At the end of one of our classes we were instructed to meet with our groups for our final experiment and have a brainstorm session. The purpose of the brainstorming was to figure out what we should do for our final experiments. The experiment idea had to be realistic, so that it is something that could be performed by the class. Another requirement was that it has to be interesting enough for the approval of our professor.

When meeting with my group for the first time I was pleased to find out that two out of the four of us majored in sciences. The first thing we did as a group was go around the circle and talk about all the different ideas or options we had individually been considering, if we all had ideas that is. One of the group members came up with the idea to create a battery that would use natural plant life as its energy resource. We all that that was a really cool concept but it would be too difficult or time consuming for others to replicate.

From that point we tried to come up with some more practical ideas. From there I gave out a couple suggestions of easier options. The one getting the most buzz feedback was to do an experiment that shows the difference in the rate of boiling water with an additive (salt, olive oil etc.) versus regular water. This worked because it was simple and doable, but it was a little off base from the class content and it wasn’t very interesting.

We then decided we liked the battery concept that had been discussed earlier, but we had to adjust it to meet requirements. We did some internet browsing and came across the idea to create a battery using simple everyday items. The battery would consist of the following materials: pennies, nickels, saltwater, and small paper towel cuts. At this point we a lll liked what we saw and ran it by the professor. Finally, the professor approved, we delegated tasks and a meet schedule, and the brainstorming session/class was adjourned.

Link to experiment: http://www.instructables.com/id/Penny-and-Nickel-Battery/