Advanced DIY Science for Students?

Adam Wise asks: "I'm a high school senior planning a career in science, and I don't have any plans for the summer. I'd like to put these two facts together to entertaining and educational results of the do-it-yourself variety. Reading about the home made electron microscope got me thinking along the lines of a similar project. Are there any resources specifically geared towards DIY scientists beyond baking soda and vinegar volcanoes?"

How about Biology?

[jpsst34]

You're a high school senior - about to graduate. Perhaps you could begin your carreer in biology with a minor in sociology. To get started in these fields, first put down the microscope. OK. Now you're ready to begin the experiment. You need sample subjects. Go meet some people. "Make friends" with them. By this, I mean talk to them, socialize with them, see how they act. That takes care of the sociology part. Now for the Biology part. Choose a someone in your sample population who happens to be of the opposite sex as yourself. Socialize more with this one than with the others. Do what it takes to get this one to want to socialize more with you. Continue this until it the socialization becomes much more than that of the other members of the sample population. Eventually, you will learn about biology via the anatomy of the opposite sex. Perhaps you'll even get to see boobies! (Or flying sperm, if you prefer.)

Re:How about Biology?

[/dev/trash]

Come on now! Everyone knows that if you don't do something educational every minute of your life from Kindergarten to your PhD., that you are going to be a failure.

Try some of these fun summer hobbies

[hubie]

You can work your way through these books: Vacuum Bazookas, Electric Rainbow Jelly, ... [sciencenewsbooks.org] and Backyard Ballistics [sciencenewsbooks.org]. Lots of good, fun science stuff in there.

If you want some electronics, you can study for an amateur radio license. The ARRL [arrl.org] has a lot of plans for good radio-related equipment you can build from scratch. Plus, you can get in on developing and testing software radios.

For the aspiring metallurgist in you, you can do your own metal pouring and casting [backyardmetalcasting.com].

Summertime is a good time for stargazing. You can build your own telescope [rogers.com].

Basic electronics?

[invenustus]

How are you with circuitry? There's a series of "Electronic Project Lab" toys you can get that give you a whole bunch of components - resistors, capacitors, light bulbs, etc - and teach you how to build circuits with them. You're encouraged to experiment on your own.

Here's the 60 in One [laserballs.com] set. I've never heard of this retailer, so I'm not recommending them, but the page is a good guide to what you can do with it. You can also do a Google search [google.com] which hooks you up with all the different sets they make.

basic robot

[battjt]

1. Around my senior year, using a C64 and basic, I was able to control electric motors. A robot wouldn't have been much more of a stretch. With today's tech, controlling motors via a parallel on an old PC would be fun.

2. Build a trebuchet or a potato gun.

Then again, you only get that high school summer once. You can build a trebuchet once you retire.

Joe

SciAm

[Anglophile]

If you look through some old volumes of Scientific American, they have some pretty cool projects in the re. One that caught my eye that I remember was a gravity interferometer that you can measure slight changes in earth's gravitational field with. Pretty snazzy.

Lindsay

[bluGill]

I've mentioned them before (several times), but it bears repeating: has several offerings that you need to check out. Get the paper catalog (it has more than the online version), and order some books. They have a CD-ROM of the good articals from Scientific American (back when it was worth reading), and several other books. Most of their books are long out of copyright, so they are old, but the science is still the same, even if the theorys have changed. (Watch out for that!) [lindsaybks.com]

organic chemistry

[ameoba]

If you plan on going into organic chemistry, building a meth-lab in your basement is a good way to get a head start on things. Additionally, it'll help offset the rising cost of tuition.

Re:organic chemistry

[Anonymous Coward]

Trust me on this one: Don't start out on meth. It's not a particularly easy synthesis for a beginner. I won't go into details but there are some marginal recipes out there. Even when you do it 'right' you've usually got two things nearby:

(1)Ether
(2)Tweakers itching for a smoke break.

No, Virginia, those two don't go well together. Then there is the whole legality issue, and meth isn't that much fun anyway. Who wants to be up for three days cleaning the house and checking outside for cops?

Weed isn't too hard, and growing things in controlled environments is good science. Again, you run smack into the legal issue. Now if you could take the THC gene and drop it into, say, brewer's yeast, you could make the most popular microbrew on the block. Too hard you say? Maybe, but I'd bet you cash that Phillip Morris has already done this to tobacco.

Making your own vodka/gin/moonshine is another possibility. You've got to do the distillations right or you fuck up your eyes. The mash stinks and yes, issues with legality and flammability come back into play.

Do them all in California, and you've just earned life in jail on three strikes. In other words, don't play with anything that the liquor lobby has paid off politicians to make illegal.

get a job

[Goldsmith]

I recommend you get a job.

It doesn't have to be in science, you just have to make money. You have college ahead of you, and if you plan on doing anything serious, you're going to be there for at least 8 years. You'll need the money, and a little humbling experiance in fast food never hurt anyone.

Re:get a job

[jpsst34]

"...and if you plan on doing anything serious, you're going to be there for at least 8 years."

True, unless you're talking about Computer Science. You can get by with 4 or 6 years there. But then again, having gotten my degree [emphasis mine, to sound like a cock] in Computer Engineering, Comp Sci isn't "anything serious." Neudge!

Here's a general solution:

[Bald Wookie]

Build something that makes measurements.

A lot of what a scientist ends up doing is making quantitative measurements. Understanding the drawbacks and limitations of analytical devices will do wonders for your future scientific career.

Start simple. Make a ruler that can measure something down to a millimeter precision. You can't use an existing ruler to get you started. All you get is a stick, some paper and a few tools. Maybe you can have ONE object with an accurately known length. Figure out how to do it, then actually build it.

Next, use your rule to measure something small. Start your measurement from different parts of the rule and plot the results. Figure out what the results mean, and what the flaws are with your measurements. Since you're working with length, conceptually this shouldn't be too hard.

Still want an easy one? Try measuring mass next. Take one accurately known mass and build a balance. Same idea as before. Build something. Use it to measure. Find out your precision and accuracy. Make it better if you want.

You're doing a little math, some engineering, and working with some generally applicable scientific principles. Remember that in this case it is the mistakes that teach you the most.

Like doing this kind of stuff?

Build a spectrophotometer out of a webcam. That should be a fun one. Tons of limitations, but the possibility of decent results.

Make your own microphone. What kind of frequency response can you get? Can you make it more linear?

Volumetric measurements can be interesting. Learn the difference between "To Contain" and "To Deliver" first.

This all might seem like too much engineering. Think of it as applied science. Learning what measurement is all about will probably make your labs seem less cookbook and more interesting.

Come up with you're own ideas. This is science after all. Forget what the art majors will tell you, this is where the creativity lies.

And now for something cynical (also known as advice from the real world):

Unless you plan on getting a PhD, don't major in science. In research labs and interesting industry positions, non PhD's are usually peons. Even a masters in some fields is largely viewed as a 'booby prize' for a washed out PhD student. Chances are that without the PhD you'll be better off working outside the field.

Here's more unsolicited advice: If you aren't going to work in the field, don't get the degree. You will have more fun in college if you don't spend it in a lab. Major in business and make your favorite science a minor instead. At least pick engineering over the hard science. The primary reason to get a science degree is to do research, and that career track begins with a PhD. If that isn't your destination it's probably easier not to begin the journey.

Get This Book!!

[Bri3D]

Practical Projects for the Handy Man (Popular Mechanics (Chicago, Ill.: 1902).) This is a reprint of various DIY articles from Popular Mechanics from 1902 to 1913. It is available from Amazon or many bookstores. There is some REALLY good stuff in here. Make your own gas engine, toaster, motorcycle, ect. The only problem is that many of the parts you need are not available anymore, especially the chemicals which you were supposed to get from your local drugstore. But really, there are some amazingly clever machines illustrated here, and you could actually build many of them, if you can locate your local chemist, blacksmith, forge and machine shop. :^) Many practical lessons in Physics could be learned, especially if you don't blow your hands off in the process. I am not responsible for your death if you try some of the stuff in the book. There obviously was a different (and better) standard for liability back then. Just because they tell you HOW to make a hang glider out of local lumber, doesn't mean you SHOULD.

Online Moving Management Service

[SEWilco]

There is one online moving service: eBay [ebay.com].

You just list everything that you own on eBay and send it out. When you're at your new apartment you go back on eBay and have the same things delivered. eBay has categories for everything, so all your stuff will be nicely organized.

Internship?

[SEWilco]

"...beyond baking soda and vinegar volcanoes?"

Work on making real volcanoes. If you succeed you may be able to market your device at VillainSupply [villainsupply.com]. They're not presently hiring, but you could send your rap sheet to the parent company in case they have need of an interned scientist soon. Make sure to mention any nefarious devices, unholy hobbies, or superpowers.