What Did I Know Before We Started?
I didn't know that much about how rocks were made and I remember learning about the different layers of the earth's crust in elementary school but that information didn't follow me as I got older. Almost everything we learned that day was a refresher but a couple of things we learned was new information.
Looking Back: What Happened?
Before starting this experiment we first had to learn about the different layers of the earth and how rocks were made. Once we had a basic of knowledge of the earth's layers we poured water into two small test tubes and then mixed in sodium silicate. After those two were well mixed Andrew put calcium chloride into one tube and cobalt chloride into the other one. The tube with the calcium chloride formed a white rock and the one with the cobalt chloride formed a purple and blue rock.
Looking Beyond: What Do You Think Has Happened? What's The Science?
The reason we got the rocks to form was because of the sodium silicate reacting to the different chlorides. When we mixed the sodium silicate in with the water it began making silicone ions which mixed with the different chlorides to create rocks.
Looking Inward: Humans Doing Science - Lab Practice
My group got desirable results during this experiment. Our rocks turned out similar to the other groups except our cobalt chloride rock wasn't as bright as some of the other groups. Our white rock came out looking really cool and we were all super proud of that one.
Looking Outward: Collaboration and Impact
I worked with Jackie, Nick, Handy and Gabe. I believe all worked really well together because we followed all instructions and we got really good results. Since there wasn't much to do Gabe and Jackie were the ones who mixed the sodium silicate with the water.
Looking Forward: What Next?
If we did this experiment again the only thing I would want to do differently is change the chlorides we used. Andrew mentioned that different chlorides create different colors and I think it would be really interesting to see what color each of the chlorides make. I would work with the same group again mainly because we've worked together before and we always do good work together.
Take Aways
The biggest take away for me is the new knowledge about the different layers of earth's crust and how rocks are made. This experiment was really interesting and I'm really glad Andrew had us do it. I would definitely do it again.
I didn't know that much about how rocks were made and I remember learning about the different layers of the earth's crust in elementary school but that information didn't follow me as I got older. Almost everything we learned that day was a refresher but a couple of things we learned was new information.
Looking Back: What Happened?
Before starting this experiment we first had to learn about the different layers of the earth and how rocks were made. Once we had a basic of knowledge of the earth's layers we poured water into two small test tubes and then mixed in sodium silicate. After those two were well mixed Andrew put calcium chloride into one tube and cobalt chloride into the other one. The tube with the calcium chloride formed a white rock and the one with the cobalt chloride formed a purple and blue rock.
Looking Beyond: What Do You Think Has Happened? What's The Science?
The reason we got the rocks to form was because of the sodium silicate reacting to the different chlorides. When we mixed the sodium silicate in with the water it began making silicone ions which mixed with the different chlorides to create rocks.
Looking Inward: Humans Doing Science - Lab Practice
My group got desirable results during this experiment. Our rocks turned out similar to the other groups except our cobalt chloride rock wasn't as bright as some of the other groups. Our white rock came out looking really cool and we were all super proud of that one.
Looking Outward: Collaboration and Impact
I worked with Jackie, Nick, Handy and Gabe. I believe all worked really well together because we followed all instructions and we got really good results. Since there wasn't much to do Gabe and Jackie were the ones who mixed the sodium silicate with the water.
Looking Forward: What Next?
If we did this experiment again the only thing I would want to do differently is change the chlorides we used. Andrew mentioned that different chlorides create different colors and I think it would be really interesting to see what color each of the chlorides make. I would work with the same group again mainly because we've worked together before and we always do good work together.
Take Aways
The biggest take away for me is the new knowledge about the different layers of earth's crust and how rocks are made. This experiment was really interesting and I'm really glad Andrew had us do it. I would definitely do it again.