A while ago, I read that hamsters run on their wheels faster when the moon is full. I decided to put this to the test, using Misao as a test subject. The project was so named because there is a character in Rurouni Kenshin called Misao who became the Okashira (boss) of the ninja group, the Oniwabanshu. (It was either that or Project Pixy Misa!)

Hypothesis

A hamster will run more quickly on its wheel when the moon is full.

The Equipment

• 1x Roborovski Hamster

• 1x Transoniq Wodent Wheel

• 1x Digital wristwatch with stopwatch

The Method

Wodent Wheels have a sticker on the front. By watching as Misao ran, I was able to use the sticker count the number of revolutions N in a time t. Her speed could then be calculated thus:

r is the radius of the Wodent Wheel (around 4", or 10cm) and T is the period of revolution of the wheel. Essentially, this formula represents the number of times Misao ran the circumference of the wheel in time t.

Results

The chart above shows how Misao's running speed varied over a month. There was a full moon on Day 19, where there is a rotation of 2.5rps (roughly 3mph, good speed for a tiny rodent!) compared with a normal rate of around 2rps. However, this peak happened just after I had given Misao a good clean-out; it may be that she was upset at having been cleaned out so ran faster to work off the stress! Furthermore, I only managed to get quite sporadic measurements, so there may be peaks that I didn't record. I should really have continued the experiment, but I decided there were too many variables that I couldn't control so I left it.

I have since then restarted the experiment, using Rin as a test subject.