Creating Cells with Household Materials: Ideas?

[jldibble]

I'm hoping to make (or model) these little cells on my own, but I'm not entirely sure how it can be done with household materials.

I've seen a few videos of it being done but there's not much on how to create them.

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[jedishrfu]

Here's an article on Benard Cell convection that may give you some ideas:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benard_cells

When you say model them, are you thinking of a computer modeling exercise or a physical recreation of the convection ala lab experiment?

http://www.eoht.info/page/Bénard+cells

and a simulation of the convection:

http://energy.concord.org/energy2d/bernard-cells.html

http://146.230.128.54/undphil/collier/papers/BC-ECHOIV.pdf

 

[jldibble]

I'm attempting a physical recreation as a lab experiment.

 

[boneh3ad]

You can see them just by boiling water on your stove with a number of additives. The one I always hear about is the old-fashioned hot chocolate that you make on the stove. As it boils you can see the Rayleigh-Bénard cells.

 

[PJC01]

for your interest in creating cells with household materials! It is definitely possible to create model cells using items found in your home. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

1. Using Play-Doh or clay: You can use different colors of Play-Doh or clay to represent the different parts of a cell. For example, you can use green Play-Doh for the chloroplasts, red for the mitochondria, and blue for the nucleus. You can also add small objects, such as beads or beans, to represent the organelles.

2. Using food items: Certain foods can also be used to model different parts of a cell. For instance, you can use a grape or a cherry tomato as the nucleus, green beans as the chloroplasts, and a marshmallow as the cytoplasm. Get creative and see what other food items you can use!

3. Using recycled materials: Look around your home for items that can be repurposed as organelles. For example, a plastic egg carton can be cut and painted to represent a Golgi apparatus, and a plastic bag can be used as the cell membrane.

4. Using paper mache: You can create a 3D model of a cell using paper mache. Simply mix flour and water to create a paste, and use strips of newspaper or tissue paper to mold the different parts of the cell. Once it dries, you can paint it to add more detail.

Remember, the key is to be creative and use materials that you have available. You can also do some research to get a better understanding of the different parts of a cell and how they function, which can help guide your model-making process. Good luck!