Attention Visitors: The Lancaster Science Factory is in peak field trip season. Expect school groups every weekday from 10am - 1pm.

Lancaster Loves Science

Science is all around us! Post your photos using the hashtag #lancasterlovescience

Drink more water - it will help your brain work better! Our brain cells depend on proper hydration to function optimally. When you're thirsty, you have a hard time focusing your attention, remembering things, and doing mental math. So do something good for your brain: drink eight glasses of water a day!

The common housefly can carry and transmit more diseases than any other animal in the world. Just think about where they've been! Flies can carry typhoid, cholera, diarrhea, amoebic dysentery, tuberculosis, anthrax, gangrene, bubonic plague, leprosy, scarlet fever and yellow fever. Yikes!

Most do. Test it out with a tuner!

For something that looks lighter than air, they sure weigh a lot!

Think about it: clouds are made up of tiny water droplets spread over a big space. The density of these water droplets is less than the density of the surrounding dry air, which is why they float. It helps that all these little droplets get lift from updrafts of air.

The droplets don’t float forever, though. When the cloud’s water density increases and the droplets get bigger and heavier, the cloud eventually falls in the form of rain.

Curious about what's in dust? It's complicated!

According to dustologists, it can be made of skin flakes, hair, pet dander, bugs, food crumbs, mold spores, textile fibers, and anything organic that decays over time.

We also track in plenty of dirt, pollen, and airborne particles from the outdoors.

It all adds up to a unique dust mix in your home! Grab a microscope and check it out.

Good luck trying to fold a regular piece of paper more than 7 times. Under normal conditions, it's impossible!

If you fold the same piece of paper 7 times, it would be as thick as 128 sheets of paper. Every time you fold the paper, the area is halved and the thickness is doubled.

The 7 times rule doesn't hold up when you use special kinds of paper. High schooler Britney Gallivant holds the world record by folding a very long piece of toilet paper 12 times. Myth Busters did it with a parachute tissue the size of a football field!

Be realistic! The average person can't hold their breath for more than 30 seconds or so. Even someone in great shape is gasping for air at two minutes.

We don't recommend holding your breath for longer. Your brain and heart need a constant flow of oxygen to survive. We want you to live!

How was the 20 minute record achieved? Competitive breath-holders work hard to expand lung capacity with regular, intensive breathing exercises. They train inside pressure chambers and they use pure oxygen from a tank.

Did you know? Humans can hold their breath for twice as long underwater as they can on land with their mouth and nose closed. The land record stands at around ten minutes.

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