Friday was our annual holiday field trip. We went to the Lansing skating rink and to the mall to see a movie. I hope everyone enjoys their break and time with friends and family.

After today's test we began watching The Story of Stuff. I think it ties in well with the season because it links human health and the environment to many of the products we receive this time of year. This will take a fast internet connection to view.

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.

Today in Tri-Sci we extracted DNA from spinach leaves using detergent, meat tenderizer and rubbing alcohol. Above are some action photos of the process.

Day 3 of the egg diffusion lab showed us that the distilled water had diffused into the egg, causing it to become extremely plump. Nobody had an egg that broke however!! Last year we had 3 or 4 casualties. Tomorrow we will see what happens after they spend the night in corn syrup.

Today was Day 2 of the egg diffusion lab. Our eggs sat in vinegar for 24 hours. As someone pointed out in the comment section, the acid in the vinegar completely dissolved the outer shell, exposing the membrane. Because our eggs were larger than yesterday, we can conclude that some of the vinegar diffused into the egg. Tonight they will sit in distilled water for another 24 hours.

Today we started the diffusion through a membrane lab using eggs. Today's step involved measuring circumference and mass of an egg and submerging it in vinegar. What do you think will happen overnight??

Friday night, 7th and 8th grade Tri-Sci members traveled to Cornell for a catered dinner by Ithaca Bakery. The purpose of the dinner was to get to know a variety of successful female scientists from Cornell University, Lockheed Martin, and Welch-Allyn. The girls were allowed to ask them any questions they wanted like how much they make, their personal lives, and job descriptions.

Today we played the EduWare race game to help review for tomorrow's test on Cells. Hopefully everyone enjoyed this method of review. The Groton science department won this at this years STANYS conference as we squared off against 10 other schools. We owe many thanks to the EduWare company and owner, Bill Stevens.