Mouse Meets “The Dew” Department of Chemistry, Clemson University

1. Mouse Meets “The Dew” Department of Chemistry, Clemson University MOUSE VS MOUNTAIN DEW* Claim: Customer claimed a mouse was found in his can of Mountain Dew. He sued Pepsi for $50.000. Facts: 1.The can of Mountain Dew had been packaged for about 74 days. 2. A veterinarian examined the “Mountain Dew” mouse. The mouse was still intact. Question: Will the mouse still be intact after 74 days? According to the article, science supports the fact that after 7 days the mouse will show signs of disintegration. After 30 days, the mouse will appear as an “unrecognizable “jellylike substance””. Plan: Observe the science in action as a demo for students. A dead mouse was placed in Mountain Dew. Since two specimens were available, Pepsi was also tested. What do you think based on your observations of this experiment? Does science support the lawsuit? * Idea was inspired by Newscript column in 1/23/12 edition of C&E News. Experimental Design: Two mice were caught in house mouse traps (variety that electrocutes the caught mice). The mice were placed in a baggie in the freezer for a few weeks until the experiment was started. One mouse was placed in Mountain Dew and the other one in Pepsi. Glass jars with metal screw caps were used so mice could be observed during the experiment. Both jars were placed in a Plexiglas container. This kept the students from disturbing/handling the jars but allowed for easy viewing. Pictures were taken frequently to document the effect of the drinks on the mice. Both jars were kept closed and not disturbed. Some gas buildup was noticed by the lids becoming convex. At the end of 86 days, the mice were removed and inspected in detail. What is pH? pH is a measure of the activity (the concentration) of hydrogen ions in a solution. Mountain Dew has a pH of 3.2, what does that mean? See the chart on the right for a list of common liquids and their pH values. Note: pH values are referenced from different internet resources. Check out the final photos of Dewey and Peppy at: www.clemson.edu/chemistry/genchem Choose the Labs option in the left menu. Note: A control was started on Day 11 to see if Pepsi standing in a jar would separate. By Day 58, the control showed no change from Day 1. Observations – Dewey 1. Day 5: Dewey rotated from side position to angled “dead man float” position and became more submerged in solution. 2. Day 13: Dewey appeared to bloat some and his left eyeball had dropped out of its socket (see bottom of jar). 3. Day 32: Dewey was still intact but carcass appeared less dense. General observation: with time the color of the solution lightened appreciably. Not much overall change in the carcass as of day 86. Observations – Peppy Day 5: Peppy appeared to be more submerged in the solution but not to the degree Dewey was. Day 6: Solution started to change in color. There was some breakdown in the solution (no longer homogenous). Day 11: A control was started to see if Pepsi standing in a jar would separate. By Day 86, the solution looked the same in the control as it did on Day 1. 4. Day 18: One of Peppy’s legs had disappeared. Solution was more opaque. Day 19: Carcass started to show signs of disintegration/decomposition. Observable changes can be seen each day pictures were taken from Day 19 forward. 6. Day 32: Tissue started to separate from carcass in larger pieces and Peppy became “blob- like”.