Physics Experiments You Can Do at the Science Center

Pedal Power: Pedal a bicycle to create power. Watch the light brighten as you pedal more quickly.

Sponsor: Hoyman, Dobson, CPA

Duck In Kaleidoscope: Three mirrors arranged in a triangular formation form myriad reflections of the visitor.

Sponsor: Software Technology

Everyone Is You and Me: A pane of 50/50 glass, which reflects half and transmits half of all incident light, allows visitors to

Pulley Tug-O-War: Shows the advantages of pulleys. One person can overcome the pulling force of two or three when they have a pulley on their side.

Junior Explorers: Young visitors can explore magnetism, color, shape, and basic construction with wooden blocks and PVC pipes.

Star Tracer: The visitor can test his or her expertise at tracing a star in reverse by using a mirror.

Up Periscope: A submarine style periscope allows child size and adult size visitors to momentarily exchange points of view.

Wishing Well: Drop your coin into either side of this exhibit and watch as it spirals toward a black hole. Drop in several coins to create your own miniature universe.

Sponsor: Integrated Software Systems

Gravity Racer: Demonstrates the role of gravity in the acceleration of moving objects. A straight track and a curved track allow two balls to race each other.

Sounds of Air: Pipes of differing lengths capture the air flowing through the museum and produce different tones.

Whisper Tubes: A long tube connects one end of the Gallery to the other. Visitors can communicate over long distance when the sound waves of their voices are kept from scattering into the air.

Xylophone: By striking the tubes of different lengths, the visitor can make changing tunes. Sponsor: BSE

The Piano: Allows the visitor to explore their musical talent by strumming the chords

Machines make work like pushing, pulling and lifting easier. A machine is often made up of different parts -- sometimes machines are small and simple, and sometimes they are large and complex -- meaning they are made up of many parts. Here are seven kinds of simple machines and examples from around the house.

	Leaver -- This type of machine helps to move things with less force. When you use a leve, you can lift a heavy load or pull something that is stuck without pushing or pulling very hard. A hammer can be used as a kind of a leaver. You use one end to pull nails out of a board.
	Wheel -- Wheels are used to reduce friction and make moving things easier from one place to another.
	Gears -- Grears as a special kind of wheel. A gear is a wheel with teeth. It fits together with other gears and their teeth allow one gear to turn another with less work. Your bicycle has gears which turn when you peddle.
	Pulley -- Pulleys are used to lift loads more easily. Pulleys are used to hoist an flag or a sail.
	Inclined Plane -- These are used to move things from a lower place to a higher place. A ramp up the side of a building is an inclined plane.
	Wedge -- A wedge is an inclined plane. Wedges are used to split or pierce things. Knives are wedges.
	Screw -- A screw is a special kind of inclined plane. Screws are used to hold things together.