Australia's Science Forum

Hi everyone

Our physics teacher has run a very successful experiment in the past where students make little "cars" with seat belts etc and an egg as a passenger to determine the effect of collisions ie: what saves the egg person from cracking. This year our school has been discouraged to bring eggs even for lunch as we have a severely allergic student. So we are trying to think of an alternative to eggs. Anyone have a suggestion?

Thanks
Kathryn

Hi Kathryn,
we use shoe boxes with 1kg masses & Teddy bears as the passenger, probably not as cute as your egg we just use string as the seat belt
Cheers
Lisa

Hi Kathryn,

We have done a similar prac in the past and used Easter eggs. A bit late for this year.

Ev

we have used TINY TEDDY"S they brake in half after a bad collision.

Plasticine people

I guess the dramatic thing about eggs is they break if the seatbelt or airbags are not good enough - I cant imagine the same effect with teddies or plasticine people. We need something a little more fragile.
Kathryn

Water balloons or Christmas baubles?

We use plasticine or play dough people. The students get to have fun making them and it's more realistic for the demonstration if they're human shaped. Play dough, being a lot softer than plasticine, works well. We then sit them on our dynamics trolleys that we use with ticker timers.

Wem use plasticine crash test dummies too.

wafer biscuits very frail....
I like the christmas bauble and water balloon idea!

for caring for people with allergies!
mum of an allergy kid!