1. Thermal Energy
EQ: How does heat energy impact the way molecules move in a given substance?

2. Investigating the Random Nature of Thermal Energy: Procedure
Overview: In this investigation you will observe how food coloring moves through three beakers, each having a different thermal energy.
Place a single cup of food coloring in each beaker (one hot water, one cold water, and one room temperature)
Place a sheet of white paper behind the beakers and look through the sides. Record your observations in your journal at 1 minute, 5 minutes, and 10 minutes.

3. Pre-Lab Questions
What will happen if a small metal ball is dropped into a beaker of water? Why?
What will happen if a drop of liquid food coloring is dropped into a beaker of water? Why?
Will the temperature of the water affect either result? In what way?

4. Experiment Results: Draw your observations in your journal

5. Reflection Questions
What happened to the color drop as it fell through the water?
Did the temperature of the water have any effect on the results? If so, what effect?
Predict what is likely to happen to the color after an hour. Explain your reasoning.
How can your observations be used to explain the particle nature of matter?
What can you conclude from this investigation?

6. Conclusion We can conclude that:
The molecules in objects at higher temperature have larger random KE’s.
The molecules in objects at lower temperatures have smaller random KE’s.

7. Discussion Questions
Do objects at higher temperature always have more thermal energy than objects at lower temperatures?
Can you think of or remember other factors that help determine the thermal energy of an object.