Education:Science Projects: The Great Porcupine Race

Well, porcupines are not great racers. They would never be able to outrun a cheetah, nor could they beat the peregrine falcon in a dive. But they don't have to! They have got their own amazing adaptations—quills. Quills are the most amazing "hairstyle" of them all. The porcupine uses these quills to protect itself from predators. If I want quills, I have to use a lot of hair gel!

What you need

   • A raw potato
   • Straws
   • An adult

A practice race

Before you challenge your friends to the porcupine race, you need to practice the following:

1. Take a straw and try to jab the potato with the straw. It is not easy—the straw will bend or break.
2. Now hold the potato on one end. DO NOT HOLD IT WITH YOUR HAND UNDERNEATH THE POTATO.
3. Cover one end of the straw with your finger and jab the other end of the straw through the potato. Viola!!! The straw goes right through. Like a knife gliding through butter. (Don't use a cooked potato. That would be too easy!)

The real race

You are now ready for the challenge.
1. Ask a friend to join you in the Porcupine Race.
2. Tell your friend that the one who gets the most straws through the potato wins.
3. Explain that you are building a porcupine out of straws and the potato.
4. Tell your friend to use only one straw at a time.
5. In no time flat, you can have plenty of straws through your potato, because you know the "secret." When you are done, go for a walk, do your homework, watch a TV show, have a snack, then come back to visit your friend. He or she will still be busy trying to jab the potato with the first straw!

How it works

When you cover one end of a straw, it traps the air in the straw. The flimsy straw now becomes very, very, very, very, strong. That is why you must hold the potato at one of its ends, not underneath it. I want a pierced potato BUT I don't want a pierced palm!

Catch Dr. Zoolittle in an entertaining show in the San Diego Zoo's Children's Zoo daily during the summer and every weekend and school holiday.

More

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Animal Bytes: Porcupine