Millet Water Experiment
Effect of all-natural bath and body wash on millet seed growth.
This experiment was conducted to determine what effect a household chemical would have on the growth of a plant. Everyday multitudes of chemicals are washed down the drains inside of our homes; many of these same chemicals are then being introduced into the environment through our water sources, such as rivers. This experiment will test the effect of all-natural bath and shower gel would have on the growth cycle of millet seeds. The all-natural bath and shower gel is reported to be chemical free or environmentally friendly product, but it could just be an example of greenwashing and actually doing just as much harm to the environment when it is washed down the drain. Bath and shower …show more content…
gels are categorized as “pharmaceutical personal care products (PPCPs), which raise cause for concern when washed down the drains because sewage systems are not equipped to remove PCPPs from municipal treatment facilities (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2010.)”
Upon researching the chemical composition of this all-natural bath and shower gel, I found that Sodium Laureth Sulfate is a found in almost all personal care products and during manufacturing, it can be contaminated by cancer causing byproducts (Mercola 2015.) Another chemical found in the ingredients was Tetrasodium EDTA and it is also reported to be produced by known carcinogens, formaldehyde and sodium cyanide (bubble & bee 2015.) This experiment will test the hypothesis that all-natural products are equally harmful to the environment when introduced to germinating millet seeds at varying concentrations of 10%, 5% and 2.5% solutions.
The purpose of this experiment is to see how the seedlings react in order to determine possible effects of this “chemical free” product on the …show more content…
environment.
The month of February in the DC area is typically one of the coldest months of the year for the area. Initially, there was concern that there would not be enough warmth in the house to ensure the germination of the millet seeds. In an effort to compensate for this concern, the millet seeds were placed on a moist paper towel within a cardboard box near a heating a vent. Within approximately two days, the seeds had begun to sprout and on the third day were ready for the next step in the process. On the third day, the bath and body wash solution was introduced into the experiment. Following the introduction of the manipulated variable, the seeds were still fully alive and green; they were placed back in the room near the heating vent and indirect light. As the days progressed, more of the seeds began to die and some were showing signs of molding and began turning brown. Few of the seeds in the 10% solution and the 2.5% solution maintained their green sprouts and showed minimal signs of turning brown.
This experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that all-natural products are equally harmful to the environment when introduced to germinating millet seeds at varying concentrations of 10%, 5% and 2.5% solutions.
The purpose of this experiment was to see how the seedlings react in order to determine possible effects of this “chemical free” product on the environment. Upon completion of the experiment it was determined that the pollutants did not have a detrimental effect on the millet seeds. The findings indicated that control group and the 5% group showed signs of the most decay within the petri dishes. Both of the millet seed groups, which showed the most decay were the two closest to the heater and the window; this indicates a variable that should have considered this prior to the start of the experiment such as the warmth of the room where the seeds were located and the amount of indirect sunlight
available.
In conclusion, it is assessed that because the control group and 5% group showed signs of increased mortality it indicates that there was an unaccounted for variable which affected the health of the seeds more so than the introduction of the solution. If time would have permitted, the experiment should have been run again changing variables like proximity to a heat source such as sunlight or indoor heating (during the winter.) The final results of this experiment are inconclusive, but there are still lessons to be learned for the betterment of the environment. According to the Organic Consumers Association, “when gauging ecological claims, look for specifics for example, "biodegradable in 3 to 5 days" holds a lot more meaning than "biodegradable," as most substances will eventually break down if given enough time and the right ecological conditions (Organic Consumers Association 2015.)”
References Cited
Mercola, Joseph. 2015. Dr. Mercola Healthy Skin [Internet]. Available from: http://bathcare.mercola.com/. Accessed 01/21/2015.
Mercola, Joseph. 2015. About Dr. Mercola [Internet]. Available from http://www.mercola.com/forms/background.htm. Accessed 02/14/2015.
Anonymous. 2015. bubble & bee, Organic bath and body [Internet].Available from: http://bubbleandbee.com/top-five-chemicals-to-avoid/. Accessed 01/21/2015.
Organic Consumers Association. 2015. How Toxic Are Your Household Cleaning Supplies? [Internet]. Available from: https://www.organicconsumers.org/news/how-toxic-are-your-household-cleaning-supplies. Accessed 02/22/2015.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2010. Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products (PPCP’s) [Internet].Available from: http://www.epa.gov/ppcp/faq.html. Accessed 02/22/2015.
This experiment was conducted to determine what effect a household chemical would have on the growth of a plant. Everyday multitudes of chemicals are washed down the drains inside of our homes; many of these same chemicals are then being introduced into the environment through our water sources, such as rivers. This experiment will test the effect of all-natural bath and shower gel would have on the growth cycle of millet seeds. The all-natural bath and shower gel is reported to be chemical free or environmentally friendly product, but it could just be an example of greenwashing and actually doing just as much harm to the environment when it is washed down the drain. Bath and shower …show more content…
gels are categorized as “pharmaceutical personal care products (PPCPs), which raise cause for concern when washed down the drains because sewage systems are not equipped to remove PCPPs from municipal treatment facilities (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2010.)”
Upon researching the chemical composition of this all-natural bath and shower gel, I found that Sodium Laureth Sulfate is a found in almost all personal care products and during manufacturing, it can be contaminated by cancer causing byproducts (Mercola 2015.) Another chemical found in the ingredients was Tetrasodium EDTA and it is also reported to be produced by known carcinogens, formaldehyde and sodium cyanide (bubble & bee 2015.) This experiment will test the hypothesis that all-natural products are equally harmful to the environment when introduced to germinating millet seeds at varying concentrations of 10%, 5% and 2.5% solutions.
The purpose of this experiment is to see how the seedlings react in order to determine possible effects of this “chemical free” product on the …show more content…
environment.
The month of February in the DC area is typically one of the coldest months of the year for the area. Initially, there was concern that there would not be enough warmth in the house to ensure the germination of the millet seeds. In an effort to compensate for this concern, the millet seeds were placed on a moist paper towel within a cardboard box near a heating a vent. Within approximately two days, the seeds had begun to sprout and on the third day were ready for the next step in the process. On the third day, the bath and body wash solution was introduced into the experiment. Following the introduction of the manipulated variable, the seeds were still fully alive and green; they were placed back in the room near the heating vent and indirect light. As the days progressed, more of the seeds began to die and some were showing signs of molding and began turning brown. Few of the seeds in the 10% solution and the 2.5% solution maintained their green sprouts and showed minimal signs of turning brown.
This experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that all-natural products are equally harmful to the environment when introduced to germinating millet seeds at varying concentrations of 10%, 5% and 2.5% solutions.
The purpose of this experiment was to see how the seedlings react in order to determine possible effects of this “chemical free” product on the environment. Upon completion of the experiment it was determined that the pollutants did not have a detrimental effect on the millet seeds. The findings indicated that control group and the 5% group showed signs of the most decay within the petri dishes. Both of the millet seed groups, which showed the most decay were the two closest to the heater and the window; this indicates a variable that should have considered this prior to the start of the experiment such as the warmth of the room where the seeds were located and the amount of indirect sunlight
available.
In conclusion, it is assessed that because the control group and 5% group showed signs of increased mortality it indicates that there was an unaccounted for variable which affected the health of the seeds more so than the introduction of the solution. If time would have permitted, the experiment should have been run again changing variables like proximity to a heat source such as sunlight or indoor heating (during the winter.) The final results of this experiment are inconclusive, but there are still lessons to be learned for the betterment of the environment. According to the Organic Consumers Association, “when gauging ecological claims, look for specifics for example, "biodegradable in 3 to 5 days" holds a lot more meaning than "biodegradable," as most substances will eventually break down if given enough time and the right ecological conditions (Organic Consumers Association 2015.)”
References Cited
Mercola, Joseph. 2015. Dr. Mercola Healthy Skin [Internet]. Available from: http://bathcare.mercola.com/. Accessed 01/21/2015.
Mercola, Joseph. 2015. About Dr. Mercola [Internet]. Available from http://www.mercola.com/forms/background.htm. Accessed 02/14/2015.
Anonymous. 2015. bubble & bee, Organic bath and body [Internet].Available from: http://bubbleandbee.com/top-five-chemicals-to-avoid/. Accessed 01/21/2015.
Organic Consumers Association. 2015. How Toxic Are Your Household Cleaning Supplies? [Internet]. Available from: https://www.organicconsumers.org/news/how-toxic-are-your-household-cleaning-supplies. Accessed 02/22/2015.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2010. Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products (PPCP’s) [Internet].Available from: http://www.epa.gov/ppcp/faq.html. Accessed 02/22/2015.