Three labs to explore the form, function, and limitations of membranes by focusing on osmosis.

Production notes: We'll have our own take on these and have intro, materials, and procedure all listed on this page.

Lab Activity #1: Osmotic Candy

An osmosis activity involving gummy bears in different liquids.

Something along the lines of this:

• Cabarrus teacher's lab

 

 

Lab Activity #2: Surface-area-to-volume ratio

The larger the cell, the less efficient it is at bringing materials into the cell through osmosis.

Something along the lines of one of these:

• New Zealand's agar blocks
• paper models

 

Lab Activity #3: Modeling Active and Passive Transport

Modeling the membrane using elastic, marbles, and ping-pong balls. Something along the lines of this:

• Penn State Nanosci project

 

 

 

Lab Activity #4: Bubbles as Membranes

Something along the lines of this:

• Bubble-lab