science sunday 2 : the snail lab..

okay, I'm rather bored so I'm going to talk about the snail lab. It was reasonably interesting, I was rather nervous because I was worried that I was going to break my group's snail (Gary)'s shell. It was interesting watching the muscles on his underside ripple as he moved, and he stretched out a full inch straight up! The muscles in his neckish area must be incredibly strong. Actually I'm not even sure if Gary is male, we were going to check (somehow, we weren't exactly sure how to) but then we ran out of time and class ended. I couldn't find the section if the book that spoke about snails having eyes so I still don't know if Gary saw us or smelled us or sensed our body heat. I think I saw his mouth, but I'm not entirely sure, I'd have to look at him with more focus. It was incredible how he was able to balance on the very thin edge of the glass disk he was on. I wonder what exactly caused all the foaming when his.. liquids (?) interacted with the vinegar. Now I also know why salt would be very bad for snails, since they breathe and absorb water through thier skin, salt would absorb the moisture they have and kill them. How horrible. All in all I really enjoyed the lab, though the videos shown on youtube afterward by Mr. Olson were on the brink of getting me sick. I hope we get to do another lab with live creatures, though with some of the guys around.. maybe not such a good idea. thanks anyway Mr. Olson