SCIENCE FAIR PRE-EVENT REFLECTION
I collaborated with my partner on a shared document using Google Docs.
Our research question is “What is the effectiveness of fluoride toothpaste on tooth decay?” It is important because not many people are extremely aware of tooth decay. Despite what dentists warn us about, we still consume sugary foods on a daily basis and many people do not have proper oral hygiene. Dentists recommend to brush our teeth with fluoride toothpaste to protect enamel, and our experiment is to see if fluoride toothpaste is as effective as they claim. We used eggs instead of teeth in our experiment because they are very similar. Although eggshells and enamel are relatively thin, they both contain calcium-based compounds for their structure. We dissolved the outer layer of the eggs by leaving the eggs in white vinegar, which is concentrated enough to dissolve eggshells. This is equally important to marine life because if acidity levels in oceans rise, this could affect eggs of marine animals.
We have done research online about the importance of fluoride toothpaste and also on the similarities of the structure of a tooth and an egg using secondary sources. One website is: https://sciencing.com/similarities-eggshells-teeth-8427281.html
For our investigation, we used white vinegar, eggs, fluoride toothpaste and clear cups. We filled each cup with white vinegar and placed one egg in each cup. One of the eggs is coated in a thin layer of fluoride toothpaste. We checked back in on the eggs to make observations and collect data.
(The image above shows two eggs in white vinegar. The egg on top is a regular egg and the egg on the bottom is coated with a thin layer of fluoride toothpaste.)
To connect with an expert, we could talk to a dentist if we needed to collect extra information on tooth decay and the importance of fluoride. We could also speak to the teacher for any feedback on our experiment.
SCIENCE FAIR POST-EVENT REFLECTION
(The image above is a photo of the completed trifold poster of our science experiment)
Yes, I posted my reflection of my science experiment on my Edublog. I collaborated with my partner using Google Docs to complete this project.
Our outcome was how we predicted. Our data and observations we collected supported our hypothesis. The eggshells of the eggs with fluoride toothpaste on them dissolved at a much slower rate compared to the eggs without anything on them. However, the fluoride toothpaste did not completely protect the eggshells from the acid in the vinegar. Although the fluoride toothpaste did slow it down, it did not prevent the acid in the vinegar from affecting the eggshells.
Everything went according to plan during our experiment. We both collected data and made observations accurately for each trial of the experiment. The procedure is clear and accurate. Moreover, the experiment was simpler than we initially thought it would be, which made it really easy to repeat. Even so, an error we made was that we didn’t use the same brand of vinegar in one of our trials, which could have caused inaccurate data.
We talked to a teacher that came in from SET-BC. She gave us feedback on what seemed to work or what didn’t seem right about our experiment. The plan for our experiment was originally very different. After we talked to the teacher from SET-BC, we changed some of our procedure and materials in a way that bettered our experiment.
We did have assumptions about what would happen throughout the experiment. We speculated that the fluoride toothpaste would help prevent the eggshell from dissolving (decaying). Our assumptions proved to be correct throughout our experimentation process. The eggshell of the egg coated with fluoride toothpaste dissolved at a much slower rate than the regular egg. However, the fluoride toothpaste did not completely prevent the eggshell from reacting with the vinegar. Although it did take a much longer time compared with the other egg, the eggshell with fluoride did eventually dissolve completely.