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This Week September 2007 11 September
This Week September 2007 11 September | 11 September |
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Science LectureMr Middleton, the Head of Chemistry at Millfield, came to give a lecture to the 6th form today. He started off by lighting and blowing up two hydrogen-filled balloons, quickly grabbing our attention. The next one involved melting a potassium compound, and inserting one jelly-baby, which started glowing and spewing out smoke, setting off the fire alarm! There were many other experiments to follow, including setting light to a flask containing hydrogen peroxide, which created a huge column of smoke, shaking two bottles containing a yellow liquid which then turned blue, and then back again, due to an unstable reaction reversing as soon as it was no longer shaken, and adding highly concentrated sulphuric acid to a tube of sugar which grew and created a very bad-smelling black compound. 
Mr Smith - a true baptism of fire - Picture by J Bosson
Some of the boys and then Mr Smith, who has just come to us from Millfield, were asked to scoop up some bubbles of a washing-up liquid solution containing butane. Mr Middleton then lit the bubbles with a taper and the bubbles burst into flame! No one was hurt, thankfully, as they had wetted their arms and hands before. My favourite experiment was another washing up liquid solution, along with some other chemicals in a tall measuring cylinder. This reacted and formed a brown/black liquid, which quickly filled the measuring cylinder and overflowed into the tray around it. I thought that was the end of the experiment, but suddenly black foam grew out of the cylinder, which quickly turned yellow, which Mr Middleton said was due the minor changing of the metals’ properties. The yellow foam then began to collapses in stages. The lecture was very interesting and I would have liked to see more of the fun side of chemistry. C You (12.08) 
T Swift - obviously not as brave as the staff!
And I'm not at all sure what's in the foreground - Picture by C Thayan |
