Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Some really tasty experimentsStudents sink their teeth into science projectsWalking down the science hall at Starrs Mill High recently, one might have thought a home economics class was cooking up breakfast. The aroma of meat and waffles drifted from Dan Gants 11th grade chemistry class, but smells can be deceiving. Instead of cooking up a hearty breakfast to start the day, the students were investigating the stoichiometric relationship between carbonates and acids as it relates to carbon dioxide in waffle mix, and the stoichiometric relationship between amino acids and reducing sugars (the Maillard Reaction) as it relates to a meaty aroma. Using hot plates, skillets, waffle irons, graduated cylinders, sugar, cooking spray, waffle mix, amino acid tablets and oil, students carefully measured, mixed, tested and heated their concoctions. They repeated the experiments, varying ingredients and time exposed to heat and air and recorded each result looking for the right combination that produced the meatiest smell and the fluffiest, tastiest waffles. Its all part of a lab project that Gant calls Cooking in Chemistry. Gant has a reputation for making science fun and students dont hesitate to say that they look forward to his classes. Jenna Shafer and classmate Courtney Yarbrough originally researched the relationship between carbonates and acids in waffles as a classroom project. Shafer said Gant gave her the idea for the project when he shared a personal observation that piqued her interest. He has waffle Wednesdays at his house where he makes waffles for his family. He noticed that the longer he left the mix out, the higher it would rise. The mix gives off carbon dioxide and the more it gives off, the fluffier the waffles, said Shafer. This is Shafers second year having Gant as her science teacher. Her dream is to become a veterinarian and she says it is what she has learned in Gants classes that will give her the ability to excel in college science courses. I love Mr. Gant. He taps into our interests and applies them to science, which makes it easier for us to grasp concepts, said Shafer. Gants unique science labs have earned him three minigrant awards from the Fayette County Education Foundation, one for each year the foundation has awarded teacher minigrants. The grant money has enabled Gant to buy supplies and equipment needed to carry out his ideas, which he says he gets from everyday life. Last year he incorporated a trebuchet into his physics class. Students used the contraption to catapult different objects across the lab as they logged their speed. I look at things that kids are interested in and then I see how those interests can be incorporated into science. Kids love things that shoot, fly and knock, thats how I came up with the trebuchet project. Kids also love to eat, hence Cooking in Chemistry, said Gant. Classmates Kevin Davis and Thomas Davisson echo Shafers praise of Gant. Their science project on the Maillard Reaction as it pertains to the smell of meat earned them a second place finish in the Fayette County Science and Engineering Fair. After sharing their observation that a burned steak smells stronger than one not burned, Gant advised Kevin and Thomas to look into the Maillard Reaction and encouraged them to conduct an experiment for the fair. The students found that a chemical reaction occurs between the amino acids on the surface of the meat and the reducing sugars. This reaction contributes to the browning of the meat and the meaty aroma. Mr. Gant never gives answers straight out. He wants you to conduct experiments to find out why things are they way they are, said Davis. Gant is already cooking up some interesting lab ideas for next year, including edible racecars. The students should get a chance to eat their experiments, he laughed.
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