Markeema Harper Lab Part 1
Title: Keeping warm in the Artic.
Problem: How does fat help to keep animals warm in the winter?
Materials you will need:
• Four zip lock bags (large enough for your hand)
• Solid shortening (Crisco or other brand)
• Sink or bucket
• Cold icy water
• Clock with second hand or stopwatch
• Duct tape (optional)
Procedures: (You may do this alone, but it would be more fun and you would collect more data if you had some family members or friends to also participate.)
1. Fill the sink or bucket with cold water and ice.
2. Cover one hand with a plastic bag.
3. Put a generous amount of solid shortening into another bag.
4. Put the hand covered with the plastic bag into the bag with the shortening. Knead the shortening to make sure the hand is completely surrounded by shortening. 5. Put duct tape around the portion of the bag covering your wrist to seal the bag. (optional) 6. Cover the other hand with two plastic bags (without shortening). This is the control. 7. Place both hands simultaneously into the sink or bucket of cold icy water. 8. Use the clock or stopwatch to record how long each hand remains under water. When a hand gets too cold to stay in the water, be sure to remove it and record the amount of time the hand was under the water. 9. Repeat five times to get an average. 10. Create two data tables to record your data (see examples below). Use one table to record the data for the five trials you did on the hand without the shortening. The other table will be used for the trials you did on the hand with the shortening. Be sure to include any other participants who did the lab. 5.09 LAB DATA TABLE—HAND WITHOUT SHORTENING Trial # Time 1 1:46 2 1:32 3 1:26 4 1:22 5 1:38 Average Time 1:30 5.09 LAB DATA TABLE—HAND WITH SHORTENING Trial # Time 1 2:55 …show more content…
I think that because texture of the shortening, it felt like an extra layer of skin/ protection that was attached to my hand. I was able to keep my hand in longer. The average time I would last without the shortening would be one minute and thirty seconds, but my hand with the shortening would last two minutes and fifty-five minutes.
2. How could you expand this lab and investigate the insulating properties of different amounts of fat?
The hand without the shortening represent an animal that’s skinny; without fat and the hand with the shortening represent an animal that has body fat. I could expand this lab and making them investigate on the insulting properties of fat by making scientists due more research on how body can a certain amount of body fat help animals / humans keep them warm.
3. Create a lab similar to the one above that would test the following: Do the insulating properties of fat increase as the amount of fat increases?
I think the if insulating properties of fat do increase, the more mass and space fat takes up on the body, the warmer the animal would get. Just like in the lab. If I were to add more shortening around my hand/ add more things around it, then my hand would obviously stay longer in the cold water, because it’ll be very warm due to the over protection/
Title: Keeping warm in the Artic.
Problem: How does fat help to keep animals warm in the winter?
Materials you will need:
• Four zip lock bags (large enough for your hand)
• Solid shortening (Crisco or other brand)
• Sink or bucket
• Cold icy water
• Clock with second hand or stopwatch
• Duct tape (optional)
Procedures: (You may do this alone, but it would be more fun and you would collect more data if you had some family members or friends to also participate.)
1. Fill the sink or bucket with cold water and ice.
2. Cover one hand with a plastic bag.
3. Put a generous amount of solid shortening into another bag.
4. Put the hand covered with the plastic bag into the bag with the shortening. Knead the shortening to make sure the hand is completely surrounded by shortening. 5. Put duct tape around the portion of the bag covering your wrist to seal the bag. (optional) 6. Cover the other hand with two plastic bags (without shortening). This is the control. 7. Place both hands simultaneously into the sink or bucket of cold icy water. 8. Use the clock or stopwatch to record how long each hand remains under water. When a hand gets too cold to stay in the water, be sure to remove it and record the amount of time the hand was under the water. 9. Repeat five times to get an average. 10. Create two data tables to record your data (see examples below). Use one table to record the data for the five trials you did on the hand without the shortening. The other table will be used for the trials you did on the hand with the shortening. Be sure to include any other participants who did the lab. 5.09 LAB DATA TABLE—HAND WITHOUT SHORTENING Trial # Time 1 1:46 2 1:32 3 1:26 4 1:22 5 1:38 Average Time 1:30 5.09 LAB DATA TABLE—HAND WITH SHORTENING Trial # Time 1 2:55 …show more content…
I think that because texture of the shortening, it felt like an extra layer of skin/ protection that was attached to my hand. I was able to keep my hand in longer. The average time I would last without the shortening would be one minute and thirty seconds, but my hand with the shortening would last two minutes and fifty-five minutes.
2. How could you expand this lab and investigate the insulating properties of different amounts of fat?
The hand without the shortening represent an animal that’s skinny; without fat and the hand with the shortening represent an animal that has body fat. I could expand this lab and making them investigate on the insulting properties of fat by making scientists due more research on how body can a certain amount of body fat help animals / humans keep them warm.
3. Create a lab similar to the one above that would test the following: Do the insulating properties of fat increase as the amount of fat increases?
I think the if insulating properties of fat do increase, the more mass and space fat takes up on the body, the warmer the animal would get. Just like in the lab. If I were to add more shortening around my hand/ add more things around it, then my hand would obviously stay longer in the cold water, because it’ll be very warm due to the over protection/