How to Make a Potato Powered Calculator
Long a science-fair project staple, this potato powered calculator is easy to recreate yourself!
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You Will Need
- Two potatoes
- A marker
- Two pieces of heavy copper wire
- Two galvanized nails
- Three alligator clips with wires
- A low-voltage, battery-operated calculator
Steps
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Step 1
Number potatoes
Label your potatoes one and two.
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Step 2
Remove battery
Remove the batteries from the calculator. Take care to note where the positive and negative terminals are within the battery compartment.
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Step 3
Insert nails
Insert a nail into each potato and stick a copper wire into each potato, opposite the nail.
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Alligator clips, nails, and wire can be purchased at your local hardware store.
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Step 4
Connect clips
Connect one alligator clip to the copper wire in potato no. 1 and attach the other end to the positive battery terminal in the calculator's compartment.
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Step 5
Create second connection
Clip a second alligator clip to the nail in potato no. 2, and then connect the other end to the calculator's negative battery connection.
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Step 6
Complete circuit
Complete the circuit by clipping the third alligator clip to the nail in potato one and to the copper wire in potato two. Voila, a working calculator!
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Did you know? Americans eat 130 pounds of potatoes per person each year.
