Easy
What two main liquids do we use to make a DIY lava lamp?
Water and oil do not mix, which is key for a lava lamp, as oil floats on top of water.
Why do the different colors stay in layers and not mix?
The layers have different amounts of sugar, making some heavier for their size (more dense) and causing them to separate.
What is the primary ingredient in the magic milk experiment that reacts with the dish soap?
Milk contains fats and proteins that react with the dish soap, causing the colorful swirling motion.
When you mix borax into hot water until no more dissolves, what kind of water solution have you made?
A super-duper dissolved solution (saturated). A saturated solution means the water has dissolved the maximum amount of a substance possible at that temperature, just before crystals start to form.
What fizzy tablet do we add to make the 'lava' bubbles move?
Alka-Seltzer creates gas bubbles that carry the colored water up through the oil.
Why do the crystals start to grow when the borax water gets cool?
Cold water cannot hold as much dissolved borax, so the extra borax forms crystals. Hot water can dissolve more borax than cold water. As the water cools, it can no longer hold all the dissolved borax, forcing the extra borax to come out of the solution and form crystals.
What causes the colors to move and swirl in the magic milk experiment?
Dish soap lowers the surface tension of the milk, causing the fat molecules to move and the colors to swirl.
If you use too little borax powder in your hot water, what might happen to your crystals?
They might not grow at all, or only very tiny ones, because there's not enough borax to form them. If the water isn't saturated enough, there won't be enough excess borax to crystallize out as the solution cools.
What two main things do we mix to make the rainbow in a cup?
Sugar and water are the key ingredients that create different densities for the rainbow layers.
What is the chemical name for Borax?
Sodium Borate