Osmosis Lab

Transdisciplinary Theme- Sharing The Planet

Central Idea- Systems maintain efficiency through interdependent relationships.

Students learned about how cells use osmosis to transport water and other nutrients through the cell membrane. We began with a review of the scientific method (observe, question, hypothesis, experiment, analysis, conclusion). We exercised creating a hypothesis by claiming that food coloring would dissipate more quickly in boiling water than in cold water. Students later worked with their group to prepare a bag of gelatin that contained a teaspoon of aftershave. After the gelatin had solidified we then placed the bag into a bowl of warm water that contained 1 ounce of iodine. Students found that the aftershave solution and some of the dye from the gelatin had moved through the plastic bag into the iodine solution. Osmosis is the process by which a membrane allows materials to pass through it from a less concentrated solution towards a more concentrated solution. 

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