ffutures: (Woody)
ffutures ([personal profile] ffutures) wrote2010-11-02 11:53 am
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Looking for plastic boxes...

I need to make some apparatus called choice chambers; they're basically a flat round plastic boxes about 20cm wide (8") that goes into two halves vertically (a good non-round example is a plastic Ferrero Rocher box, the type that has rounded edges) with the top half transparent.

They need to be about 20cm wide and 20-25mm deep, with each a minimum of say 10mm height above the division between the two halves.

The idea is that you drill a couple of holes in the upper box and split the lower half into four compartments and put e.g. damp cotton wool into two diagonally opposite compartments to make them damp, dry cotton wool in the other two. Then you put a layer of cotton muslin over the top, held in place and stretched taught by being pinned between the top and bottom halves of the box - in the picture the grey oval is the layer of muslin. You drop some living organisms into the box, e.g. woodlice or maggots, then shine a lamp onto one wet and one dry part, and keep the other half shaded. What happens is that you get the animals moving to the wet/dark bit, of course - sounds obvious, but it's something that the kids need to prove.



The trouble is that a kit of five of these boxes costs about £50; what I'm looking for is some containers I can adapt to make my own. Basically a round plastic container, not too deep, at least 6-8" wide, with a clear top. Any suggestions on sources, or something that comes in a box like this that isn't too expensive?

Later: Full details of how the experiment works here which show why they are built the way they are.

[identity profile] nojay.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 12:04 pm (UTC)(link)
How clear does the top have to be, and do they have to be circular? I'm thinking of the sorts of plastic freezer food containers that Poundland sells. The snap-on lid would prevent the bugs from escaping.

A square box would work just as well as a circular one, as long as the four areas are equally accessible to the bugs and the same dimensions.

[identity profile] ffutures.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 01:35 pm (UTC)(link)
You need the light as directional as possible so that the dark side isn't getting diffused light, so it does need to be clear if possible. It does need to be round, or they end up in dark corners regardless of humidity
ext_58972: Mad! (Default)

[identity profile] autopope.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 12:06 pm (UTC)(link)
I believe Lock'n'Lock boxes -- kitchenware, clip-on lids with gaskets -- sell something of roughly the right dimensions except for the depth (5cm minimum). Transparent lid, locks onto the base, circular base with rounded inner edges. If they're right in every way except depth, could you cut out card/plastic disks to go in the bottom to provide a false base?

I think you're looking at about a fiver a box, and can find 'em in most kitchenware shops. Caveat: I'm not sure Lock'n'Lock currently do this size -- they're always changing their range around -- but one of the cheap clones probably will work. You could try your local Poundland or equivalent ...

[identity profile] ffutures.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 01:37 pm (UTC)(link)
The bottom has to let moisture pass through - that's what the muslin is for - £5 would be too expensive anyway, I couldn't get that one by on petty cash, and by the time I'd done the work we might as well buy the real thing.

[identity profile] were-gopher.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 01:22 pm (UTC)(link)
Ask at your local sweetie shop if they have any empty boxes from penny sweets or check the supermarket for the big boxes of stuff like Haribo.

[identity profile] ffutures.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 01:39 pm (UTC)(link)
I know the boxes you mean, they aren't really suitable, unfortunately - too deep and no easy way to put in a "floor".

[identity profile] inamac.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 01:56 pm (UTC)(link)
Could you turn a cheap square box (like the chocolate container) into a round containment vessel by putting a circular strip of thin plastic (available in strips at model shops) into it?

[identity profile] ffutures.livejournal.com 2010-11-02 02:19 pm (UTC)(link)
Maybe - it's a possibility