Squishy Science Challenge
Introduction to the Challenge
The Squishy Science Challenge is a challenge from the American Physical Society’s (APS’s) Forum on Education. In this challenge, students will form teams to create and manufacture new “squishy” products. “Squishy” products are products that are mixtures of either solids, liquids, or gases and includes things like cotton candy, lipstick, asphalt, and ketchup! While these products exist, we want to use physics to improve them in some meaningful way! Then, the teams will need to present their products to the class and convince the class or a panel of investors to fund their product. Best product wins the challenge! All teams will be invited to Squishy Science Sunday.
To join the Challenge
If you are a teacher, you can join the Challenge by emailing the Treasurer/Secretary of FEd to receive the Squishy Science Sunday Challenge packet. This will include the introduction to the challenge, an example presentation done by middle school students, an empty presentation template, and the QR code to register the winners of the challenge with APS FEd.
Overview of the Challenge
To compete in this challenge, students should form teams of 2-4 people. Each team will create a product that has a different texture, stiffness, stickiness, hardness, flow, elasticity, or some other mechanical or physical property that makes them unique and “better”. The Squishy Science Challenge will help teams to identify a squishy science product they want to improve, imagine and research how it could be improved with physics, and calculate how big of an impact this new product will have. To bring it all together, teams will make either a brief 5 minute presentation or a written report on their invention.
The challenge can be completed in 2-4 class periods. In the first 1-3 class periods, each group will follow the prompts below to come up with their product and fill in the 4 sections of the presentation (product description, motivation, science overview, and market analysis). In the next 1-2 class periods, groups will give their presentations (written or oral) to the class or a panel of investors. Then, the class or investors (one teacher or a group of teachers) will decide which product they want to fund. The group with the “best” squishy science product wins the challenge!
What students will do in the Challenge:
Students will start with the template slides and begin filling each slide in using the following prompts. After filling in the first two slides, they might realize that they want to solve a different problem or have an idea for a different product. That is okay! This type of back-and-forth happens all of the time in science. Cycle through Slide 1 and Slide 2 until they have a product they like, and then move to Slide 3 and Slide 4. Read more to see more details about the Challenge.
Slide 1/Section 1 – Product Description
Decide what type of squishy product or material you would like to develop. You can choose from paints, foams, construction materials (clay/cement/mortar/tar/asphalt), cosmetics (foundation/eyeliner/lipstick), toiletries (toothpaste/deodorant/lotion), drinks, desserts (mousse/cake/pie filling), foods (yogurt/hummus/applesauce/rice/noodles/oatmeal/peanut butter/soup), candy (taffy/chocolate/lollipops/cotton candy), pet foods, condiments (ketchup/mayo/salsa), soaps/cleaning supplies, toys (sand/clay/foam/play doh/orbies), aerosols (hair spray/dry shampoo) or any other product that is a mixture of a solid, liquid, or gas.
Next decide what physical property you are going to change about the product. Are you going to make it thicker or thinner, more elastic, evaporate faster, more brittle, stronger, have a slower flow like molasses, have a rougher surface, change the texture, make it have two textures or two physical properties simultaneously, or something else entirely? For example, you might decide you want to make a soup that changes its thickness. Any realistic physical property is up for grabs.
In this section be sure to clearly state:
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What is the original product you would like to change?
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Draw a picture of the original product.
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List the physical properties of the original product.
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Which physical property do you want to change? And, as best as you can, how much do you want to change this physical property?
Slide 2/ Section 2 – Motivation
What is your motivation for changing this product? What’s wrong with it today? Why would making your product with this new physical property be a good idea and potentially something we should make? What is the problem you will solve by making this product? To get this point across, draw a picture of your product in use and show how it would be better than the original product.
In this section be sure to clearly state:
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What is the problem with the original product and what is your motivation for changing it?
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Why is it important to change that specific physical property to address this problem or motivation?
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Draw a picture of the new product.
Slide 3/ Section 3 – Science/Technology Overview
Look up information about the product and the physical property you have chosen to change. What influences this physical property? How could someone in real life create a product with the property you describe? Note that, you don’t need to have all of the science figured out here. You could talk about processes that change the physical property or examples of other materials or products that have the property you want.) For example, if you were trying to make a soup that changed its thickness, you might look up “how to make soup thicker”. Then, you would see that you could use cornstarch, eggs, or yogurt and might look up each of these items and figure out why they change the soup’s thickness.
In this section be sure to clearly state:
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What is the definition of the physical property you want to change?
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What is it about the product that makes the product have this physical property?
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How could you change the product to change this physical property?
Slide 4/ Section 4 – Market Analysis
Now that you know what product you want to change, what property you want to change, and how you might change the property, let’s decide if this product would be a good idea.
In this section be sure to clearly state:
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How much product would you expect to sell in a year?
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How much would you sell the product for?_________________
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How much does it cost to make the product? ______________
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Use these numbers to estimate how much profit you would make in a year.
Final task – Practice your presentation
Now you have pulled it all together, practice your presentation or refine your paper. Each team member should contribute and have a clear role in the speaking or writing.
Have more time?
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Slide 2: Consider limitations or drawbacks to changing the product. Would changing the physical property of the product affect the other properties of the product? Would changing the physical property of the product limit the product in some way?
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Slide 3: How is the product currently made? How would the manufacturing of the product need to change to accommodate your new physical property?
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Slide 4: How is your product going to compete or improve on what is already available? Is there an update you could make to the product to make it more marketable?
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All Slides: Consider talking to someone about the product you are interested in. They may be able to share some of the current issues with it, what could be improved on it, or what is currently being worked on.