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Fan Cart
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If a sailboat is stranded because there is no wind, is it possible to set up a fan on deck and blow wind into the sail to make the boat move?
Laser Lissajous: PVC Version
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In this activity, learners use a laser pointer and two small rotating mirrors to create a variety of fascinating patterns, which can be easily and dramatically projected on a wall or screen.
Make a Sun Clock: Tell Time with the Sun
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Before there were clocks, people used shadows to tell time. In this outdoor activity, learners will discover how to tell time using only a compass, a pencil, a handy printout, and a sunny day.
Eddy Currents
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In this activity related to magnetism and electricity, learners discover that a magnet falls more slowly through a metallic tube than it does through a nonmetallic tube.
Conductivity Meter
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In this activity, learners build a simple qualitative conductivity tester with a battery, bulb and foil.
Flying Tinsel
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Play keep away from your cat by using a static charge to suspend a piece of tinsel in the air. This Exploratorium produced activity also features videos to help create and learn about this phenomenon.
Aluminum-Air Battery: Foiled again!
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Construct a simple battery that's able to power a small light or motor out of foil, salt water, and charcoal. A helpful video, produced by the Exploratorium, guides you along on this activity.
Cup Speaker
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Make your own speaker with a magnet, wire, and paper cup! If you have a radio with a headphone plug and an old pair of headphones, this is a great tinkering activity.
Gel Electrophoresis
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In this activity, learners simulate the process of DNA fingerprinting by using electricity to separate colored dyes.
Make a Speaker: A Coil, a Magnet, and Thou
Source Institutions
Make your own simple speaker so you can listen to your favorite radio station. Just wind a coil, attach it to a piece of cardboard or Styrofoam, hold a magnet nearby, and listen.
Stripped-down Motor
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In this activity, you'll make an electric motor--a simple version of the electric motors found in toys, tools, and appliances everywhere.
Glowing Pickle
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In this activity, high voltage is applied across a pickle to emit a yellow glow. This activity should only be conducted by skilled adults and is best suited as a demonstration.
Short Circuit
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In this activity about electricity, learners explore what happens when you blow a fuse.
Motor Effect
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In this activity about electricity and magnetism, learners examine what happens when a magnet exerts a force on a current-carrying wire.
Shake Table
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This activity guide includes instructions on how to build a "Shake Table" by mounting an eccentric mass (off center) on the shaft of a small dc motor.
Laser Lissajous: Binder Clip Version
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In this activity, learners use a laser pointer and two small rotating mirrors to create a variety of fascinating patterns, which can be easily and dramatically projected on a wall or screen.
Motor Effect
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See what force a magnet has on a wire that has current running through it: will it push it, pull it, or will nothing happen? This is the foundation of a simple electric motor.
Magnetic Shielding: Magnetic lines stop here
Source Institutions
Testing magnets is always a fun pastime, but here, we're going beyond "will it attract the magnet?" In this activity, learners will investigate which materials allow magnetic fields to pass through or
Magnetic Lines of Force
Source Institutions
With a magnet, iron fillings, and a bottle, you can create a cool demonstration about magnetic lines of force: the fillings will arrange themselves within the magnet's magnetic field.
Piezoelectric One-Way Remote
Source Institutions
In this activity, learners construct a device out of a piezoelectric igniter, like those used as barbecue lighters.