Annual science night held May 20

By Sharon Palmer
Turley Publications Reporter

STURBRIDGE - Science defied sensibility as 84 students from teacher Robert Jefferson’s team of classes taught throngs of family members and friends about the principles behind “discrepant events” – the theme for this year’s Science Night. These “events” are actually experiments with outcomes that are the opposite of what is expected.
No one in the crowd, for example, thought it possible to fit a hard-boiled egg through a small-necked bottle, and then back out again – in one piece. However, students Claudia Fleshman and Kate Muir guided visitors through the experiment, using flaming paper towels, vinegar, and baking soda to prove how contrasting air pressure inside and outside the bottle could indeed make it happen.
There were 42 such experiment stations, each with two students who helped participants conduct the activities, and then explained the science involved.
“This is a real hands-on, interactive experience – kids teaching the science to their families,” said Jefferson. “They do a lot of research over several weeks so that they understand the science behind their activity, understand the terms involved, and can explain why the event is discrepant,” he added.
“This is really cool learning how these things work, and then showing people how the science is working,” said Scott Phillips, who with partner Kendra Iller, taught visitors the concepts involved in Bernoulli’s Principle (which pertains to air flow and fluid dynamics) using a leaf blower, hair dryers, and various sized balls. “It’s a lot more fun than just reading out of a book, and you can get really deep into it,” he said.
Besides enjoying being the experts, students seemed to relish partaking in activities that they probably wouldn’t be permitted to do at home, such as exploding soap in a microwave, harnessing “bess bugs” (which look suspiciously similar to cockroaches) with dental floss to measure work performance, and burning dollar bills.
“I’m always telling my mom about these experiments and how fun they are, but now I get to show her myself how it works,” said Corie Reed, who with Felicia Bouchard, was helping “students” implode soda cans by creating changes in temperature.
Even when experiments didn’t go exactly as (un)expected, students took it in stride and applied scientific principles to the outcome. One of Sam Morin and Mason Wildgrube’s water bottle rocket launches veered off to the side (of the soccer field), and they hypothesized that the placement of the fins caused the problem because of misdirected airflow. “It’s cool, though, and the rockets can go up to 300 feet,” said Morin.
Bill Waterman, whose daughter Bailey facilitated another Bernoulli principle experiment, said that he had learned some interesting things during the evening, such as the fact that all living organisms can conduct electricity.
“We thought Science Night was very informative and well-organized. It really showed the degree of dedication of the students and teachers,” Bailey’s mom, Dionne Waterman said, “The kids were very responsible.”
Indeed, when queried about the biggest challenge involved in the evening’s event, Jefferson said, “Well, fire and explosions make me very nervous,” but added that careful planning ensured that plenty of teachers (over 20) were there to supervise, and that the more volatile experiments had one to two teachers stationed with the scientists at all times.
Towards the end of the evening, Principal Jennifer Lundwall was asked how she felt about soda being exploded on the (protected) ceiling during a “splashy” experiment – part of the evening’s opening ceremonies. “We can always replace the current ceiling tiles with something more interesting, such as student-created artwork…. No worries in the name of science,” she said.