[Bessie]

Hello community!

Well I've chosen my Extended Essay(In the IB Diploma Program) to be based on Chemistry. I will be doing an experiment on locusts using anesthetics. My aim is to determine the overall effective anesthetic in rendering the "patient" unconscious. What I was thinking to do is get like a container either made of plastic or glass and depending on density I'll be poking holes on the top or sides for the locusts to breathe. After that i will be placing the locust in the container with a cotton bud soaked with the anesthetic. Since it's a school experiment, i can only use liquid anesthetics.

The anesthetics i'll be using are:
-Chloroform
-Halothane
-Sevoflurane
-Isoflurane
-Enflurane
-Trichloroethylene

What I'm doubting is if it will matter where i make the holes. I was using my logic and so if the anesthetic is less denser then air it will go to the top, thus escaping through the holes on the top. To prevent this i would make holes on the bottom lower side and vice versa with the anesthetic being denser than air. So can anyone help me with determining if it will matter.


Also i have another problem. I don't know exactly what kind of background information i should write for this experiment chemistry wise. Like what can i discuss in my evaluation and conclusion in relation to my aim. If anyone has better aims for this type of an experiment, it would be appreciated if you would share it with me


Thanks

Adam

[nj_bartel]

You could write about the biochemical reactions those substances undergo to produce sleepiness/pain tolerance.  Also, those won't necessarily work on locusts like they will on a human.

[Bessie]

Also, those won't necessarily work on locusts like they will on a human.

I had already realised that when I was choosing this topic, that's why I'll be specifying in my aim that I want to determine the most effective anesthetic on open circulatory systems.

By biochemical reactions did you mean the reactions such as the carrying of impulses and blocking impulses etc. Because I'll be needing to focus mostly, if not completely, on the chemical side of this experiment.

Thanks for your suggestion

[nj_bartel]

Exactly.  I don't know how these anesthetics work, but I'd look for either direct inihibitance of neurotransmitters, or a chemical reaction those substances undergo where a products produced that influences neurotransmitters or something to that extent.