Eric Moller certainly knows how to make chemistry fun.

For the past 10 years, Moller has assigned a project for his Pine Bush High School students. They are to choose an element from the Periodic Table and create a mole to depict it.

For those of us not familiar with the terminology, a mole is a standard scientific unit for measuring large quantities of very small entities, such as atoms. However most of us know moles as small burrowing mammals, a little larger than a mouse, but with a similar look.

Students chose their elements then got to work on creating their moles.

“I do this every year but I am amazed with the creativity from the students,” said Moller.

Here are just a few elements depicted: polonium, ruthenium, helium, hafnium, thorium, and germanium.

A germanium mole was depicted as a flag of Germany. Actinium showed an actor on a stage. Helium? How about the house from the movie “Up!” Ruthenium? Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Thorium? Thor, of course. Lithium? The Energizer Bunny. Polonium? How about a mole playing water polo!

Then Moller gets the staff involved by having them along with the students vote for their favorites.

When the tally was taken, junior Andrew Weronick came out on top with his mole, thorium. In second place was junior Gillian Valdez’s hafnium. Sophomore Lindsay Steele came in third with carbon. All three won gift cards.

Andrew noted that he voted for both Lindsay and Gillian’s moles. His thorium was creative but also had an added bonus – electricity. It lit up!

“These were very good and creative this year,” said Mr. Moller. “The people who voted were very impressed. It was a very good year for moles.”