In 2007, four Hendrix students developed an Odyssey project, sponsored by Dr. Liz Gron, called Ridin' Dirty with Science.
The Hendrix students organized this project to foster an interest in science through educational, fun and interactive science experiments in the College's state-of-the-art facilities.
In collaboration with the Boys' and Girls' Club of Faulkner County, Ridin' Dirty with Science focused on three experiments. For "Bacteria in the Environment," the students collected and cultured environmental swabs from a variety of sources, forming a hypothesis about which ones showed the most bacteria under the microscope. "Caught Dirty Handed" reinforced the concept of bacteria as students touched a Tootsie Roll and them determined whether hot water, cold water, soap or apaper barrier affected the transfer of bacteria. The chemistry experiment "Limonene from Orange Peel" showed the students who to create a citrus-based solvent and included a discussion of how soap and grease interact.
The project was such a sucess that it was held again during the summer of 2008.