Can you break the water's surface tension? Learn about surface tension and combustion through 2 amazing experiments.

For the surface tension experiment, gather 1 or 2 tablespoons of blackpepper, 1 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid and 1 small empty bowl.

For the combustion experiment, gather 1 candle, a glass of water, an empty glass that is big enough to cover your candle and a plate for this challenge with YELL 2020 teen intern Aashka.

Tune in to SFPL YouTube.

STEM Challenge Yo’Self | Teen Takeover is created by the San Francisco Public Library from the Youth Engaged in Library Leadership (YELL) STEM team. Stay STEM-tastic by reading, learning and experimenting at home. Gather materials for a new challenge posted at 3pm on weekdays throughout October. Visit www.sfpl.org/stemchallenge for more resources.