COSI On Wheels – A Real Blast

Friday morning on Jan 30 got me up a little more excited than usual. (Aren’t you always excited to go to work?) I was going to my daughter, E’s, school that day to participate in the COSI on Wheels event. I am, of course, a total science nerd, and love to play with stuff, so the thought of having some fun with the hands-on exhibits seemed like a perfect day.

I was not to be disappointed. The COSI rep there was bright and cheerful. She clearly loved her job. The rest of the volunteers were a little sluggish at 7:15 in the morning, but with a workday that usually starts at 6:00 AM, after an hour’s drive, I was Mr. Perky. That and the exhibits were already set up and ready to go, looking super-cool. That day’s theme was “Space”, which was a big hit with everyone, both volunteers and participants alike.   We did 6 sessions that day with different grade levels, so everyone got a chance to play with something.  Here’s a brief rundown of the hands-on exhibits.

1. Glove Boxes. In space, in order to do some experiments, the astronauts must use boxes containing the materials or tools with which the experiments are done. The boxes have a pair of gloves embedded in them, that are open to the outside, so that the astronauts can place their hands in the gloves and work inside the boxes. This has the additional advantage of being able to create a vacuum in the boxes, or fill them with a different gas. There were two of these available for the kids to play with, containing legos, and a Mr. Potato Head. I attempted to assemble Senor Potato, with minimal success.
2. Space Food. At this table, a sample of dried and powdered foods were available for the kids to examine. Water equaling weight, most of the food sent into space is powdered or dried, and must be re-hydrated in orbit. Here, the kids were given the task of re-hydrating some potato flakes. Once done, they had to invert their containers over a bowl. If the powder, or any excess water fell out, then that would be what would be floating around the cabin in orbit. I chose not to attempt this one, knowing my record in the kitchen.
3. Spectroscopy. Here were four gas tubes, set up like neon lights, along with several diffraction lenses. The diffraction lenses were like the old Kodak slides, but clear, and when held to the eye and looking at light source, would show a small rainbow of colors to either side of the light. Each tube was filled with a different gas, and the last tube was the ‘Mystery Star’. The idea is, by looking at the light spectrum given off by the different gases, it is possible to tell what elements a faraway star is composed of. Though I must admit, since only one of the test gases was bright red, and the ‘Mystery Star’ was also bright red, it made things pretty easy.
4. Rocks & Minerals. I honestly didn’t get a chance to play with this one, but there were several mineral samples there, and four very sturdy looking microscopes. I would have like to get to check those out, but time was short before the kids showed up. I will have to keep an eye open for this one next time I do this.
5. Micro-gravity. At this table, there was a video player, and a set of tubes where the kids could attempt to mix oil and water. I say attempt, because in standard gravity, where water is more dense than oil, that is not possible. But the video showed how, in micro-gravity, oil and water do indeed mix.
6. Vacuum. Here we had a bell jar with a vacuum pump attached. The idea was to illustrate what happens in the vacuum of space. The kids got to decorate marshmallows with little faces. The marshmallow heads were stuck onto a space man action figure body, and the setup was placed in the bell jar. It was fun watching Mr. Space Man’s head swell to about twice it’s size. It was even more fun to watch it practically implode once air pressure was restored.
7. Made For Space? This was a type of quiz show that had several different objects on a table, and kids were to decide if the different things were made for use on earth or in space. A good example: Pudding Cup? Earth. Powdered Pudding? Space. Here’s a quick quiz for you: Tell me if these were made for use on earth or in space. a) Velcro. b) Cordless Screwdriver. c) Tortillas. d) Dust Buster.
8. Mass vs. Weight. Here, a set of scales were placed on the floor, each one representing your weight on a different planet. The moon, Venus, Uranus, and Jupiter were represented. I weighed in at about 440 on Jupiter, myself.
9. Air-pressure propulsion. This is where I spent the day. First, I’ll cover the experiment and then I can talk about the experience. The kids were given graduated cylinders, water bottles, and plastic test tubes with rubber stoppers. The kids would each measure out a quantity of water, and place that in the test tubes. Each kid would then get a small helping of Alka-Seltzer. That would be dropped into the test tube, and then the stoppers would be put on very quickly. As the gas pressure built up in the test tubes, the tops would pop off. We also had some inclined racks to put the tubes in, and a measuring tape on the floor so we could get a gage on how far the corks went.

I worked the air-pressure propulsion table. It was, in my limited estimation, the most popular table there. We had a good line of students there the entire time, for all 6 sessions that day. I was running the experiments with the kids, and there was another person there to handle crowd control. Seriously. Students would basically do the experiment, then try to get back in line two and three times. I needed the help.

I can’t describe how much fun I had that day. It was like playing the caller at a carnival tent, except everyone wanted to be there. A few of the students needed more help than others, but the excitement was contagious. Everyone had fun, regardless of age, knowledge or experience. It was a joy to see the curiosity and playfulness in the kids as they ran to and from each experiment. Some of the kids gently tapped the cork into the top, producing a mild pop. One of the kids got a rather large piece of Alka-Seltzer, and shoved his cork about a third of the way down the length of the test tube. That one flew almost the length of the measuring tape and bounced against the far wall. The reaction from the students was awesome.

At one point, one of the parent volunteers brought their child over to our table, specifically because the child didn’t get the chance to do the experiment during the main session. I took her through it, explaining a bit about air pressure, and how the gas built up inside the tube, forcing the cork out of the top. That, I said, is basically how rockets work, and how the Space Shuttle gets into orbit. I think she understood at least a fraction of what I said, but it was her mother’s reaction that caught me off guard. She took the time to thank me for the explanation, stating that it was good to learn new things, and she was glad she had the opportunity to learn something.

This, I think is what puts me where I am in the realm of skepticism at the moment. It’s the joy of being able to help people expand their knowledge. Showing people how the reality of the universe is far cooler than anything we can imagine we can imagine. (No, that’s not a typo. Read it again.)

So with that good feeling in my pocket for the rest of the day, I helped to clean up, load the truck, and take my leave for the day. I left feeling that I did something positive for the kids’ curiosity, and maybe, just maybe, helped to get someone more interested in science than they were before. That’s worth a day off of work, any day.

Thanks.  

-D.