Education Technology


Who Says a Watched Pot Never Boils

Activity Overview

Students compare the heating rates of wet sand and dry sand and study the effect of evaporation on heating rates. They create, interpret and analyze graphs of data. They also relate slope to rate of change.

Key Steps

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    In this activity, students will use a temperature sensor and the TI-73 Explorer to record the change in temperature of water with ice cubes that are heated by a hot plate. They will record the data they have collected and then sketch the graph on the worksheet as it appears on the calculator.

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    Students will analyze at which temperature water changes from a solid to a liquid and from a liquid to a gas. Students will also compare how their hypothesis differs from their conclusion and how their conclusion differs from known values of the melting point and boiling point.