Phony Cola!

You may have heard the rumor that the recipe for Coke is such a great secret that only two people on earth know what it is in it, and that each of those people only knows half the formula. That's not true (http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/formula.asp). Scientists have analyzed Coke, and have a pretty good idea what's in it. In fact, you can easily make a "phony cola" with the following ingredients:

1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon bottled lime juice
1/2 cup club soda

Mix well, add ice, and take a sip! You'll notice that this concoction doesn't look much like the real thing. It's not the right color, and the cinnamon powder is floating on top. However, it will taste very much like a cola drink. What if you close your eyes, so that you can't see how it looks? Does that make it taste more like cola? You can try to change the recipe to see if you can make a more convincing drink. You could even set up a test panel with blindfolded taste-testers and see if they can tell your cola from the ones available at the store.

Bubble-licious

While most of us like to play with soap bubbles, we hardly notice all the other types of bubbles around us. What other kinds can you think of?

Maybe you're thinking of bubbles in carbonated drinks like soda. These bubbles are not filled with air, but rather, with a gas called carbon dioxide, whose formula is CO2. If you've ever tasted "flat" soda, after all the bubbles are gone, you know that the bubbles affect the flavor - they're not just there for the tingly feeling on your tongue!

Have you ever tried to make your own soda? You can buy club soda or seltzer water at the supermarket. These are basically just CO2 dissolved in water (club soda actually has a little bit of a salt in it). You can add fruit juice or a small amount of a flavor extract like lemon, orange, or vanilla. What flavors can you come up with?