There are some animals that can survive under immensely tough conditions - blazing hot desert sands, freezing cold and bitter winds, or seriously high pressure, and no oxygen environments.  These adaptations allow them to occupy a niche that no one else does, which is their strategy for long term survival.  Our desert tortoise Lulu comes to class this week to demonstrate the adaptations it takes to live happily in the dry African grasslands and desert.

Everything we used in class this week was edible, other than the soap and laundry detergent.  This is the one time you get to taste everything in the lab!
For making soap creations at home, the size we used works best when you  put them in the microwave for 30 seconds.  They still work great as soap, and they will float like icebergs in the bath tub.