Okay--revising the experiment for use of plants (poinsettia or ivy): I think that even the poinsettia would show changes during the three week period, but I would be worried about leaf drop/loss with the poinsettia. You probably should do the following during the experiment: 1) count the number of leaves on each plant. If you are within a leaf or two, remove a leaf or two from the leafier plant near the bottom (the worst-looking leaves) to make the number even. Do this before you start the experiment. 2) Weigh the plants. The analysis might not show any differences between the two regimens in terms of net growth, but when divided by weight might show a difference. Try to make sure that the plants start with approximately equal soil moisture levels--you could use a soil moisture meter to make sure that this stays the same. Weigh the plants every time you measure them, and if you can measure soil moisture, do that every time as well. An inexpensive proxy for a soil moisture measurement would be to place a square or circle of paper towel or coffee filter on to the surface of the soil, and measure how long it takes for the paper to become damp. 3) The place where you should see significant change is not perhaps in overall length of the plants, but the length of the stems between leaves (length between leaf nodes). To measure this difference effectively, put a small piece of twist-tie around the bases of the leaves you want to measure between so that you can find those leaves and stems again. Don't make the twist-tie very tight. You could use yarn and tie it loosely, as well. Don't make the tie or yarn pieces any bigger than absolutely necessary. If you wanted to be really systematic, you could get those little jewelry price tags that attach with a thread loop and number the tags. For your introduction and conclusions, you will want to look up information on the types of light (just like I mentioned with the seed experiment) and information on "etiolation". Etiolation, or lengthening of the stem between leaf nodes is what you would expect to see with a lack of light or with the "wrong" kind of light. The suggestions I made about using a light meter still hold, because another question that should be asked is whether it's the distance to the light source that may cause lengthening. By weighing the plants at each point, you can also control for additional biomass (plant growth) production. My guess is that the plants in both groups would be about the same--but that the stems and leaves under one treatment would be thinner and longer. If you really want to have fun with the biomass portion, at the end of the experiment, compare the differences in the plants visually (and note those differences), then dump the plants out of their pots, rinse the plants clean of as much soil as humanly possible, and leave the plants to dry. THEN weigh the plants and compare the masses. Which treatment, if any, produced the most biomass? Was there any difference in the size of the root mass? I realize that with the exception of weighing, these observations are more subjective and qualitative, but it could lead to more sensible data analysis and better subsequent experimental proposals. Don't forget to compare the color and quality of the leaves in both plants: one group of plants will probably have leaves that tend more toward yellow, and one more toward green. You could use something like a process color chart or embroidery floss sample card to describe the differences in color more accurately. I hope that you aren't absolutely overwhelmed by all this--I get into science and things just take off...

What a nice idea. :) How about making something like bird (or other wildlife) treats? Maybe each of you could search the net and come up with something you want to make, like birdseed wreaths, peanutbutter-pinecones, dried apple & cranberry stringers, etc. You could each make enough of something so each of you could go home with one of everything. Sounds good to me, anyway. lol!

I think it'll be okay, this one was quite thick glass and the metal dohickey that holds it there(pole) is screwed into the base and so it ain't goin' no where! Can you take a pic and show us the light fixture? I just saw one at work that MAM OH MAN would I GOG that puppy!!! It's like 2ft wide and supper nice...but would never go in my house...it needs a big vaulted ceiling.

I used sanded grout for everything..like the texture...You can get regular mirror adhesive at Lowe's....I have used just regular GEII on back of mirrors...there is a spray sealant you can get to spray the back of mirrors so there won't be any leakage going through. Same procedure for this project as other mosaic projects...that's my story...but others may have a different and better method.