HJHS Science Club
T. Trimpe 2008
http:///sciencespot.net/
Bubblegum Trivia
1. How many sticks of gum does the average American chew in a year?
A. 200
B. 300
C. 400
2. How many tons of gum are chewed every year?
A. 50,000
B. 75,000
C. 100,000
3. If all the five-chunk packs of Bubble Yum ever chewed in the U.S. since it's introduction in
1975 were laid end-to-end, how many times would it circle the earth at the equator?
A. 2
B. 5
C. 7
4. San Luis Obispo, California, is the home of 'Bubble Gum Alley'. What is it?
A. An alley with brick walls covered with ABC (already-been-chewed) gum wads.
B. The place where bubble gum was invented.
C. The home of the largest collection of bubble gum machines.
5. Richard Walker holds the record for the Chomp Title by chewing 135 sticks of gum for the
longest time. How long did he chomp?
A. 5 hours
B. 6 hours
C. 8 hours
Topps presented the gum to
baseball player Willie Mays in
6. The Topps company
holds
the record
for gum
having made the largest single piece of
The first
successful
bubble
1974. Mays then cut it into small
invented
Diemer Bazooka did it equal?
bubble gum. Howwas
many
piecesbyofWalter
normal-sized
chunks and gave it to children in
an accountant C. 10, 000
A. 5000in 1928. He was
B. 8000
nearby hospitals.
who knew nothing about
chemistry, but created it in a tiny
7. The 1952 Mickey
Mantle rookie card is the most valuable Topps Company card.
laboratory in Philadelphia. The
How much did it sell
for at auction?
only food coloring he had on
A. $75,000
B. $120,000
hand was pink.
"It was an C. $1,000,000
accident," said Mr. Diemer, "I
8. What is the Official
Gum of
Major League
Baseball?
was doing
something
else and
ended
up with
A. Bubble
Yum
B. something
Bazooka with C. Topps
bubbles."
9. When was the first successful bubble gum invented?
A. 1891
B. 1906
C. 1928
10. Susan Mont"Gum"ery Williams is the Guinness Record Holder Of the Worlds
Largest Gum Bubble. How big was it?
A. 19 inches
B. 23 Inches
C. 27 inches
World’s Largest Bubble
Blower Blows Triple Bubble
Bubblegum Basics
How do we make bubblegum?
Materials Needed:
Bubblegum Base
Corn Syrup
Powdered Sugar
Bubblegum Flavor
Steve Spangler
Bubblegum Science
What are the steps involved in making gum? List them below.
How does our bubblegum compare to the regular brands of bubblegum?
Sweet Bubbles
What will happen to the mass of your bubblegum as you chew it for 10 minutes? I
predict that the mass will: A. increase.
B. decrease.
C. stay the same.
Directions:
1 – Make a foil “boat” to hold your gum.
2 - Find the mass of 1 piece of bubblegum using the triple-beam balance. Write the
amount in the chart.
3 – Chew the gum for 5 minutes and then find the mass of the piece of bubblegum
using the triple-beam balance. Write the amount in the chart.
4 – Chew the gum for another 5 minutes (10 minutes total) and then find the mass of
the piece of bubblegum using the triple-beam balance. Write the amount in the chart.
Think About It!
How did the bubblegum’s mass change?
What caused the change in mass?
How does your results compare to someone else with a different brand?
How would the mass change if you chewed the gum for another 30 minutes?
Super Chompers
How fast can you chomp a piece of bubblegum? My prediction is _______
chomps per minute.
Directions:
1 – Use the piece of gum you chewed in experiment #1 since it already nicely
chewed.
2 – Use a timer and count the number of chomps you can do in 60 seconds.
For a "real" chomp, your jaws must open more than an inch. Record the
amount in the chart below.
3 – Repeat step 2 two more times and record your results in the chart.
Think About It!
Which was your fastest trial? ___________ Slowest trial? ____________
What caused the change in speed?
How would your speed change if you chomped for 60 seconds on each
trial?
How close were you to your guess?
Bubblegum Blowout
Which brand of bubblegum will make the best bubbles?
My guess is ______________________.
You will have 5 minutes to practice.
The competition period will run for 5
minutes. The person who can blow the
largest bubble in that time will be the champ!
Tips from the Pros
Stick to the smaller amounts of gum; more gum doesn’t mean more bubble. If you can blow
your bubble and you still have gum in your mouth, you need more practice, not more gum.
Remember, you are allowed only three pieces of gum when going for the world record.
All gum contains sugar and artificial flavoring which is great for taste, but bad for bubbles. Be
sure to chew your gum long enough to work out all of the sugar and artificial flavoring,
this will help to strengthen your bubble. Find the right consistency to where you can push your
tongue through the gum to make the pocket, but where you don’t push all the way through and
leave little gum to make a big bubble with.
If you want to blow the biggest bubbles possible, be careful and blow slowly. Use slow even
breaths, this gives your gum time to stretch and grow, but also keeps even pressure on the gum
to keep it from sagging. Don’t tighten your lips around the bubble like you just sucked on a
lemon, this will force you to blow harder and pop your bubble. Instead keep your mouth open
so you inflate the bubble through a larger hole.
Practice, practice, practice! Blowing championship bubbles will require not only practice but
a strong jaw, tongue, and diaphragm. Try different combinations of the tips above to find the
perfect conditions for blowing the biggest bubbles possible.