Overview
Description:
"Exploring Measurement - Solutions" is a hands on activity illustrating how small nano is. By sniffing a series of diluted scent solutions, visitors discover that nano-sized particles may be too small to see, but they're not too small to smell!
Checklist
Scientist reviewed
Peer reviewed
Visitor evaluation
Permissions
Creative Commons
Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike
Standards
Physical science:
K-4: Properties of objects and materials
5-8: Properties and changes of properties in matter
9-12: Structure and properties of matter
Science and Technology:
K-4: Abilities of technological design
Science as inquiry:
K-4: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
5-8: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
We vastly simplified this
We vastly simplified this experiment for our NanoDays. Instead of six bottles, we just had two bottles of clear liquids - one with a smell and one without (we used artificial perfume scents, but I imagine an extract of some sort would work as well). We told guests that one bottle contained a nanoparticle that was not present in the other and asked them to determine which was which. When the guests could not tell with their eyes, we told them that nano-sizes are too small to see, but that another one of their senses might help. After they were able to detect the difference in odor, we told them that smell detectors are on the same scale as the smell particles, but eyesight only works on a larger scale. We then extrapolated this concept out to say that scientists dealing with nanotechnology also have to use specialized tools that work on such a small scale.