Larsen Middle School chills
'Mr. Freeze' delivers lesson in science of cryogenics
ELGIN -- A chill came over Larsen Middle School last week when Jerry Zimmerman, "Mr. Freeze," gave a cryogenic demonstration.
Seventh- and eighth-grade science students at Larsen piled into the auditorium Thursday afternoon to watch Zimmerman play with liquid nitrogen.
Zimmerman, who works at Fermilab in Batavia, showed students the freezing tricks behind liquid nitrogen.
He pointed out that liquid nitrogen is negative 320 degrees Fahrenheit, making it so cold "it could make a snowman shiver" and "it thinks Chicago is warm."
In reality, its chill has a "powerful effect on many things," he said.
He showed that a 45-gallon garbage bag can hold one cup of liquid nitrogen, which turns into 720 cups of gas when put inside a closed bag.
He placed a variety of items into liquid nitrogen to show the different effects it has on them.
When he dipped a marshmellow into it, he explained to students that the chewy treat is actually a good insulator. That means it won't transfer cold temperatures fast enough to give a person a burn, so you can eat the marshmellow after it's been in liquid nitrogen.
When he dunked a rubber glove in the liquid, it hardened and became glass-like. After this demonstration, Dontrell Gaddy, a seventh grader at Larsen, asked Zimmerman a question.
"If I gave you my shoe, would it crack in half?"
Zimmerman responded, "Yes, it would."
Gaddy then replied, "Good, because I've been trying to get my mom to get me new shoes."
Zimmerman didn't go for it but did continue to show the students more tricks and tell them more facts about liquid nitrogen.
When he dipped an aluminum can into liquid nitrogen, it actually became a stronger metal. But when he put a helium-filled balloon in it, the balloon deflated, and then inflated gradually when it was taken out.
He explained to students that if you stuck your hand inside liquid nitrogen, your hand would freeze solid in five minutes and crack.
He also informed students of the phenomena behind the fog seen at sports events and stage plays -- liquid nitrogen. He said it's the safest way to produce the fog.
On top of its cold temperature, liquid nitrogen is a very cheap product, Zimmerman said. It costs only $1 per gallon. Since it's cheap, he said, some McDonald's freezes hamburgers with liquid nitrogen.
All in all, students appeared to be impressed with the presentation.
Jesse James Torres, a seventh grader at Larsen, said, "I like it because he's a scientist; it's cool."
His classmate, Rudy Alonzo, agreed and added, "I like explosions."
For more information about Zimmerman and his presentation, you can e-mail him at jerryz@fnal.gov or visit his Web site mrfreezeman.webs.com.
