The Conductivity Lab

In the conductivity lab we stuck a conductivity tester in different mixtures of water and either calcium chloride, antacid, potassium chloride, light corn syrup, molasses, or cheerios.  Water conducts too of course so we tested water alone and used the brightness of the light on the conductivity tester as 0.  The products we tested were based on a scale of 0-10 based on brightness of the light.

Calcium chloride was the brightest of the group of mixtures.  We gave it a ten.  Cheerios were the least conductive and there was really no change in the light.  

So what does this graph mean?  Different substances have different levels of conductivity in water.  The charge produced from more acetic substances like calcium chloride and potassium chloride is greater than less acetic substances like antacid, corn syrup, and the others.  The qualities that make substances like calcium chloride sting when they get into a cut create a better environment for conducting electricity.

And no, Mr. Ludwig, I totally swear I didn't get any calcium chloride into the cuts on my hands from physics.  Not that I got any cuts from physics. 0-0