Materials
- m&m candies (4–6 different colors)
- Shallow white plate or dish (flat bottom works best)
- Warm water (enough to just cover candy bottoms)
- Timer or phone for video/picture
Instructions
- Arrange the m&ms. Place them around the outer edge of the plate, letters facing up, spaced evenly like a circle.
- Slowly pour warm water into the center until it just touches all candies. Don’t flood the plate.
- Within seconds, the colored coatings start to dissolve and form streaks moving toward the center.
- Watch as the colors spread until they meet, yet surprisingly, they don’t mix much where they touch.
- Take a photo or short video every 10–20 seconds. Optional: measure how long it takes colors to reach the middle.
Troubleshooting
- Colors not moving? Water may be too cold. Try warm (not hot) water.
- Colors mixing too fast? You poured too much water. Use just enough to touch the candies.
Optional extension:
- Test different water temperatures. Measure how fast the fronts reach the center.
What’s going on?
- The candy coating dissolves in water.
- The color and sugar molecules move from high concentration near the candy to lower concentration in the center. This is diffusion.
- Warmer water increases molecular motion, so diffusion happens faster.
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