UV Bead Lab Names: James McCulloch, Erin McCarthy, and Stella

Wong Per: 7

Problem/Background
U.V. stands for ultraviolet, and they are rays that come from the
sun. They are invisible and we cannot see them. The ozone layer
protects the earth from most U.V. radiation, but however, the U.V.
radiation that gets through the ozone can provide us with harmful and
sometimes beneficial results.
How much U.V. radiation we get from the sun depends on the
intensity of the sun. The intensity of the sun depends on the time of
the day. The sunlight exposure is highest during the summer between
10:00 am and 4:00p.m. Sunrise and sunset is when people get less
exposure of U.V. radiation.
The more intense the sun is, the more you are exposed to UV
radiation. Overexposure of U.V. radiation could possibly result in skin
cancer and acceleration of skin aging. The benefits of U.V. radiation are
that it produces vitamin D and it is used to treat diseases such as
rickets and jaundice. In as little as 15 minutes, U.V. radiation can
damage unprotected skin. Although it can take up to as long as 12
hours to see the full effect of U.V. radiation on your skin.
The government recommends applying 1 ounce of sunscreen 30
minutes before going outside for it to produce the desired effect. After
swimming or excessive sweating, make sure to reapply every two
hours. It is also important to make sure to wear sunscreen, a hat,
sunglasses and clothing with more coverage to protect yourself from
U.V. radiation.
To test the intensity of U.V. radiation, our group performed an
experiment on U.V. beads. U.V. beads are beads that will change color
when exposed to U.V. rays. We placed the beads in 4 different

locations, each 30 seconds and recorded the scale number that the
colors of the beads matched to.

Question: Does the intensity of U.V. radiation vary with different

locations?
Hypothesis: I think that the intensity of U.V. radiation will vary with
different locations.
Materials: UV beads, timer
Procedures:
1. The variable we are controlling (independent variable) is the
amount of light and having multiple beads.
2. Take the beads to direct sunlight.
3. Time for 30 seconds and record what scale number the color of
the beads match to.
4. Let the beads return to its normal color. (white/pale)
5. Place the beads under a tree where there is little sunlight. To
avoid receiving light from other directions, make sure to have
someone block the light (with their body, book etc.).
6. Time for 30 seconds and record what scale number the color of
the beads match to.
7. Let the beads return to the normal color again.
8. Place the beads in a room by the window where sunlight is going
through.
9. Time for 30 seconds and record what scale number the color of
the beads match to.
10.
Place the beads in shade where there is no light.
11.
Time for 30 seconds and record what scale number the
color of the beads match to.

Data:
Location

Direct sunlight

Under a tree

By the window

Shade

Scale number

1.5

Graph:

Intensity of UV Radiation scale #)

7
6
5

Intensity of UV
Radiation (scale #)

4
3
2
1
0
Direct Sunlight Shade Under a tree Window

In this lab, we tested the question when UV beads were put into
different locations if they would attract the same amount of UV rays.
My hypothesis was that when the UV beads were placed into different
locations that the amount of rays that they would attract would all be
different. Our data showed that when put in complete shade; the
amount of rays was a number four on the scale. On the other hand,
when the petri dish was placed in direct sunlight, it was a number six
on the scale, as high as it can go. When my group put the beads
underneath a tree, which was somewhat shady, the scale went up to a
five, and when we came back inside and put it in direct sunlight behind
a window, the UV beads only got up to a 1.5 on the scale. All of this
different data supports my hypothesis because I predicted that there
was going to be a range of numbers when put in different places.
When we did this experiment, I thought that UV rays couldnt
affect you if you were in the shade or away from the sun, but it turns
out that you can never really get away from the sun. On Kaisers
website, it states that to help keep your skin safe and protected, you
should seek shade. Shade is very helpful and does in fact keep your

skin safe, it doesnt block out all UV rays. Like my groups experiment
showed, even if you are in complete shade, there was still a four out of
six on the scale of UV rays.
In this lab, there were a few factors that limited the precision of
the experiment. For example, the petri dishes that we put the beads in
were made out of plastic. That means that the lids of the petri dishes
could have been magnifying the UV rays, which would defeat the whole
purpose of the experiment. Also, there was a limited amount of
environments that we could put our experiment in.
In this experiment, I learned that whenever you are outside, even
if you think you are in complete shade, it is still important to protect
yourself from the sun. You can wear hats, sunglasses, clothes that
cover more of your body, and probably most importantly, always wear
sunscreen.

Bibliography
https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/health/care/!
ut/p/a0/FYrBDoJADES_xYNHrIlKiDe_gRjdvZBaKrsBuptSMPy9kMxh3rwBD2_wgkvs0GISHDZ2lMRY7B4YBwsFC600pMxtRHiBB5
8VuxHBSSoIKfC-2ZoZXP_Ze5-bKSQ1mq1R_rIq6-byKWl3PE-zTKTMsl_DL7bgbCnLWzVlJqhZmmcNeRyry5br43D4A2_oczs!/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_cancer
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultraviolet