
Cell Phone Signals and Water Temperature
Easy
Do cell phones give off enough energy to warm nearby water? You fill three test tubes with 10 ml of water and record the starting temperature. Then you place each tube next to a different cell phone's antenna and let the phone ring for two minutes.
After ringing, you measure the water temperature again. None of the three phones raise the temperature at all. The energy from a ringing cell phone is too small to produce a measurable change in water temperature over two minutes.
Hypothesis
The hypothesis is that cell phone radiation does not contain enough energy to increase the temperature of water in a test tube.
Science Concepts Learned
Electromagnetic Radiation
Electromagnetic radiation travels in waves through space, and different sources release different amounts of wave energy. You can measure this by filling three test tubes with 10 ml of water and recording the starting temperature before and after a phone rings nearby. None of the three phones raise the temperature at all over two minutes, confirming that this radiation carries too little energy to warm water.
Method & Materials
You will test three different cell phones from three different manufacturers, measure the temperature of the water before and after the cell phone is left ringing for two minutes, and record the results.
You will need an Ericsson cell phone, a Nokia cell phone, a Motorola cell phone, three test tubes, 30 ml of water, a measurement cylinder, three thermometers, and a stopwatch.
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See what’s includedResults
The experiment showed that the temperature of the water in the test tubes did not increase after the cell phone from the three manufacturers was left ringing for two minutes. This proves that the hypothesis is correct and that cell phone radiation does not contain enough energy to increase the temperature of water in a test tube.
Why do this project?
This science project is interesting because it tests a common belief about cell phone radiation and provides evidence to support or refute it.
Also Consider
Variations of this experiment include testing other cell phone models and brands, and testing to determine if the temperature increases during cell phone conversations (as opposed to simply ringing).
Full project details
Additional information and source material for this project are available below.Related videos
These videos explain the science behind this project and demonstrate key concepts used in the experiment.
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