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Cover Story
Great Explorations exhibits are hands-on fun
By Times Staff Writers
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 27, 2003
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New, improved explorations
Great Explorations The Hands On Museum welcomes junior scientists -- and their parents -- to its new home at Sunken Gardens. |
As Great Explorations, the Hands On Museum prepares to reopen on March 30, the St. PetersburgTimes sent Xpress Team reporters Lindsey Brooks and Jacob Ludin in to check out some of the new exhibits. Lindsey, 14, is in eighth grade at Bay Point Middle School in St. Petersburg. Jacob, 11, is in fifth grade at Pinellas County Jewish Day School in Clearwater. Xpress runs every Monday in Floridian.
Name: TENNIS BALL LAUNCHERS
How it works: Using air compression and a pulley with a bowling ball at the end of a rope, you can launch a tennis ball two stories into the air. The balls then loop the loops in a tubular cage, similar to the board game Mousetrap.
Would kids enjoy it? Yes, it's challenging at first because you're not sure how much weight to apply to the rope. Once you finally launch it, you have a feeling of pride as it loops back to you.
Who is it for: Anyone with a strong grip who can tug a rope.
Etc.: This was the favorite of Charlie Shaw, the imaginative creator of the Great Explorations exhibits. It was one of our favorites as well.
[Photo: Oscar Williams]
Kids get a lesson in aerodynamics at the race track, where they build and race cars. The museum has made an effort to appeal to a wide range of children, from toddler to preteen.
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Name: RACEWAY
How it works: K'nex construction sets (plastic building pieces much like Lego) are used to build race cars. You can add an axle to a motor, add gears, wheels and wheel locks. Then you attach it to a track slot and test-drive with remote controls.
Who is it for: Ages 8 and older because you're working with K'nex, which has small pieces that can sometimes be a little difficult to handle, and you use trial and error to perfect your car.
Would kids enjoy it?: It would take patient kids, or "young engineers" to enjoy this exhibit because you have to build it first.
Name: LIE DETECTOR
How it works: The machine measures the skin's response to questions, measuring the amount of sweat in one's fingers. Person one places his pointer and middle fingers on the sensing plates and person two asks questions about a number his partner has secretly chosen. The meter reads the nervousness after each question is answered and indicates whether it is a lie or the truth.
Who is it for: Although anyone could do it, it may take someone a little older to understand how it works.
Would kids enjoy it? Yes, because it's just like in the detective movies.
Name: SOUND WAVES
How it works: Speakers on both ends of the machine make high- and low-frequency sounds. As the sounds move through a tube, hundreds of thousands of Styrofoam pellets also move with the sound. As the tones and frequency are varied, the pellet movements also change to imitate the wave lengths. You have control over the pitch so you create your own unique waves.
Who is it for: Although it's fun for anyone to turn the knobs and watch the pellets vibrate and dance, it takes an older mind to understand that this represents sound waves.
Would kids enjoy it? Yes, because it's cool to watch even if you don't really get what's going on.
Etc.: It seems like no two waves are alike. It's even more interesting if you do know what's taking place.
Name: ST. PETEZZA
How does it work: Kids take orders from their parents using everything from fake menus to aprons and head back to the kitchen where they make a fabric pizza with any choice of "toppings": green peppers, mushrooms, pepperoni, black olives and pineapple. Then the pie is shoveled into the pretend oven and cooked for family and friends to enjoy.
Who is it for: Ages 9 and younger, but probably too babyish for older kids.
Would kids enjoy it? Yes because you role-play in a realistic setting.
Etc.: Americans eat at least 350 slices of pizza per second, according to Great Explorations.
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