On Monday, Sept. 24, Science National Honor Society held a lab in room B104 in which they made elephant toothpaste by designing a chemical reaction that involved ingredients such as hydrogen peroxide and dish soap.

With meetings twice a month every other Monday, members have the opportunity to learn and practice various fields of science throughout the school year.

During the meeting, officers began by explaining the science behind the chemical reaction to ensure members understood the procedure. The officers also distributed the materials as well as the directions, while the members worked on setting up the experiment.  

The officer team, consisting of seniors Benjamin Bendregal and Tiffany Chen and juniors Ellie Chen, Sangita Kunapuli and Nitin Subramanian, worked to implement a new system for this year’s members. As opposed to previous years, they planned to explore a new subject of science each month. This month focused on chemistry, which is why they chose to do a chemical reaction lab.

To make your own elephant toothpaste, check out the materials and procedure listed below:

Materials:

• Two clean plastic bottles
• ½ Cup of Hydrogen Peroxide (can be purchased at any local convenience store)
• One tablespoon of dry yeast
• Three tablespoons of warm water
• One tablespoon of liquid dishwashing soap
• Food coloring (your choice of color)
• Safety goggles  

Procedure:

1. Put on safety goggles
2. Add ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide into a plastic bottle
3. Add a couple drops of food coloring into the bottle
4. Add one tablespoon of dish soap
5. Swirl bottle to combine the two mixtures
6. In a separate plastic bottle:
   1. Mix together one tablespoon of dry yeast and three tablespoons of warm water
7. Combine the two mixtures from the separate bottles.