VOL. 7, NO. 4
STIMULATING INTEREST IN CHEMISTRY
335
phthalein, etc. In the course of her talk she mentioned the interesting color change produced by having nitric acid accidentally spilled on her hair-which is red. The posters are brought before the audience one by one, and the particnlar subject of each is explained by the student who made it. An account of an inspection trip that has been made during the year is given by one of the students. The visit to the local water purification plant is always of general interest, but others are sometimes used. Other activities can be worked in, as the illustration of a paper by means of Keystone slides, the dramatization of an original play on chemistry, etc. The feature that arouses most general interest is the chemical spelling match. This is worked out in various ways. Last year we called it "Chemical Baseball." We held a preliminary match and the two winning students were entitled to select their respective teams. Eight innings were played beforehand a t intervals of several days. The score up to that time was posted on the blackboard and much interest was manifested as to which team would he victorious. It was a source of wonderment to the parents to hear their daughters declare that washing soda is NazC03.10Hz0,borax, Na2B4O7.10Hz0, and alum, K2S01.Alz(S04)3.24Hz0.As many as possible of the compounds named were those with which the audience was familiar. It was a hard fought contest and the victors were quite elated with their success. The last feature was "Chemical Fortune Telling." The visitors were allowed to draw apparently blank slips of paper. On these slips we had written amusing fortunes with cobaltous chloride, or "sympathetic ink." When these were heated over Bunsen burners, writing appeared as if by magic and de:ighted the owners with interesting prophecies. All in all, the exhibit and program are most effective in stimulating interest. Students who have not studied chemistry visit the laboratory and are quite impressed by the activities of the class. Teachers from other departments also enjoy looking over the work that is on display. The program is not burdensome to the teacher since only one or two items require extra preparation-the major portion consists simply of projects that have been worked out during the year. It is quite refresh'mg to see the enthusiasm of the youngsters, working with so much earnestness and taking such keen delight in the accomplishing of something worthwhile. Watermelon Seed Makes Useful Drug. An extract made from watermelon seeds and given the technical name of cucurbacitrin has proved its usefulness in relieving many cases of high blood pressure. Drs. T. I,. Althausen and William J. Ken of the University of California Medical School have reported. These scientists stated that their work canfirmed the results obtained with the watermelon seed extract by its discoverer, Dr. I. S. Barksdale, of Greenville. South Carolina.-Science Service
