An Experiment in Thinking Scientifically
Using Pennies and Good Sense
Dennis J. Sardella
Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 021 67
- -. once observed that discovery is
Albert Szent-Gvormil
seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no
one else has thought. Anvone who has done research has
had this experience, and bne can make a strong case that
an introductory-level science course that does not commu-
nicate this idea (and preferably the experience of discovery
itself, with its consequent exhilaration) has missed an es-
sential point about the nature of science as a creative en-
terprisi Several recent articles have discussed the intro-
duction into the instructional organic chemistry laboratory
of experiments that incorporate the element of surprise ( I -
3).Freshman chemistry laboratory lends itself less easily
to experiences of this type because, particularly in the
earlv stages of the course, students do not usually know
enoigh chemistry to construct plausible and testable
hvu~theses.~ Experiments done early in the semester, fo-
" A
cusing as they often do on teaching basic laboratory ma-
ni~ulations.can often end up unintentionally making the
opposite with the resilt that studentLbegin toper-
ceive chemistry as mechanical and unexciting.
Density determinations are typical examples of such an
experiment. After determining the densities of one or more
known samples, students determine the density of an un-
known s a m & ~ f t e n the emphasis seems to be more on
obtaining the "correct" answer, and less on what can be
done wi& that answer. Such experiments are unlikely to
be either oarticularlv interestina - to students, or inwllectu-
ally-stimkating. -
We use a s i m ~ l emodification of the traditional density
tb
determination introduce students to the methodology df
scientific research, as well as basic experimental tech-
nique. Students investigate the densities of a collection of
pennies3and are told that the goal of this experiment is to
introduce them to observation, data acquisition using
basic laboratory techniques (i.e., accurate measurement of
volume and mass), mathematical data analysis, graphical
representation of data, interpretation of results, construc-
tion of hypotheses based on their interpretation of the
data, and the design of experimental tests of their hypoth-
eses. However, the experiment additionally incorporates
h he Hungarian-born biochemist who was awarded the 1937
Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology for his discovery of vitamin
c.
2An inquiry-based approach to freshman chemistry laboratory de-
veloped at Holy Cross College and described recently in this Journal
(4) and in passing elsewhere (5),contains a brief outline of a similar
ex eriment involving pennies.
?A much less elaborate experiment involving determination of the
average masses of small groups of pre- and post-1983 pennies has
been described by Roberts (6).
4The changed composition of pennies has been noted previously
,=
('1.
5 ~reasonable
~ o nypotheses are (a)pennles are st II made of cop
per but are smaller In slze, or (0, pennles are tne same s.ze b ~are
t W. H. Freeman: New Yor*,1987, p 19.
no onger made of copper.
the element of surprise since pennies, appearances to the
contrary notwithstanding, consist of two subpopulations:
copper pennies (pre-1981) and copper-clad zinc pennies
(posb1983)?
A Three-Stage Experiment
The experimental writeup given to the students prior to
the laboratory period explains only the first stage of the
experiment and contains explicit directions of exactly what
they are expected to do, and how they are to do it. Student
teams (threelteam) are given a sample of 40 assorted pen-
nies. They determine the average density of the sample,
then weigh the pennies individually, record their masses
and years of minting and construct a histogram. They are
then asked to propose hypotheses to explain their observa-
tions5 and suggest simple ways to test their hypotheses
using only the techniques they employed in Phase I, prior
to receiving directions (intentionally brief) to Phase 11.
They then test their hypotheses by separating the pennies
into two groups by mass and determining the average vol-
umes of the two groups.
On completing Phase 11, they frame additional hypothe-
ses and proposc an experimental test, then are given the
directions .nlno hnen for Phase 111. In Phase 111, they use
the densitiea for the twoeroups
- . to identil'y the metalfifrom
which the pennies are made. Each team then submits a
final report. Members of a team all receive the same grade
for the experiment.
Student reaction to the experiment has been uniformly
.~~~~
oositive., insofar as it adds an element of detective work to
what might otherwise be a rather dry procedure. On the
methodoloeical level. it allows students to ex~eriencefirst-
hand, a n d i t an elementary level, the synbibtic interplay
among observation, inference and experimental design.
The Experiment Illustrates Two Points
First, the experiment illustrates that science, like life,
consists of an unending series of observations that spawn
questions and can be tested by experiments, the results of
which ~ r o m ustill
t other auestions. This dialectic is the sci-
entificmethod. Second, it' shows that surface appearances
often can be misleading, concealing an intriguing diversity
that waits to be discovered by those who are not content
merelv to see (~assivelv),but who take the trouble to look
(actively) beyond surf& appearances, and to think criti-
callv about what they observe. Only when we are actively
engaged with reality does it speak to us. Copies of the ex-
periment are available upon request.
Literature Cited
1.Todd, D.; Pickeling, M. J. Chem Edue. 1988,65,11OO.
2. Picketing, M. J. Chem Educ 1890.67.436.
3. Pieketing,M. J . ChemEduc 1990,67. 524.
4. Ricci,R. W;Ditzler, M.A.J.Cham.Edlre.1931,68,229.
5. Herrick. R. S. J. Coll. Sei. X x h 1891,20,294.
6. &bees, J. L.; Hellenberg, J. L.: Postma, J. M. Ooneml Chemistry in thelobomtory;
7.MiUer.J. M. JChem. Educ 1881,60,142.
Volume 69 Number 11 November 1992 933