Astronauts Float	Why the Astronauts float in the space
Dropping a Coin and Feather in a Vacuum	What happens when you drop two very different items in a vacuum?
Researching Igneous Rocks	Dr. Madeline J. Lewis explains igneous rocks
Convection Currents Demo	How weather, oceans, and lava work!
Resonance with Tuning Forks	Two identical wooden boxes, open at one end, have identical tuning forks attached at the center of the top of the box. When the tuning fork is struck, the sound is amplified by the resonance occurring in the box. When one box is placed such that its opening is a few centimeters from the other’s opening, striking one tuning fork sets up a sympathetic vibration in the other
Seeing Magnetic Forces	The Magnetics Forces When two magnetics are interacting with each other
U shaped valley formed by glaciers in Abisko, Sweden!	Allie Koester is in Abisko, Sweden for field season training. We are glad she took a minute to share the beautiful landscape and explain valleys carved by glaciers!
What is the Difference Between Weather and Climate?	Philomena explains the difference between weather and climate
What is Geology?	What is Geology
How fast will a car warm up in the sun?	Steven's video measuring an increase of 59 degrees Fahrenheit in twenty minutes inside the car on this hot, sunny day
Science demo in the lab verse in front of the class	Burning stuff on the class to show they fly
Why do some planets have seasons	Why do some of the planets have seasons?
What color will different metals be in a flame?	Flame tests are used to demonstrate the atomic emission spectra of various ions and to relate discussions of the Bohr atom to phenomena observed in the real world.
What is LIDAR	Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (variable distances) to the Earth.
What is 1 AU?	Mr. Field explains the magnitude of 1 AU!
The closest one is not the fastest: Can you explain why?	Why some light balls are spinning faster than others, Physics Experiment.
Did You Know that Venus has Phases?	Jhon Talyor from Elkhart Indiana explains his observation of venus having a phase
Measuring tree height with a protractor and a tape measure	Measuring a tree's height with a protractor and a tape measure
Using Cabbage Juice as a pH Indicator	A video of making a PH indicator out of a cabbage.
What is Planetary Geophysics	Ean explains the major "Planetary Geophysics"
How to train for a spacewalk	Purdue University EAPS student explains training in a neutral buoyancy lab to do a space walk. And yes, Joe has trained in one!!
What is a Clean Room	Dr. Ryan Ickert, Senior Research Scientist. Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University explain how a chemistry clean room works.
What are the Properties of Water?	Explaining water chemistry and how important of a role water plays in our everyday lives
Are you Breathing in Micro-plastics?	A device that can count the number of micro-plastics in the air by color or angularity
Volcanoes on the Moon	The moon had active volcanoes between 1-3 billion years ago. The difference in colors on the moon is because of lava flowing when the volcanoes were active
The pH scale explained	The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 0-6.99 is acidic, 7 is neutral, and 7.01-14 is basic. This helps us determine if something is an acid or a base
What are Minerals?	Minerals are solid crystal structures that are found everywhere on Earth and used to make many different items we use daily
What is Geophysics?	Everything is created by geophysics. In the major, you take a lot of math, chemistry, coding, etc.
Soil horizons with Mr. Lorenz. for the 1 Minute (or so) Science Challenge	Different types of soil and their characteristics of them
King Midas and the Golden Touch: Is there truth in Greek mythology and alchemy	King Midas is known for having a golden touch and there is evidence that he spent time in copper mines with zinc in it and that element would give off a golden sheen
NASA's ER-2 Research Plane Landing	This is the footage we took from the chase car with the ground pilot! It would be like landing a huge bicycle. We are visiting the DCOTSS mission HQ this week. Look for some awesome footage from interviews and other mission happenings.
Shoot the Monkey: Projectile Motion demo	A toy monkey having a metal plate attached to his head, is suspended from an electromagnet attached to the ceiling. A projectile is fired from a tube and the monkey is released just as the projectile leaves the end of the tube. If the tube is aimed directly at the monkey initially, the two will collide in mid-air.
States of Matter	The different states of matter.
Visualizing X-Rays	An Experiment that tries to explain how X-Rays really works
How to study a river in the lab	Recorded at AGU 2022 in Chicago, this interview explains how to study rivers in the lab and why this is the best way to do so
Geology of South Dakota	This interview explains the geology of South Dakota
Turning up the HEAT on the Ideal Gas Law	The Ideal Gas Law tells us that when the pressure goes up the temperature will too. Austin (the master of physics demos) demonstrates this with a simple demo.
Why Research Soil Moisture?	Recorded at AGU 2022, this scientist explains why soil Moisture is worth Researching
How Geologists determine grain size of Sand, Silt, and Clay	Recorded at AGU 2022, This interview splain how geologists know how to categorize the grains
What is Climate and the New Climate State?	What are the effects of the dramatic climate change on our planet, and how will be in the future living in a new Climate State?
What is Hydroponics and Where is it Going?	What is Hydroponics and where this is most frequently happening
Why leaves change Colors in the Fall	Why do the leaves change color every season
Can Crush: Why does the water go into the can?	Air pressure is all around us, and it is very powerful!
Rocks Tell a Story	The process of formation of rocks, and how they can tell us about Earth's History
Volcanic Lightning	The phenomenon when lighting hit a volcano in the middle of an eruption
The Wave Machine	This experiment shows the conservation of energy, using a "Wave Machine"
Smoke Convection	This demo uses smoke to trace the air moving through a box with 2 chemistries. When a candle is added to the other chimney, the smoke changes to go up with the hot air of the candle
How many drops on a penny ?	Water has many important properties, two of which include adhesion and cohesion.
What can you do in Environmental Geoscience?	The cool things that can be done in the Environmental Geoscience field
Cloud Charades	So you can name a type of cloud but can you act it out?
Water and the Water Cycle	The Water Cycle on our planet
Ken Ridgway shares that we need to start learning from everyone to solve global problems.	This is a small clip from Dr. Ridgway’s interview “Blending Indigenous Knowledge and Western Science Respectfully” Watch the full episode released 02/14/22.
Heat from the Earth makes currents	The currents in our planet
The Water Cycle in a minute	The Water Cycle on our planet
Why Research the Sea	Why is so important to know what is happening in our Sea
Sand Dunes	What are Sand Dunes

Environmental Science

Title of video (With link to the video)	What the video is about
Dropping a Coin and Feather in a Vacuum	What happens when you drop two very different items in a vacuum?
Convection Currents Demo	How weather, oceans, and lava work!
What is the Difference Between Weather and Climate?	Philomena explains the difference between weather and climate
How fast will a car warm up in the sun?	Steven's video measuring an increase of 59 degrees Fahrenheit in twenty minutes inside the car on this hot, sunny day
Science demo in the lab verse in front of the class	Burning stuff on the class to show they fly
Why some planets have seasons	Why do some of the planets have seasons?
The closest one is not the fastest: Can you explain why?	Why some light balls are spinning faster than others, Physics Experiment.
Did You Know that Venus has Phases?	Jhon Talyor from Elkhart Indiana explains his observation of venus having a phase
Measuring tree height with a protractor and a tape measure	Measuring a tree's height with a protractor and a tape measure
Using Cabbage Juice as a pH Indicator	A video of making a PH indicator out of a cabbage.
What are the Properties of Water?	Explaining water chemistry and how important of a role water plays in our everyday lives
Are you Breathing in Micro-plastics?	A device that can count the number of micro-plastics in the air by color or angularity
The pH scale explained	The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 0-6.99 is acidic, 7 is neutral, and 7.01-14 is basic. This helps us determine if something is an acid or a base
What is Geophysics?	Everything is created by geophysics. In the major, you take a lot of math, chemistry, coding, etc.
Soil horizons with Mr. Lorenz. for the 1 Minute (or so) Science Challenge	Different types of soil and their characteristics of them
States of Matter	The different states of matter.
How to study a river in the lab	Recorded at AGU 2022 in Chicago, this interview explains how to study rivers in the lab and why this is the best way to do so
Why Research Soil Moisture?	Recorded at AGU 2022, this scientist explains why soil Moisture is worth Researching
What is Climate and the New Climate State?	The effects of the dramatic climate change on our planet, and how will be in the future living in a new Climate State.
What is Hydroponics and Where is it Going?	What is Hydroponics and where this is most frequently happening
Why leaves change Colors in the Fall	Why do the leaves change color every season
Can Crush: Why does the water go into the can?	Air pressure is all around us, and it is very powerful!
The Wave Machine	This experiment shows the conservation of energy, using a "Wave Machine"
Smoke Convection	This demo uses smoke to trace the air moving through a box with 2 chemistries. When a candle is added to the other chimney, the smoke changes to go up with the hot air of the candle
How many drops on a penny ?	Water has many important properties, two of which include adhesion and cohesion.
What can you do in Environmental Geoscience?	The cool things that can be done in the Environmental Geoscience field
Cloud Charades	So you can name a type of cloud but can you act it out?
Water and the Water Cycle	The Water Cycle in our planet
Vanishing water	Demo vid with a question
Why did the Water Rise?	Demo vid with a question
What is the Great Red Spot?	What is the Big Red Spot on Jupiter
What is Environmental Geoscience?	Environmental geoscience is recycling and reducing our consumption

Physics

Title of video (With link to the video)	What the video is about
Dropping a Coin and Feather in a Vacuum	What happens when you drop two very different items in a vacuum?
Convection Currents Demo	How weather, oceans, and lava work!
Science demo in the lab verse in front of the class	Burning stuff on the class to show they fly
The closest one is not the fastest: Can you explain why?	Why some light balls are spinning faster than others, Physics Experiment.
What are the Properties of Water?	Explaining water chemistry and how important of a role water plays in our everyday lives
The pH scale explained	The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 0-6.99 is acidic, 7 is neutral, and 7.01-14 is basic. This helps us determine if something is an acid or a base
States of Matter	The different states of matter.
Can Crush: Why does the water go into the can?	Air pressure is all around us, and it is very powerful!
The Wave Machine	This experiment shows the conservation of energy, using a "Wave Machine"
Smoke Convection	This demo uses smoke to trace the air moving through a box with 2 chemistries. When a candle is added to the other chimney, the smoke changes to go up with the hot air of the candle
How many drops on a penny?	Water has many important properties, two of which include adhesion and cohesion.
Why did the Water Rise?	Demo vid with a question
From trash can to vortex cannon: toroidal vortex	We took a trash can and turned it into a vortex cannon and made a toroidal vortex or two.
Exploding Hydrogen Balloons with Different Amounts of Oxygen	Exploding Hydrogen/Oxygen balloons
Why Astronauts Float	Why the Astronauts float in the space
Resonance with Tuning Forks	Two identical wooden boxes, open at one end, have identical tuning forks attached at the center of the top of the box. When the tuning fork is struck, the sound is amplified by the resonance occurring in the box. When one box is placed such that its opening is a few centimeters from the other’s opening, striking one tuning fork sets up a sympathetic vibration in the other
Seeing Magnetic Forces	Explaining the Magnetics Forces When two magnetics are interacting with each other
What color will different metals be in a flame?	Flame tests are used to demonstrate the atomic emission spectra of various ions and to relate discussions of the Bohr atom to phenomena observed in the real world.
What is LIDAR	Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (variable distances) to the Earth.
What is 1 AU?	Mr. Field explains the magnitude of 1 AU!
What is Planetary Geophysics	Ean explains the major "Planetary Geophysics"
King Midas and the Golden Touch: Is there truth in Greek mythology and alchemy	King Midas is known for having a golden touch and there is evidence that he spent time in copper mines with zinc in it and that element would give off a golden sheen
NASA's ER-2 Research Plane Landing	This is the footage we took from the chase car with the ground pilot! It would be like landing a huge bicycle. We are visiting the DCOTSS mission HQ this week. Look for some awesome footage from interviews and other mission happenings.
Shoot the Monkey: Projectile Motion demo	A toy monkey having a metal plate attached to his head, is suspended from an electromagnet attached to the ceiling. A projectile is fired from a tube and the monkey is released just as the projectile leaves the end of the tube. If the tube is aimed directly at the monkey initially, the two will collide in mid-air.
Visualizing X-Rays	An Experiment that tries to explain how X-Rays really works
Turning up the HEAT on the Ideal Gas Law	The Ideal Gas Law tells us that when the pressure goes up the temperature will too. Austin (the master of physics demos) demonstrates this with a simple demo.
Rocks Tell a Story	The process of formation of rocks, and how they can tell us about Earth's History
Volcanic Lightning	The phenomenon when lighting hit a volcano in the middle of an eruption
How Galileo Discovered Friction	Galileo discovered inertia using a track with two sides having different slopes. He found that a ball will roll until it reaches the same height on the other side.
Watch the Arrow	Showing Refraction of water
The Sound of Silence. They will not hear you scream in space...	Our Physics Demo man, Austin, explains what happens when you put your morning alarm in a vacuum.
Just Like Spinning a Plate!	Similar to spinning a plate this demo shows how something has more stability when under rotation.
Burn Gummy, Burn!	Ever wonder how much energy is in ONE gummy bear?
Hair Raising Science	Demo of electric charge lifting hair as she earns charge.
OH NO! Marshmallow Man Down!	Our Physics Demo Man Austin explains what happens when you put a marshmallow in a vacuum chamber.
Hoot Tube Sound from Heat	Austin is making sounds by heating up a wire mesh and putting it in glass tubes.
Conservation of Energy with Galileo’s Pendulum	This demonstration shows the conservation of energy by using a pendulum.
Series and Parallel Circuits	Series circuits are circuits where everything is connected in one loop and the energy from the battery has to be shared. In parallel circuits, everything has its own loop and the energy from the battery does not have to be shared
Forces and motion	There are different types of forces such as pushing, pulling, friction, and momentum, as well as different types of energy
Tibetan Singing Bowl	The sound of a Tibetan Singing Bowl is created by the vibration of the metal. The method is similar to that of playing a crystal glass by running a finger along the rim
What is Inertia	Interia is the tendency of an object to resist a motion
What are Beat Frequencies?	The properties of Frenquecies and all the cool stuff They can do
What is Inertia and Who Gave Newton the Idea for His 1st Law?	Galileo discovered inertia using a track with two sides having different slopes. He found that a ball will roll until it reaches the same height on the other side.
Electricity	How Electricity works
Why does the spool go the other way in the end?	Do you know why the spool goes the other way in the end?
About Nitrogen and Liquid	What is Liquid Nitrogen
The Spooky Theremin	The Wizard of Physics explains the Theremin
Why does water freeze top down?	The physics process of freezing water

Biology

of video (With link to the video)	What the video is about
Convection Currents Demo	How weather, oceans, and lava work!
Science demo in the lab verse in front of the class	Burning stuff on the class to show they fly
The closest one is not the fastest: Can you explain why?	Why some light balls are spinning faster than others, Physics Experiment.
What are the Properties of Water?	Explaining water chemistry and how important of a role water plays in our everyday lives
The pH scale explained	The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 0-6.99 is acidic, 7 is neutral, and 7.01-14 is basic. This helps us determine if something is an acid or a base
States of Matter	This interview explains the different states of matter.
The Wave Machine	This experiment shows the conservation of energy, using a "Wave Machine"
Smoke Convection	This demo uses smoke to trace the air moving through a box with 2 chemistries. When a candle is added to the other chimney, the smoke changes to go up with the hot air of the candle
How many drops on a penny ?	Water has many important properties, two of which include adhesion and cohesion.
Why did the Water Rise?	Demo vid with a question
Visualizing X-Rays	An Experiment that tries to explain how X-Rays really works
Using Cabbage Juice as a pH Indicator	A video of making a PH indicator out of a cabbage.
Are you Breathing in Micro-plastics?	A device that can count the amount of micro-plastics in the air by color or angularity
What is Hydroponics and Where is it Going?	Explaining what is Hydroponics and where this is most frequently happening
Why leaves change Colors in the Fall	Explaining why the leaves change color every season
Water and the Water Cycle	Explaining the Water Cycle
Vanishing water	Demo vid with a question
Are Humans an Invasive Species?	Can humans be classified as an invasive species? Greg Hitzroth, Aquatic Invasive Species Outreach Specialist with the Illinois Indiana Sea Grant and Illinois Natural History Survey, defines the term invasive species and explains the role that humans play
Habitable Zone on Venus?	Can we one day live on Venus?
Why bees go flower to flower	Explaining why bees go from one flower to another
Why Research the Sea	Why is so important to know what is happening in our Sea
What is biochemistry	Purdue Biochemistry student, Mauricio Cortes, explains "What is Biochemistry?"
forensics in a nutshell	Forensics is about analyzing what is left behind when a person has entered and exited a room
DNA	DNA is what we are made of
Using PCR to test for COVID	Humphrey Lotana explains how he uses PCR to research a cure for Alzheimer's.
Blood Types Explained	This interview explains the different types of blood
Alzheimer's to prostate cancer: Using the same science to discover new treatments	Antonio Bonifasi is a biochemist who researches both Alzheimer's disease and prostate cancer
What is Biomedical Engineering	A preview to an interview with did with Creasy Clauser, Research Manager for Cook Medical.
We learn from Stories	Professor Curtis Kelly from Kansai University, Japan discusses how the brain learns best.
Alzheimer's disease: Searching for a cure	Humphrey Lotana quickly explains his role in researching more effective drugs to target and cure Alzheimer's disease.
Photosynthesis in 20 seconds	Explaining the Photosynthesis process