t+glova

**problem** Does the processing of food produce gas?

**materials** 1. 1/2 measuring cup 2. One half cup of cut sweet potato 3. One half cup of cut kiwi 4. One half cup of cut carrot 5. One half cup of cut apple 6. 1 tablespoon measuring cup 7. 4 tablespoons of vinegar 9. Four test tubes 9. Four balloons 10. Tape measure

**procedure** 1. Clean out test tubes 2. Take carrot and cut it. Keep cutting until pieces fit inside 1/2 measuring cup. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">3. Place carrot pieces into a test tube. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">4. Add one tablespoon of vinegar to test tube. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">5. Place balloon 5 1/2 centimeters over test tube. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">6. Repeat steps 2-5 with kiwi, sweet potato, and apple. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">7. Wait. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">8. Record data.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 170%;">**hypothesis** I believe the processing of food //does// produce gas. However, the amount of gas that is produced depends on the type of food.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 170%; line-height: 36px;">**data**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**Sweet Potato** || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**Apple** || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**Kiwi** || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**Carrot** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the sweet potato balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the apple balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the kiwi balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the carrot balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the sweet potato balloon has half way sucked into the test tube it is covering. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the apple has half way sucked into the test tube it is covering. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The kiwi balloon has stayed the same since I have last checked for differences. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the carrot balloon has half way sucked into the test tube it is covering. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By the tenth day, the sweet potato balloon has been sucked in a little more into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is the tenth day, and the apple balloon and been slowly sinking into the test tube. Like the sweet potato one, it has been sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By the tenth day, the kiwi has been slightly sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Like the sweet potato and apple balloon, the carrot test tube has been sucked into its test tube. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is day fourteen. The sweet potato balloon is completely sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By the fourteenth day, the apple balloon has been completely sucked into the test tube it is covering. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is the fourteen day, and the kiwi balloon has only approximately three-fourths of the balloon has been sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is the fourteenth day, and the carrot balloon has been completely sucked into its test tube. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is day sixteen. No results have changed. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is day sixteen. No results have changed. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is day sixteen. The kiwi balloon has sunk even deeper into the test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">It is day sixteen. No results have changed. ||


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Food || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Day Four || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Day Eight || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Day Twelve || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Overall Results ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Sweet Potato || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the sweet potato balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the sweet potato balloon was half way sucked into the test tube it was covering. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The sweet potato balloon has gradually sunk in even more into the test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By day sixteen, all of the balloon is inside the test tube. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Apple || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the apple balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the apple balloon was half way sucked into the test tube it was covering || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The apple balloon and been slowly sinking into the test tube. Like the sweet potato balloon, it has been sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By day sixteen, all of the balloon is inside the test tube. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Kiwi || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the kiwi balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The kiwi balloon has stayed the same since the last checking. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The kiwi balloon has gradually sucked into the test tube. In comparison though, only one fourth of the balloon has been sucked in. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Though it happens at a much slower pace, by day sixteen, the kiwi balloon has been sucked into the test tube it is covering. However, only about 0.125 of the balloon is still outside of the test tube. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Carrot || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Throughout the first four days, the carrot balloon did not fill with any significant amount of gas. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">At the eighth day mark, the carrot balloon was half way sucked into the test tube it was covering || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Like the sweet potato and apple balloon, the carrot balloon has been sucked into its test tube. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">By day sixteen, all of the balloon is inside the test tube. ||

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 36px;">abstract ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">My problem, Does the processing of food produce gas?, was chosen because I thought that if the experiment turned out of be successful - that if yes, the processing of food does produce gas - it could be applied to real-life situations. For example, if a simple fruit or vegetable could produce gas, and that gas could be captured in a balloon, then maybe large amounts of fruits or vegetables could power regular household objects, or even a car.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">To start my project, I borrowed a tape measure and four test tubes from my science teacher. The following day my sister bought me a pack of balloons, and I went to my local produce store to buy a sweet potato, a kiwi, and an apple. My mother told me the refrigerator was already stocked with carrots, so I did not buy one.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">A few days later, I cut all of the fruits and vegetables I had until each could fit in a one-half measuring cup. I added the cut up materials to the test tubes, then added one tablespoon of vinegar to the test tubes. As a final step, I placed a balloon five and a half centimeters over the test tubes top.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">My hypothesis was yes, the processing of food does produce gas. However, the amount of gas that is produced depends on the type of food that is processed. I waited for two weeks, and at day fourteen I had come to a somewhat conclusion: the second part of my hypothesis was right. Three out of four of the balloons were completely sucked into the test tubes. Also, approximately three-fourths of the kiwi balloon was sucked into the test tube it was covering.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">I had researched the experiment being done by other people using other foods, and for them it turned out to be successful. So if I were to do this experiment again, I would say to try a different kind of food to process - maybe a protein-filled once, such as meat or beans. Also, I would say to try different kinds of vinegar.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 170%; line-height: 36px;">**journal entries** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%; line-height: 21px;">**april 05, 2011:** Today, I am going over my problem, all the materials I am going to need, and my procedure. I am also drafting my abstract. Mrs. Kots says she will let me use four of her test tubes, but I think I will buy my own, just in case they are too small. I am planning to go shopping for all of my materials during this week, and conducting my experiment this weekend. If I follow that plan, that will leave me with enough time to piece together my data and set up my information board. (I also found this link on the internet: http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/science_fair_projects/39/483/d18ed169ff4f707ac779b62c277e89cd.html - I believe it will be some sort of guideline to me.)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;"> **wednesday, april 13, 2011:** Today, I bought a sweet potato, a kiwi, an apple, and a few green peppers at my local produce store. I plan on washing out the test tubes Mrs. Kots lent me, grounding the food I bought - plus more food around my house -, and finding the balloons I have in my drawers. I'll add the vinegar tomorrow, and I'll see what happenes.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;"> **saturday, april 16, 2011:** I set up my experiment today. All the test tubes are set. I also redid my materials and procedure list. As a group, all balloons were placed on a test tube at exactly 5:30 pm. I plan on checking on the test tubes again at 5:30 tomorrow.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;"> **sunday, april 17, 2011:** While looking at my experiment at the twenty four hour mark, I realized one of the balloons had a puncture in it. Since I had leftover food, I decided to start the project all over again. But, instead of using one table spoon of food, I used 1/2 cup. I also recorded the times the food was placed in the test tube, when the vinegar was added, and when the balloon was placed over the test tube. The half cup of apple was placed into a test tube at 6:11. Vinegar was added at 6:16, and a balloon was placed over the tube at 6:19. The half cup of kiwi was placed into a test tube at 6:13. Vinegar was added at 6:17, and a balloon was placed over the tube at 6:22. The half cup of sweet potato was placed into a test tube at 6:14. Vinegar was added at 6:17, and a balloon was placed over the tube at 6:22. The half cup of carrot was placed into a test tube at 6:15. Vinegar was added at 6:18, and a balloon was placed over the tube at 6:20. I plan on taking pictures of my experiment, but I have no batteries and my cell phone cannot send pictures to my e-mail. I will just have to buy batteries at CVS. I also plan on checking on my experiment again tomorrow, at the twenty four hour mark.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**tuesday, april 19, 2011**: Here is a link to the picture of my experiment as soon as all of the balloons were placed over test tubes: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">I've noticed that the sweet potato balloon actually seems to be sucked into the test tube. No significant amounts of air have been produced in any of the balloons, but I've noticed a width difference in the apple balloon. Hopefully that means progress is being made.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">**sunday, april 24, 2011:** Since the last time I've written a journal, no significant amounts of air have entered any of the balloons. Though, I've noticed that the carrot, kiwi, and apple balloons have actually been sucked into their test tubes. I'm starting to become curious. I'm even thinking of maybe even get hold of another test tube and conducting the same experiment, except on a piece of meat.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">**sunday, may 01, 2011:** I took pictures of my experiment about two or three days ago. Here is what my project looks like overall: //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Side view // <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Top view // <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">As you can see, three out of the four balloons have been immensely sucked into the test tubes.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">This is a closer and detailed photo of the sweet potato balloon.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">This photo shows the balloon of the carrot balloon.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">This is a photo of the kiwi balloon. It is the only balloon that has not completely been sucked into the test tube.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">This is a top view of the apple balloon.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">I was not expecting these results. But nonetheless, I have to find out why these results came about. I still have to write my abstract, and design my board. I plan on writing my abstract before I go to bed tonight. The maximum word count is two hundred fifty words, and I have to make it at least one page. If all goes as planned, I will finish my project this weekend.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">**tuesday, may 03, 2011:** I bought my posterboard. I plan on doing most of the posterboard tonight.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">In terms of the science fair project, the kiwi balloon has sunk even deeper into the test tube. But besides that, no significant results have occurred.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">The processing of sweet potato, kiwi, apple, and carrot does not produce gas. I say that because I have read experiments where the balloons actually fill up with gas. To get better results, I would say to try various types of vinegar and to try different kinds of food, such as a protein-packed one like eggs and meat.