Microwave Popcorn

Microwave Popcorn

Problem Statement:

If you are a popcorn lover, like myself, un-popped popcorn kernels are a disappointment. So I wanted to know which type of Act II brand popcorn will yield the least amount of un-popped popcorn kernels.

Relevance:

This experiment is relevant to the scientific world because in order for popcorn to pop in the microwave, it must be heated by the radio waves in the microwave. Convention ovens heat food through conduction to cook food from the outside, then the inside. "Microwaves work by heating the inner core of a food first. Since the inside of the popcorn kernel contains water, when it is heated by the microwave, the water particles begin to move around causing the inside of the kernel to expand. This expansion is the source of the "pop" of the popcorn. As the water inside of the kernel heats up, it builds up a great deal of pressure until it basically explodes. When it explodes you have popcorn. If you've ever noticed that when you popped popcorn there were kernels that were left un-popped, that is because those kernels did not have enough water to successfully pop" (Planet, n.a.).

Related Experiment #1:

Sean Boyd conducted a science experiment comparing the different brands of Popcorn popped in the microwave. He wanted to know which brand of popcorn popped the least amount of un-popped kernels. He used 3 bags of each brand of popcorn: Aldi brand, Act II, Orville Redenbacher, Jolly time, and Pop Secret.

He then popped each bag of popcorn for 2 minutes and 15 seconds, which he says is the recommended time to pop popcorn. He then recorded the amount of un-popped kernels in a table, repeating the steps 3 times for each brand. The types of popcorn used were all butter flavored and he averaged the results. He concluded the best brand of popcorn that yielded the least amount of un-popped kernels was Act II with 32 un-popped kernels, then Jolly Time with 33 un-popped kernels (Boyd, 2006).

Related Experiment #2:

A group of college students did a similar experiment as Boyd, but used Orville Redenbacher, Pop Secret, Cousin Willie's, and an off brand of popcorn. They choose the flavors of light, regular, and butter for each brand, for a total of twelve different types of popcorn to compare.

They popped each bag for three minutes and fifteen seconds. Then they counted the number of popped kernels and the number of un-popped kernels to get a ratio. The results showed Orville Redenbacher averaged the highest number of popped kernels at 95% and Orville Redenbacher's Light popcorn averaged 96.3% popped kernels (Delap, Galli, Saum, & Skinner, 2003).

Experimental Design Steps:

1. Purchased 24 bags, each package came with 6 -2.75 oz bags of Act II brand popcorn of 4 different flavors (Kettle Corn, Movie Theatre, Butter Lovers, and Butter). Use three bags of each flavor.

2. Then prepared a data table with two top columns: number of un-popped kernels, and average number of un-popped kernels. The rows from top to bottom are kettle corn, movie theater butter, butter lovers, then butter.

3. Line the boxes up on the counter as they are in the table.

4. Pop the bags of popcorn in the microwave in order with kettle corn first, movie theater butter second, butter lovers third, and butter fourth. Pop for 2 minutes and 30 seconds as recommended by the manufacturer. Make sure to take off plastic wrapping and place face down in the microwave.

5. Let popcorn stand for 30 seconds then open and pour in a bowl.

6. Let microwave sit for two minutes.

7. Take the popped corn out of the bowl. Put it in another bowl to eat or in the trash/compost.

8. Count the number of un-popped kernels and record on data sheet.

9. Repeat steps 4-8 two more times for each flavor.

10. Add the number of un-popped kernels in each row, divide by three to calculate the average number of un-popped kernels for each flavor.

Reasoning:

I chose this experimental design because the 6 packaged Act II flavors all have the same weight of 2.75 oz for each individual package. I originally wanted to use different brands of popcorn, but it was impossible to purchase four brands that weighed the same. With each flavor weighing the same, I can assume there are the same amounts of kernels in each package. Of the similar experiments I have researched, I think the first one by Mr.