Scientific magic tricks are fun and exciting for everyone involved. They’re good to have up your sleeve when you want to impress your family and friends — especially kids with a budding interest in science. Try these four tricks next time you want to put on a show.
Vanishing Water
Classic magic tricks usually involve making something or someone vanish into thin air. With this easy science magic trick, you can amaze your friends by making water seem to disappear from inside a cup.
How It Works
The trick doesn’t require special water or a custom-built cup. The secret is a common compound called sodium polyacrylate. Here is how you can use it to make water vanish:
- Pour approximately 1 tablespoon of sodium polyacrylate into the cup — make sure no one is looking!
- Pour water into the cup, filling it about one-quarter full.
- Keep the audience in suspense while the reaction occurs. Sodium polyacrylate is a moisture absorbent that becomes a solid gel when mixed with water.
- Flip the cup over and amaze your friends when the gel stays in place.
Foaming Rainbow
What if you could create an erupting rainbow on your own, no rain required? With this fun and easy foaming rainbow trick, you can.
How It Works
The foaming in the trick occurs due to the chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar. The mixture foams up with carbon dioxide gas. Here is how to create a colorful rainbow using science:
- Line up paper cups in a row on a baking tray for easy cleanup.
- Fill your paper cups with baking soda.
- Add food coloring that matches each rainbow color and mix well.
- Add vinegar to each cup slowly and watch the foaming rainbow erupt.
Floating Metal
Take any piece of metal you can find and dip it in a glass of water — it will sink. The floating metal trick involves making a metal paper clip float instead.
How It Works
It’s not magic that stops the paper clip from sinking, but the water’s surface tension. Water molecules on the surface tend to attract each other. Here’s how to ensure the paper clip floats on water:
- Get two paper clips and a glass of water.
- Take the first paper clip and bend it in the middle at 90 degrees.
- Use the paper clip as a handle to place the second one on the water’s surface gently.
- Once you’ve used the first paper clip to lay the second one, you can slowly remove it without letting the clip fall.
- Step back and show off the floating metal paper clip!
Disappearing Coin
You can never have too many disappearing object tricks up your sleeve. Use this science magic trick to make it look like a coin has vanished under a glass of water.
How It Works
The scientific secret of this trick is light refraction. Light travels straight and bounces from objects into our eyes, allowing us to see the objects. When you add water to the glass, the light from the coins bends and doesn’t make it to our eyes. Here’s how to make a coin disappear:
- Get a jar or glass, a coin, and water.
- Place the glass on top of the coin.
- Ask your friend if they see the coin, and they’ll likely say yes.
- Pour water into the glass and ask again. They won’t see the coin anymore!
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