Compact Science is an engaging new YouTube series from WNED PBS and the Buffalo Museum of Science that explores the wonders of science right in our own backyard. Host Sarajane Gomlak-Green investigates the geology of Niagara Falls, discovers the chemistry at work in sponge candy, learns how density plays a key role in lake-effect snow, and more. 

If you’re curious about the world around you, there’s a lot to explore and Compact Science will be your guide.

Geared towards children (grade K-6), their families, and anyone with a curiosity of the world around them, Compact Science episodes frame a scientific concept with a signature regional connection that celebrates the science and history of the Western New York and Southern Ontario region. Journey to Niagara Falls to explore geology, discover the chemistry at work in sponge candy, learn how density is the key to lake-effect snow, investigate the role of friction through the sport of curling, and more.  

Each episode concludes with a Compact Science Viewer Challenge, an experiment aligned with National Science Education Standards, that can be performed at home or in a classroom. Instructions will be available right here on our website. We invite you to share your videos and photos of your results and we'll add them to the website.

Compact Science is funded in part by The Joy Family Foundation and the New York State Department of Education. 

Sarajane is a lifelong Buffalo resident and is currently the Director of Museum Programs and Experiences at the Buffalo Museum of Science. She has a passion for understanding the world we all live in - and one way is through science! Equipped with a life-long enthusiasm for all things STEM, she digests and explains concepts in ways that everyone can understand. When not at the Museum, she is an aspiring polyglot, sporadically avid reader, and a mediocre Tetris player.

A total eclipse is one of the rarest and most spectacular events in nature.  For the first time since 1925, Western New York will experience a total solar eclipse – an amazing celestial event when the light of the sun is completely blocked out by the moon.  In this episode of Compact Science Sarajane explores the science of eclipses and unravels why the 2024 solar eclipse is such a big deal! 

The Path of Totality | Astronomy

Topic: Solar Eclipse, Orbits, Theory of General Relativity

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:

Big Sun, Small Moon

A tennis ball and a beach ball are different sizes. Can you make them appear to be the same size?

Materials

• 1 Beach Ball or basketball (measuring 12-20 inches in diameter)
• 1 tennis ball or golf ball

Directions

1. Hand the beach ball/larger ball to your family member. What happens to the apparent size of the beach ball if they walk away?
2. Now, hold up the tennis ball. Can you make the tennis ball and the beach ball appear to be the same size?
3. Count the steps it takes to “eclipse” or line up the smaller ball with the larger one? Do you notice how far apart you are from each other? The farther away an object is, the smaller it appears.

How does it work?

Solar eclipses are possible because the Sun and the Moon have the same apparent size in the sky. The Sun is actually much bigger than the Moon, but they look the same size because the Sun is much farther away. The Sun’s diameter is about 400 times wider than that of the Moon, but the Sun is also about 400 times farther away from Earth. In astronomy, scientists often refer to objects by their apparent size as seen from Earth. The Sun and Moon just happen to have a very similar apparent size!

Solar eclipses are possible because of this amazing coincidence. During a solar eclipse, the Moon comes very close to covering the entire Sun. Earth is the only place in the whole solar system where a total solar eclipse can be observed.

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 5

• Space Systems: Stars and the Solar System

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

• Space Systems

It’s the food most synonymous with Buffalo- chicken wings, in fact the rest of the world calls them Buffalo wings.  You may think wings dipped in blue cheese is a match made in heaven but it’s really a match based in science. In this episode of Compact Science we’ll explore the science of wing sauce from the Scoville Scale to capsaicin zero in on how our bodies react when we taste something spicy.

Some Like It Hot | Biology

Topic: Senses, Adaptation, Information Processing

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:  

Fool Your Senses?

Use water to test your sensory perception of temperature.

Materials

• Three bowls or containers large enough to put two hands in
• Warm water (NOTE - be careful not to make the water too hot!)
• Cold water, with a few ice cubes in it
• Room temperature water
• Towel to protect your work surface (optional)
• A clock to time yourself (optional)

Directions

1. Prepare a work surface that can get a little wet by either laying down a towel, or removing any objects that should not get wet.
2. Fill one bowl with warm water, one with iced water and one with room-temperature water.
3. Put one hand into the warm water and one in the iced water for one minute.
4. Take your hands out of the water and put them both into the room-temperature water. How does the water feel? Does it feel hot, warm, room-temperature, cold or very cold? If it is hard to say, pay attention to what you would say if you felt only with your right hand and what would you say if you felt only with your left hand? Do your hands agree or disagree about the temperature of the water?

How does it work?

Sensory adaptation is the brain's way of protecting itself from overload. 

When you submerge your hands in hot and cold water, the brain is getting the same message repeatedly. Thermoreceptors in one hand are sending the message, 'Cold, cold, cold,' while thermoreceptors in the other hand are sending the message, ‘Hot, hot, hot.’ And the brain is saying, 'I know, I know. Now leave me alone until you have something different to tell me.’

Your body adapted to heat on one side and cold on the other. The room temperature water is cooler than the hot water, and warmer than the cold water. So when you switch to the room temperature water, the receptors that got used to the hot water, send signals that sense it as cold; and the receptors that got used to the cold water sense the room temperature water as hot, even though they are both feeling water that is the same temperature.

Adaptation can also occur when we repeatedly smell something, like popcorn or when we look at something for a prolonged period. In all cases, the brain has adapted to the constant message it is receiving, and turns down its sensitivity to the particular smell or sight. 

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 4

• Structure, Function, and Information Processing

Middle School (Grades 6-8) 

• Structure, Function, and Information Processing

We explore the science of lake effect snow and see why Buffalo, NY is so often in its bullseye. Some may think it’s destiny that makes Buffalo one of the snowiest cities in the US, but it is really density.

There's No Business Like Snow Business | Meteorology

Topic: Lake Effect Snow, Density

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:  

Will It Float?

Try your hand at stacking liquids. Pour together different substances to create a colorful density column!

Materials

• Water
• Vegetable Oil
• Light Corn Syrup
• Dish Soap
• Rubbing alcohol
• Liquid food coloring
• 1 medium-sized clear glass (16 oz or more)
• ¼ cup measuring spoon
• 5 smaller cups (one per liquid)

Directions

1. Pour ¼ cup of each liquid into the 5 smaller cups, one liquid per cup
2. Add food coloring to the colorless liquids so that you have five different colors (note: the food coloring will not mix with the oil)
3. One at a time, add the liquids in the following order: soap, corn syrup, oil, water, rubbing alcohol

How does it work?

Density is the amount of stuffed that is packed together (density = mass/volume). Things with high density sink, while things that have a low density float! Warm air is less dense, so it floats – hot air rises. Cold air is denser, so it sinks. 

Different liquids can have different densities too. The denser materials at the bottom of your glass are packed with more “stuff” – more atoms and molecules.

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 3

• Weather and Climate

Middle School (Grades 6-8) 

• Weather and Climate

Curling is a thrilling sport filled with strategy, skill, sweeping, surprise and science!

Science Friction | Physics 

Topic: Curling & Friction, Inertia and Momentum

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:  

Make a Mini Hovercraft

Get first-hand experience on how friction affects motion!

Materials

• A CD or DVD disc (use one what you’re not using anymore!)
• A pop-top cap from a dish soap or water bottle
• Duct tape
• Balloon

Directions

1. Position the pop-top cap over the center hole of the CD
2. Secure it in place with duct tape and make sure it is air-tight
3. Push the cap down to close it
4. Blow up the balloon and twist the end so the air can’t escape
5. Stretch the mouth of the balloon over the pop-top cap
6. Place the hovercraft on a flat surface (floors and tables work great!)
7. Pull open the pop-top cap to release the air
8. Repeat steps 3-7 to try it again!
9. For a challenge, test your hovercraft on different surfaces!

How does it work?

Friction occurs when two objects are touching. The air coming out of the balloon creates an area of low friction by creating a layer between the surface and the CD, which allows the hovercraft to glide. When the balloon fully deflates and the air isn’t flowing, the CD will be directly touching the table and will not move as easily.

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 3

• Forces and Interactions

Grade 4

• Energy

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

• Forces and Interactions
• Energy

Sponge candy, a delicate, yet crunchy toffee confection covered in chocolate, is perhaps the sweetest way to explore chemistry.

Sponge Candy Chemistry | Chemistry 

Topic: Sponge Candy, Chemistry of Baking Soda

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:Fizzy Fun!

Materials

• Balloon
• Funnel
• ¼ cup vinegar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• Empty plastic bottle (1L to 2L)

Directions

1. Use the funnel to pour the baking soda into an empty balloon. Rinse and dry the funnel.
2. Use the funnel to pour vinegar into the bottle
3. Stretch of the mouth of the balloon around the bottle top
4. Lift the balloon and gently shake the baking soda into the bottle.
5. Watch what happens!

How does it work?

Instead of adding heat to change the baking soda, we added another chemical! When you combine the baking soda with the vinegar, an acid-base chemical reaction takes place, creating carbon dioxide gas! This carbon dioxide is what made the balloon inflate, and it’s what makes forms the bubbles in sponge candy. 

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 5

• Structure and Properties of Matter

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

• Structure and Properties of Matter
• Chemical Reactions

Niagara Falls is one of the most recognizable waterfalls in the world and it also happens to be in our backyard.  In this episode we explore the power of water and its erosive power that shaped this geological wonder.

The Fury of the Falls  | Geology  

Topic: Water & Erosion, the Formation of Niagara Falls

Viewer Challenge/At-Home Version:  Candy Erosion

Use water in different ways to see how fast your candy disappears.

Materials

• Two pieces of [fun sized] candy, can be hard candy, chewy candy, or chocolate
• Two see-through jars with lids
• Water
• Clock

Directions

1. Fill each jar half full of water so that candy will be completely submerged
2. Put one candy in each jar, close the lids tightly, and label jars A and B
3. Let jar A stand, untouched for the duration of the experiment
4. Shake jar B for 20 seconds once every hour
5. What do you notice about the candies in the water after 1 day? 2 days? 3 days?  And what does that tell us about the force of water?

How does it work?

Water can erode on its own through the process of dissolution, like in jar A. With added force, or shaking, like in jar B, we can speed up the rate of erosion. This is one of the reasons why areas that have fast water movement, like Niagara Falls, experience a faster rate of erosion than other places where water is standing still, like in a pond.

New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards

The content in these videos and accompanying activities touch upon various concepts from the New York State Science Learning Standards - Grades 3-5 and Middle School (Grades 6-8).

Grade 4

• Earth’s Systems: Processes that Shape the Earth

Grade 5

• Earth’s Systems

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

• History of Earth
• Earth's System

Compact Science is funded in part by The Joy Family Foundation and the New York State Department of Education.