Explore More Solutions

Some mixtures are obvious, such as a salad. Other mixtures,

such as ocean water, are so well blended that it is hard to know

that they contain more than one thing. A mixture that has the

same composition throughout is called a solution. This means

the parts are mixed together evenly

So many bright vegetables! A salad is a mixture. After mixing the salad vegetables, you can still see the different parts, and you can still separate them too.

Ocean water is a solution. You cannot see the salt, but it is there!

Scientists base their work on what other scientists have discovered.

How would discoveries about solutions affect future scientific research?

Think of sweet tea, ocean water, or orange juice. Can you see the different parts that make up these liquids? Probably not. That is because the solids, such as the sugar in sweet tea, have dissolved into the water. You can taste them, but you cannot see them.

How could you collect the solids? As with salt water, you could let sweet tea sit out in the sun until the water evaporates. You would be left with a pile of sugar and tea solids.

​

Many people are surprised to learn how much sugar is dissolved in a glass of their favorite drinks, like sweet tea.

​