Science In The Park
Exhibit [Return to listing page]
Blue Wing, Level 2
This park-like setting invites visitors to run, jump, swing, and use familiar objects like playground equipment and bicycle parts to investigate the pushes and pulls of everyday life: the forces that set things in motion, stop their motion, or hold them in place.
This permanent exhibit, developed in conjunction with the Investigate! activity center, exercises more than your muscles. It challenges your scientific thinking skills, inviting you to ask questions, hypothesize, gather and weigh evidence, and draw your own conclusions. With activity at the core of this exhibit, you'll not only apply your thinking skills to the mechanics of movement, you'll also set most of the experiments in motion.
Observe harmonic motion by hopping onto swings to measure how long it takes to go back and forth. See a seesaw in a new light by balancing on it with a friend, or race balls on different slides to determine which is the fastest. To get a feel for momentum, twirl like an ice skater and compare your speed with one leg extended versus having both legs tucked in. Race other visitors—or a fast-moving row of lights—to get a sense of your speed at a hop, a walk, or a skip.
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