Science fair was outstanding at Piñon Hills

Have you ever been to a science fair at an elementary school? You would think, "They're just little kids. How would they be able to do a science experiment?"

But, they are too smart.

Piñon Hills had its science fair on Feb. 27, and it was just, well, astounding. How else can I describe it? There were 178 entries in the fair. Here are some I found to be curious:

Terek Been tested batteries to find out how long they would last in a flashlight. Terek found that the Energizer Max lasted 3 hours and 5 minutes on its batteries. The Duracell Coppertop only lasted 2 hours and 40 minutes. Which one will you take on your next camping trip?

Jillyan Jacobson tested diet Pepsi, Sprite, Coke and root beer on tooth deterioration. She found Coke was the worst on your teeth with bad staining and enamel damage and that Sprite wasn't as bad with some damage to your enamel, but it turned the teeth a whitish color. I wonder whose teeth she used? I sure don't feel like drinking a soda after seeing her experiment.

Alexandra Morin tested to see which drinks stayed colder longer, drinks in a 16-ounce glass bottle or 12-ounce aluminum can. She put them in the refrigerator for equal time to get cold. Then took them out, opened them and took a sip, then walked away. After 30 minutes the aluminum can drink was colder than the glass bottled drink.

Jacob Hofer tested Disney and Warner Bros. bubble bath to see which bubbles lasted longer. He put them in a container with water, shook them up and let them sit. He found that Disney's bubble bath had bubbles for a longer period of time. I wonder how a generic brand would stand up.

Nate Einck compared Bounty paper towels with Costco's Kirkland brand. He spilled orange juice on the counter, wiped it up, and concluded that Bounty was the better paper towel.

I loved Brandon Sweetland's project. He wanted to know why store-bought egg yolks are so light in color compared to back yard or free-range hens, which are much more yellow, even orange or almost red. His conclusion: Store-bought yolks are lighter because the hens are raised in a confined space, with no natural sunlight, with the same commercial food everyday, where back yard hens eat bugs, grass, veggies and fruits and enjoy a "lay crumble" with corn in it (that's why sometimes my eggs have a little granule of sand in them). Yeah Brandon!

Whitney Weaver checked out three kinds of laundry stain removers. She found they all worked better than just laundry detergent alone, and needed to be used with hot water. Shout Ultra Gel, Spray and Wash and Oxy Clean laundry stain remover were the ones she tested.

Jeff Williams tested microwave popping corn to see which brand popped the highest percentage of kernels and found ACT 2 popped 89 percent of its kernels, Orville Redenbacher popped 86 percent and Safeway's "O" Organic popped only 70 percent of its kernels.

Taylor Sullivan tested bread to see which would mold the fastest. She tested buttermilk bread, organic wheat, regular wheat and some homemade raisin bread. She found that in the 10-day experiment, the organic wheat bread and the homemade raisin bread both molded. The buttermilk and wheat bread didn't mold. Too many preservatives?

Congratulations to all the participants, you did so great.

Twelve students won the honor of participating in the regional fair at the Lawlor Events Center March 8-10: Daisy Tanner, Eli Splean, Lauren Cox, Carly Johnson, Dominique Groffman, Whitney Weaver, Jessica Martin, Christina Pollard, Keith Becker, Jarrod Becker, Mariah Young and Stephanie Trackman.

Go Team!

-- Lisa Welch is a Johnson Lane resident and can be reached at 267-9350.