Shrunken head

Peel the skin of an apple (adults should help younger experimenters) and carve a face in one side. Place the apple in a bowl of super salty water (half a cup of salt in 4 cups of water, stirred till all the salt has dissolved) and leave it standing for 24 hours. Water will be drawn out of the apple into the salt solution through a process called osmosis. The process will continue until the concentration of salts in the apple cells is equal to the concentration of salt in the water.

Remove the apple and stand it in a warm, dry place for three to four weeks. What water remains in the apple is now lost through evaporation, leaving a wonderfully dry, wrinkled head-like ball that you can decorate with button eyes and hair clippings. If you varnish your ‘shrunken head’ before you decorate it, it should last for a long time.