Tag Archives: outreach

Wicked Science

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Bright, swirling smoke in shades of neon pink and electric green forms bold, energetic shapes, creating a striking abstract background with vibrant colors.

Calling all citizens of Oz and abroad! You are cordially invited to enroll in Shiz University’s elite sorcery class to learn the science behind the magic. That’s right…we’re off to see the science!

The Cotsen Children’s Library, Department of Chemistry, and Science Outreach at Princeton University were delighted to present a morning of hands-on activity tables, followed by a 45-minute auditorium show with plenty of glitter and gravitas!

As Ozian’s entered the event floor, they were greeted with tables staffed by graduate and undergraduate students from Science Outreach at Princeton University (who gamely showed up dressed in pink and green!).

Kids wielded static electricity wands, learned about magnetic levitation, unveiled the Grimmerie’s invisible ink, tested Glinda’s bubble travel potion, and examined the pH levels of popular potions.

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There was also a yellow brick road magnet game table, and, just in case you missed it in the slideshow above, a truly magnificent dry ice tabletop tornado, which Katie constructed with the help of this Steve Spangler video.

After the activity tables had been thoroughly perused, Angie Miller from the Department of Chemistry invited students to attend Shiz University’s very own “Potions 101” class, which was held in the Taylor Auditorium on Princeton University campus.

Angie the Amazing lead the class through the tenets of the scientific method with emerald flames, rainbow beakers, conservation of mass, water boiling at room temperature, and more! She also defied gravity with the Meissner Effect (i.e. cooling a superconductor with liquid nitrogen to levitate a magnet). My personal favorite? Candy combustion – a dramatic demonstration of what happens when potassium chlorate meets Skittles:

Of course, it wouldn’t be magic/science without things culminating in fire and explosions, so Angie ramped things up with metal salt flames and firework balloons. Katie and I both managed to get footage of the fun:

The event was absolutely wonderful, and we would like to thank Angie Miller in the Department of Chemistry, Paryn Wallace with the Science Outreach at Princeton University, and all the graduate and undergraduate students who volunteered their time to reach out to community families! We appreciate you so much!

Science Outreach at Princeton University. Back row (from left to right): John Woo, Rishika Porandla, Anushri Mahabir, Harper Vance, Nneka Onyea, Adriana Gaitan, Zaighum Nagra, Davis Hobley. Front row (from left to right): Maya Cabrera, Kelsey Campbell, Meghana Bhupat, Anna Buretta, Adrija Kundu, Tam Nguyen

Swiftie Science!

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ARE YOU READY FOR IT? As you might recall from our recent sneak peek, we joined forces with our friends at Science Outreach at Princeton University and the Department of Chemistry to host a fantastic celebration of science and the lyrics, visuals, and overall awesomeness of Taylor Swift! The crowds were enchanted, bejeweled, and the alchemy exceeded our wildest dreams! How did we mastermind this event? Dear reader, it was a wonderland!

The event was divided into two parts: 1) hands-on activity tables; and 2) an auditorium show. Part one featured five hands-on demonstration tables that uniquely represented a Swift song. This part of the event was led by the amazing Paryn Wallace, Associate Director of Science Outreach, and a talented team of Princeton University undergraduate and graduate student volunteers from Science Outreach at Princeton University.

Front row, left to right: Davis Hobley, Adrija Kundu, Meghana Bhupait, Paryn Wallace, Maddie Bland. Back row: Back row, left to right: Amalia Nevarez, Mell Aguiar, Aryan Gupta, Kennedy Casey, Zaighum Nagra, Jeffrey Asiedu-Brako, Emma Petzold, Ash Reddy

At the “Shake it Off” table, kids could learn about non-Newtonian fluids by examining the curious properties of oobleck as it danced on top of speakers blasting Swift’s music. Nearby was the “Clean” table, where budding scientists could determine the pH levels of various water samples (tap, bottled, rain, etc.) using litmus paper. At the “Blank Space” table, kids learned about chemical reactions as they revealed lemon juice invisible ink messages with a heat source.

One of my favorite tables, however, was “All Too Well.” This classic song is all about memories, so the table featured Nitinol wire. Because of its unique atomic structure, Nitinol wire can “remember” its original shape during temperature changes. It’s pretty astounding to watch. The final hands-on table was “Mastermind,” where we literally brought Taylor’s song lyrics to life as chain reactions of “dominos cascaded in a line.”

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Once the tables were thoroughly explored, it was time for part two, the auditorium show (which was, ironically, held in the Taylor auditorium inside the Frick Chemistry Building)! The show was led by the extraordinary Angie Miller, Lecture Demonstrator in Princeton University’s Department of Chemistry.

Angie had the task of pairing Swiftie concepts with principals of science, so in preparation for the show, Katie and I steered Angie to what we believe to be Taylor’s most science-y music video, “ME!” Here, Taylor cavorts with cats, clouds, rainbow prisms, and colorful foam.

So Angie talked extensively about the scientific method while bursting hydrogen balloons, making nitrogen clouds, and testing audience predictions of marshmallow cat behaviors in vacuum chambers. Angie invited the young scientists to gaze at line spectra of various gases, created colored fireballs with metal salts and a Bunsen burner, and…in a grand finale…played the “ME!” video for the crowd on the big screen while coordinating larger versions of the previous demos, capping everything off with a six beaker rainbow deluxe version of elephant toothpaste!

Peppered throughout the show were audience trivia questions for friendship bracelet prizes. Before the marshmallow cat demo, for example, I asked the audience if someone could name Taylor’s three cats. They sure could! First names AND last names (though I was secretly waiting to hear someone shout “Dibbles!”).

The auditorium show’s crescendo was the “ME!” video, but we had one more fantastic surprise in store for the crowds that day…a cameo appearance by Taylor!

Well, that’s not ACTUALLY Taylor Swift. It’s Princeton University sophomore Margo Mattes! A Politics major and massive Swiftie, Margo gamely volunteered to play Tay and take photos with the kids. She was so utterly fantastic, we can’t thank her enough for giving her time and exuberance to this event!

As the happy crowd exited the building, we handed out friendship bracelet kits made out of UV beads. These plain beads react with sunlight and change to rainbow colors. Just a little extra TS science to take home!

I can’t even begin to express my gratitude and appreciation to everyone who made this event possible. Thank you to the students from Science Outreach at Princeton for your ideas, boundless energy, and time. Margo Mattes, thank you for bringing your sweet brilliance and enthusiasm as Miss Americana. And a massive shout out to event masterminds Paryn Wallace and Angie Miller. You were so game to try this, and Katie and I absolutely loved working with you!

From left to right: Paryn Wallace, Dana Sheridan, Katie Zondlo, Angie Miller

Event images courtesy of Daniel Wang 

A Priceless Little Doodle

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006405What do you do with one of the most important books in the history of the English language? Well, if you’re Miss Elizabeth Okell, you do a little creative doodling on its pages.

The image above is from the First Folio (officially titled Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies). Published in 1623, the First Folio is the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s work. Its significance to the world is monumental. Shakespeare’s plays were written to be performed, and many were not published in his lifetime. It’s only through the First Folio that we were able to learn of plays like Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Antony and Cleopatra, The Comedy of Errors, and As You Like It. The Folger has 82 copies of the First Folio, by far the largest collection in the world (currently, just 233 copies are known to exist).

This particular First Folio bears the inscription “Elizabeth Okell her Book 1729,” on one of its pages. It was a family treasure passed down through the generations from 1630 to the late 1800’s. While it’s not entirely clear if Elizabeth made the doodles herself, someone did it. I especially like this one. It appears to be some chairs and a table with paintings on the wall. Maybe it’s a room? Maybe it’s a stage set?

first folio detailOh, and did I mention that the First Folio is worth 5 to 6 million dollars? Yup. That’s an expensive little drawing pad. I saw this First Folio and other absolutely amazing treasures during a visit to the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC.

008928The Folger is the world’s greatest collection of Shakespeare materials. It also has major collections of Renaissance books, manuscripts, and works of art. Take a look at the library’s exhibit space, The Great Hall (which is open to the public and requires no admission fee):

2013-10-01 10.33.45And here’s an image of one of their reading rooms. Specifically, this is the Gail Kern Paster Reading Room. See the huge table in the foreground? It’s from the 17th century (and I got to pet it).

054568My absolutely favorite part of the Folger, however, is its theater.

FSL Interior: Folger Theatre View CWalking into the theater is like walking into a gorgeous, wood-paneled dream. It’s a beautiful acknowledgement that Shakespeare is meant to be acted, seen, heard, and felt. In fact, the Folger’s collections, its exhibitions, and its theater form the perfect trinity. Preservation of, education about, and devotion to the works of Shakespeare.

Not surprisingly, the Folger also has a stupendous Education Department, with a full roster of community, school, and teacher education programs. In 2016, the Folger is launching First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare, an ambitious traveling exhibit that will take the First Folio to all 50 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. In addition to the exhibit, the host sites (which include 23 museums, 20 universities, 5 public libraries, 3 historical societies, and 1 theater) will offer free educational programs and related events for the general public and families. It’s a huge undertaking, which is being deftly directed by Maribeth Cote, the Public Engagement Coordinator.

I asked Maribeth to give me a Shakespeare quote that describes her feelings about her endeavor, and she gamely stepped up to the plate:

“O, sir, you had then left unseen a wonderful piece of work, which not to have been blest withal would have discredited your travel.”

Antony and Cleopatra – 1.2.169

First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor, and by the generous support of Google.org and Vinton and Sigrid Cerf. The exhibition is a partnership between the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Cincinnati Museums Center, and the American Library Association.

All images courtesy of the Folger Shakespeare Library.