There's no need for expensive, high-tech lab equipment to perform
biology experiments--you probably have all you need in your home junk
drawer. Use balloons, drinking straws, and empty plastic bottles to
construct working models of hearts and lungs. Investigate plant
transpiration and photosynthesis with leaves and resealable bags. Build
a candy DNA model using gumdrops, toothpicks, and licorice rope. Study
capillary action in plant xylem using colored water and paper towels.
Extract DNA from a banana using a simple chemical process. Or learn how
to turn a smartphone into a photographic microscope.
Here are more than 50 great hands-on experiments that can be performed
for just pennies . . . or less. Each project has a materials list,
detailed step-by-step instructions with illustrations, and a brief
explanation of the scientific principle being demonstrated--seed
germination, osmosis, human senses and systems, chromosomes, mitosis and
meiosis, and more.