Draft Activities

These activities are definitely under development!

They are based on unedited handouts from Teacher Institute Saturday workshops plus other lectures I have presented.

The activities are usually grouped together for a lecture or a workshop.

 


Inquiry

PVC workshop 13 March 1999

Spinning Cylinder

Spin a marked cylinder cut from PVC pipe and notice how a stable triangle of images is produced. Explore how the stable pattern is created.

 

Bay Area Institute August 23, 2004

The role of inquiry in the high school science classroom.

This is the outline for my panel presentation in which I describe the use of inquiry in our high school science teacher professional development workshops.


Optics

Family Fling 2005

Use a Minimag Light to explore light and shadow.

Make shadow puppets, create a 3-D afterimage, find the locaion of light rays, and use phosphorescent paper to draw temporary images.

Costa Rica 2005

Workshops on Color in and Patterns in Nature

Preliminary ideas.

Mirror activities for Chabot Science Center

23 Feb 2005

 Palo Alto Junior Museum Color activities. 2005

Color

Diffraction Grating, look through it at lights.
View a Spectrum with a CD
Look at lights reflected in a CD.
Project a Rainbow with a CD
Diffraction Grating project a spectrum with an overhead.
CD spectra, an introduction.
CD spectroscope make it from a tube.

A workshop presented at RAFT 15 May, 2004.


Project a rainbow-like spectrum with a CD.

Color

A workshop at RAFT on using colored filters, diffraction gratings and compact discs to see color.

Red and Green filters, look through.
Red-Green afterimage,
Diffraction Grating, look through.
Diffraction Grating project a spectrum.
CD spectra, an introduction.
CD spectrometer, make it! --->
CD project spectrum

compact disk spectrometer

Saturday Workshops Spring 2000

Color Workshop at RAFT

Red-Green filters
Green Bananas

See also the Colors of Nature activities

The Resource Area for Teachers has great classrooms for workshops and a fantastic set of teacher supplies.

Halloween Science, 30 October 1999

Fluorescence and Phosphorescence

Explore color with a diffraction grating.

From the Astronomy day April 24

A list of spectra to explore with your diffraction grating.

Laser Light

Explore the nature of laser light

  • Measure the spread of the beam,
  • Use a diffraction grating to show that the laser has nearly one frequency.
  • look at the polarization of the beam.
  • look at the unique speckle in a disk of laser light, this means that the light in the beam is in phase.

Laser workshop May 1

Magnetic Optical Bench

A pointer laser is mounted onto a dead lantern battery using a binder clip and magnet.

laser mounted on lantern battery with binder clip and magnet

Laser workshop May 1

Fresnel lens and laser

Explorations of the light bending properties of a Fresnel lens using a pointer laser mounted on a magnetic optical bench.

 

fresnel lens and laser set up

 

Laser workshop May 1

Scan a Laser

A pointer laser can be scanned by hand so that its dot of light bounces off a mirror. The bounce of the dot of laser light is used to explore the optics of mirrors.

a pointer laser is scanned into a mirror

Laser workshop May 1

Scan a Laser: lens

A pointer laser can be scanned by hand so that its dot of light bends through a lens. The dot of light is used to explore the optics of lenses.

Camera Dissection

Take apart a disposable camera. Figure out its mechanics and optics.

Mirrors and Right Left Reversal.

A real hands-on activity, exploring mirrors and right-left reversal.

Lecture/Workshop Costa Rica 2003

Lecture: Orbits, The three moons of Earth.

Workshop: Color and Light


Dance of Cruithne and Earth


Sound

Atomic Opera

A workshop on the atomic bomb and the acoustics of opera singing.

ASTC San Jose 2004
AAPT Sacramento 2004

The Whirly presentation.

Iron Science Teacher at the NSTA National Convention 2003

I used the secret ingredient of NSTA convention catalog covers to make a huge bell for my straw oboe. The sound that comes out is astonishing.

Paul Doherty plays the straw oboe with the giant bell at the NSTA

Sounds at Davies Symphony Hall

Teachers explore the acoustics of the hall, play their own instruments, build some instruments and learn about decibel meters.

click photo to enlarge ->

Davies Symphony Hall

San Francisco Symphony

Workshop 20 March, 2004

NSTA San Diego

Presenters from science museums gave presentations to teachers waiting in line to register. I showed the science of singing corrugated tubes.

Whirly Music

Thanks to David Heil for arranging the presentations.


Electric

Elecricity

A Saturday workshop on batteries, bulbs, meters and solar cells. Presented at the Exploratorium and at RAFT.

SFUSD Electricity, Magnetism, and Light

Two workshops, by Paul Doherty, April 2005

Motor Generator

When you charge a large capacitor with a hand crank generator then stop turning the crank the discharging capacitor pushes the handle in the same direction you are turning.

Battery Activities

RAFT workshop Feb 12, 2005

CSTA San Jose 2004 with Don Rathjen

Electricity and Magnetism
Collide Magnets on a Pencil
Electrostatic levitation, fly a nylon hydra
and more

Alumni Institute in Electricity and magnetism

Don Rathjen and I share our Electricity and Magnetism activities with teachers.

teachers explore electric charge

Invited presentation of Electricity Demos

Presented at the American Association of Physics Teachers Meeting in San Diego, January 2001, for the Apparatus Committee.

I showed several explorations including the glowing nichrome wire driven into resonant oscillation with a magnet pictured at left.

magnetically driven vibrating glowing wire

Paul Doherty and Don Rathjen present

Batteries and Bulbs

Batteries, Bulbs and Meters

A workshop given at the Exploratorium Teacher Institute, 7 October, 2000.

Modesto's Workshops summer 2000

AlAir Battery

A powerful battery from simple chemicals.

Electricity workshop March 19

Flying Hydra

Plastic packing twine (polyethylene) from an Asian market is shredded to make a "hydra." When rubbed with wool this negative hydra is repelled by a negatively charged PVC rod. The hydra can be flown around.

shredded polyethylene wrapping tape is flown by electrostatic repulsion by a PVC rod

Electricity workshop March 19

Flying Tinsel

A loop of tinsel, aluminized mylar, is flown by electrostatic repulsion from a charged PVC rod. The rod is rubbed with wool. The charge leaps from the rod to the tinsel.

a tinsel loop is flown by electrostatic repulsion from a charged PVC rod

Electricity workshop March 19

Tape Electroscope

Two pieces of Scotch Magic Tape are stuck together and pulled apart to produce a positive and negative charged tape. These tapes can be used to test other objects for charge.

Electricity workshop March 19

Electrostatic Motor

A meter stick is balanced on a convex surface, lens or watch glass. The stick is attracted into rotation by a charged PVC rod. It can be made to rotate like a motor.

a meter stick balanced on a watchglass is rotated by electrostatic repulsion

Camera Electronics

Take apart a disposable camera. Figure out its electronics.

Solar Cells

RAFT workshop 15 Nov 2003

Exploring solar cells with meters, motors, LEDs and the sun.


Flight

CMSESMC
Conference 3 Mar 01

Paper Airplane Science Investigate what makes a stable plane

Styrofoam AirplaneTurn a Styrofoam plate into an airplane one step at a time.

Terminal Velocity

Styrofoam Airplane

Turn a Styrofoam plate into an airplane one step at a time.

Terminal Velocity

Paper Airplane Science Investigate what makes a stable plane

Activities from the Flying Things Workshop, 28 Oct 2000


Magnetism

CSTA San Jose 2004 with Don Rathjen

Electricity and Magnetism
Collide Magnets on a Pencil
Electrostatic levitation, fly a nylon hydra
and more

New Activities in Magnetism

The Force Between Two Magnets

Magnetic Accelerator

 

What Physicists Do, Developing Magnetism Exhibits at the Exploratorium

Physics Seminar at Sonoma State University, 27 Oct 2003

Right image shows a magnet floating between copper jaws. It's held up by a magnet above and stabilized by eddy currents.

Magnetism of the Planets

A workshop given at Chabot Observatory, 19 march 2002.

Study the Magnetic field of the earth, and learn the latest about the magnetic field of other planets.

Magnetism Workshops at Technorama

My Technorama Forum Lecture on Magnetism.

2000 Years of magnetic discoveries, in 40 minutes.

Here are teacher workshop activities on magnetism.

Magnet activities

Hanging a magnet and pointing north.

Paul hangs a magnet at technorama

Magnetic Tape, Use cassette tape to make a digital tape recorder.



Magnetism Workshop for CAIS
10 March 2003

Where's North?, Repeat an experiment that could lead to the discovery of the compass.

Magnetic Poles, Use magnets to feel the forces that magnetic poles exert on each other.

Magnetic Globe, Explore the magnetic field of the earth at its surface and in space.

Magnetic Tape, Use short pieces of cassette tape to model the magnetic field of the rocks underlying the ocean.


The auroras of earth are created by the magnetic field of the earth.

Magnetism of the Planets, What does it take to give a planet a magnetic field?

Magnetism Exhibits at the Exploratorium.

Physics Seminar at Hayward State University, 1 December, 2003

Iron filings show a magnetic field of a transparent globe with neodymium magnets inside.

Images

Northern California
AAPT

After my presentation, I was awarded the NCAAPT Distinguished Teacher Award for 2002.

New and Classic Explorations
by Paul Doherty

RAFT Dinner 2003

Magnetism activities using RAFT Donut Magnets.

Donut magnets oriented to repel each other and stacked on a pencil are shown here.

TI Magnetism Workshop
21 September 2003

Magnetic Atmosphere Model

A stack of donut magnets on a pencil models the Earth's atmosphere.

Silent Collisions

A pencil with a steel eraser holder serves as a test bed for collisions.

LAUSD workshop 15-20 Nov 2004

LAUSD Keynote, 6 Dec 2004

On magnetism, color vision and more.

Transistor


Electromagnetism

Electromagnetism
Exploratorium Workshop at RAFT, 8 March 2003

We'll explore electric current and magnetism, making electromagnets, electric motors, speakers, and more.

Electromagnet., wind wire onto a bolt to pick up paper clips.

Circles of magnetism, Surround a vertical wire with compasses. Notice the magnetic field when electric current flows in the wire.

Stripped Down Motor, Make a current carrying coil of wire rotate in a magnetic field.

Ammeter, measure electric current.

Speakers, turn electric current into motion and thus sound.


Mechanics

Body Mechanics

A workshop on muscles and levers
Twas the 18'th of April 2005,

Click on the image to see a larger image.

Force and Motion

PVC ramp launcher

Use scales, rulers and stopwatches to measure force and motion.

Action/Reaction

A workshop presented at the Exploratorium 1 May, 2004.

Newton's Laws

Scales

Strings

Strings and Pulleys

A Saturday Workshop for 6 October 2001

Springs, strings, pulleys and more.

Car Science, 20 Nov 1999

Check out my activity book
Glove Compartment Science

Reaction Timer, measure your reaction time with a ruler

Accelerometer, measure acceleration with a protractor

Tired Weight weigh your car by measuring tire pressure and contact area

Highway Seismometer, measure road bump magnitude with a pen and paper.


reaction timer

Paul Doherty and Modesto Tamez present

Pendulums

A workshop given at the Exploratorium Teacher Institute, 23 September 2000.

teachers building the coupled pendulums

Frictionless CD puck

A balloon can be attached to a sport water bottle mouthpiece which is glued to a film can lid with a 1/16 inch hole in the center, which is glued to a compact disk. To make a frictionless airpuck.

 

Drop a Slinky

The top of a dropped slinky will accelerate down faster than the acceleration of gravity.

 

Newton's Laws

Scales

Strings

Strings and Pulleys

A Saturday Workshop for 6 October 2001

Springs, strings, pulleys and more.

Chain Reaction

The Growing Domino Fall.

One domino can knock over a domino that is 50% larger in all dimensions. Do this 8 times in a row and a small domino can knock over a huge one.


Modern Physics

100 Years of Physics

3 Exploratorium Webcasts

Einstein shows that atoms exist using the mathematics of Brownian Motion

Einstein invents the quantum nature of electromagnetism later called the photon

And Einstein invents spacetime.

All three were presented together as a lecture in Auburn California.

Atomic Opera

A workshop on the atomic bomb and the acoustics of opera singing.

Relativity

In honor of the 100'th anniversary of Einstein's great year of 1905 here are some explorations of relativity.

A freefall toy

The limits of Science

Everything in the Universe graphed on a Mass versus radius plot.

Lecture for Los Gatos High School, November 2004

Modern Physics workshop November 13, 20004

A workshop in honor of the World Year of Physics , 2005. and Einstein's Marvelous Year 1905.

AAPT 2003

Exporting Exploratorium Exhibits to Schools and Beyond.
by Linda Shore, Paul Doherty, Don Rathjen.

Here are links to the Explorations I presented.
Gravity Well
Bohr Atom
Particle Accelerator


Thermodynamics

Temperature, TI workshop 20 Apr 2002

What is Temperature, a history

Negative temperatures, a model

Liquid crystal thermal postcard activities.

Energy Explorations
Exploratorium Workshop 15 Feb 2003

Curt Gabrielson is just back from East Timor where he created a Snackbook of activities to help children learn science. He's going to show us his activities with bottles, cans, marbles and coins.

Don Rathjen will show us What's a Watt

Paul will do some simple activities on falling dominos and colliding magnets.

Cold Spot

The Exploratorium Staff goes to the Hot Spot exhibit with a block of dry ice to investigate whether they can make an image of a cold spot and fell it with their hands.

Read about our experiments and make your vote about whether the cold spot will be felt or not.


Meteorology

Climate Catastrophes

Workshop 27 March, 2004

Water and Weather

A workshop presented November 8,2003

Boyling Water, boil water at room temperature in a syringe, image right>

Cloud in a Bottle and more.

Weather Workshop, 6 November 1999

Liquid Crystal thermometer

Solar Thermal

Boyle-ing Water

Explore conduction, convection and radiation with a liquid crystal thermometer.

 

liquid crystal thermometer showing conduction


Geology

Rocks

Paul's thoughts on rocks to accompany a TI workshop, April 22, 2005

Waves

March 19, 2005 a TI workshop

Fossils, TI Workshop 29 Oct 2004

Radioactive dating of fossils modeled using coins and dice.

Radioactive Decay Math Root

Best of Planetary Geology

A TI workshop, 16 Nov 2002

Slinky Models of Earthquake Waves

Volcano Model combine two liquids to make a urethane foam in a sand box and model viscous volcanic eruptions.

Eric will do "Who's Fault is it" and exercise in which the epicenter of an earthquake is located, and "Earthwalk," in which a scale model of the earth's interior is constructed.


Modesto will do an activity with magnetic tapes to model the magnetic striping on the ocean floor. Magnetic Tape

Geology Institute
2002

The geology of the earth and planets.

Paul Doherty, Modesto Tamez and John Lahr

2002 geology and outdoor science institutes

Summer Institute 2003
Conceptual Physical Science
with Paul Doherty and Don Rathjen

Geology with Paul Doherty and Eric Muller


Where to find stuff

TI Supply carts, these crucial carts full of simple supplies are necessary when doing hands-on science.
TI Bulk Storage These materials are in the gray cabinets

Geology activities to accompany the annual AGU meeting in San Francisco.

Highway Seismometer, record the seismogram of a highway

Pasta Quake, illustrate a magnitude scale with pasta

Liquefaction, vibrate a pan of sand to make it a liquid.

Resonant rods, resonances of buildings versus height.

Types of seismic waves illustrated with a slinky.


Astronomy

Ancient Astronomy

Design and build your own Stonehenge!

Observe the yearly pattern of sunrises and sunsets as well as the two-decade pattern of moon rises and moon sets.

Moons near and far

A new perception activity based on a Cassini image of Titan and Dione.

AAPT Astronomy Share-A-Thon Activities

The Cassini Mission

The Cassini spacecraft arrived at Saturn orbit, July 1. The Exploratorium has a Saturn-Cassini web page. I will host webcasts in which I show hands-on science explorations to aid in understanding Saturn, its rings, and moons.

Webcast 1: Phoebe, Enigmatic Moon of Saturn.

Webcast 2 The Rings of Saturn

Webcast 3 Titan, giant Moon of Saturn

Webcast 4, Saturn the Planet

Planetary Physics 2004, with Paul Doherty, Eric Muller and Eric Wegryn.

Mars, Venus, Saturn and Comet Wild 2


Paul at the Cafe Scientifique.

Costa Rica 2004

As the guest of Cientec I presented three lecture/workshops.

A Cafe Scientifique about Mars, I will show images of Mars and allow guests to see, hear, smell and taste what it would be like on Mars. A Cafe Scientifique is more like a scientific discussion than a lecture.

Mars workshop. The scientific discoveries of the Mars Rovers.

Patterns in Nature Lecture, Based on the Book Patterns in Nature for which I was science advisor and illustrated by my own images combined with hands-on activities.

Magnetism Workshop, a workshop investigating the nature of magnetism and the earth.

Mars Webcasts at the Exploratorium

View from the Surface

Martian Rock Climbing

Camping on Mars

Martian Snowflakes

Mission Update

Playing on Mars

Human Senses on Mars

Mission update 2/14

Paul and Ron in the webcast theater with the Mars Rover model, and a cart full of science demos.

Placer Nature Center

Bringing Mars Down to Earth.

RAFT

Mars Explorations

Science Fiction Museum, 26 June, 2004

A workshop on Mars for teachers at the Science Fiction Museum in Seattle.

Bringing Mars Down to Earth

A lecture presented in Italy for Astronomy Week, in April 2004. The lecture was given in Naples, Rome and Perugia.

Physics at the Exploratorium

This lecture was given in Pavia and Naples.


Burning magnesium in CO2

June 7, 2004

Transit of Venus Program at the Exploratorium

See the crushing effects of the hot, dense Atmosphere of Venus, see what happens when sulfuric acid rain touches carbohydrates, feel a simulated air blast from a meteor on Venus.

by Paul Doherty and Eric Muller

Magnesium metal burns inside a block of dry ice.

Astronomy Day

A workshop presented at the Exploratorium on 8 May 2004.

The Transit of Venus and the Exploration of Mars

The size of Mars. Modeled in clay.


Above, 1882 transit of Venus,
Lick Observatory.

Orbits

A workshop at the Exploratorium,

13 December 2003

Solar Science, TI workshop 4 May 2002

Solar Thermal, measure the energy of the sun.
Measure the distance to the sun.

Solar Brightness, measure the brightness of the sun.

Project a partial solar eclipse, San Francisco, June 10, 2002, 5:15 through 7:15 PM.

Starting July 30, 2001

A Two Week Workshop on Astronomy.

by Linda Shore and Paul Doherty

 

Paul views images of the sun known as "sunballs" projected by pinholes between leaves the day after the Solstice eclipse of 2001 in Africa.

Paul with sunballs Zambia

Expansion of the Universe
The scale and expansion of the Universe.

Universe City,Size
City Universe,time
Balloon Universe
Expansion of light
The Center of the Expanding Universe

What Do You See?
Look at a photo from the space telescope.

How do you know that?
How do we know how bright a star is? What stars are made of?

Seeing IR
Use a digital camera to see normally invisible infrared and ultraviolet light.

Seeing

Use wavy bathroom shower plastic to simulate twinkling of stars.

In preparation for the Hubble Telescope segment of the Origins project at the Exploratorium I developed the above workshops and activities for the staff.

Tides and Tidepools

At Fitzgerald Marine Reserve.

TI workshop 23 Nov 2003

Image right, tide carved rocks in the Bay of Fundy.

Saturday Workshops Spring 2000

Tides Workshop

Given on the beach in Santa Cruz

Sundials

Rectified Globe, place an earth globe in the sun, orient it just right and see on the globe how the sunlight falls on the earth at this moment.

The Dance of the Earth and the Sun. Do a dance to understand how the day isn't always 24 hours long.

A Teacher Institute Workshop

13 October 2001

Orbits and Freefall

A presentation to project ARISE teachers and students at Shasta College. About freefall and life aboard an orbiting space station.

29 September 2003

Lecture/Workshop Costa Rica 2003

Lecture: Orbits, The three moons of Earth.

Workshop: Color and Light


Dance of Cruithne and Earth

Astronomy Day

Cratering,
When steel balls impact salt they create simple craters.

Icy Bodies, Small bits of dry ice create comet like patterns when they float on water.


Craters in salt and spice.


Mathematics

Mathematics of Science Exhibits

A lecture and workshop for mathematics and science teachers in Helena Montana, 21 Oct 2004.

Activities from the Mathematics Workshop 4 Nov 2000

Mobius, Count the edges and sides of twisted paper strips.

Mobius Collisions, collide two Mobius strips, analyze the results.

Mobius Decay, look at the results of Mobius decay.

Mobius Dissection, Cut twisted paper strips in half, but predict the outcome first.

Mobius Space Travel around a Mobius Space, watch out for right-left conversions.

Mobius Article, An article from the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.

Glide Ratio, the ratio of the distance traveled to the height fallen by a glider.

Valentines science, 13 Feb. 99

Cardioid,

How to draw a cardioid with two disk magnets. How to plot a function that describes a cardioid.
r = 1 - sin(t)

 

Bicycles

7 Nov 99

Bicycle Gear Mathematics

 

 

Magnetic Tape, Use small strips of magnetic recording tape and magnets to explore binary numbers, the ASCII code, and digital magnetic recording.

Reaction time, measure your reaction time by dropping a ruler.

Mars Calendar and Clock, by inventing a clock and calendar for Mars you may appreciate the earth clock and calendar more. Learn how too deal with remainders, after all the earth year is approximately 365.25 days long.

Clay Mars, make a model f the earth and mars with clay and explore how volume depends on diameter

Clay Moon. make a model f the earth and moon with clay and explore how volume depends on diameter

Multiplication blocks, If you make blocks with the correct side lengths, when the 2 block is placed beside the 3 block the two blocks will be the same length as the 6 block. The secret is to make the lengths of the sides of the blocks the logarithm of the number on the block.

Pendulum Snake, make a series of pendulums which start together, drift into seeming chaos and then return to swing together again.

 Measuring the Brightness of the Sun, use a 150 Watt light and a piece of paper with a grease spot on t to measure the power of the sun.

Transit of Venus Math, When Venus passed between the sun and the earth astronomers were able to use high school geometry and trigonometry to measure the size of the solar system in 1761.Transit of Venus Math, When Venus passed between the sun and the earth astronomers were able to use high school geometry and trigonometry to measure the size of the solar system in 1761.

Falling Dominoes, A falling domino can knock over a domino that is 1.5 times thicker higher and wider. Then this domino can knock over a larger one. This exponential growth of a series of nine such dominos can easily knock over a domino that will release a billion times the energy or the first, small, domino.

Gravity powered calculator, in honor of Galileo who knew that 1+3 = 4 and that 1+3+5 = 9 and so on. Drop a line with weights spaced 1,3,5,7 ... to hear a constant rhythm.

Metric Prefixes, Play around with metric prefixes.

Bouncing Balls, drop a tennis ball on top of a basketball and watch the surprising result of the collision. This models what happens when a spacecraft gets a gravitational boost to its orbit by "colliding" with a planet.

Radioactive Decay Model: A large audience is needed perhaps 256 people. Each of them flips a coin. If it comes up tails they clap and sit down, heads they flip again. The sound of clapping is the sound of radioactive decay. If the coin comes up heads 5 times in a row the person flipping it stops. Eventually, 8 people or so remain standing holding coins that have come up heads 5 times in a row. What will happen when they flip the coins again?

Bouncing Ball, Bounce a ball and listen to its pattern of bounces. If each bounce takes 1/2 the time of the previous bounce then we have a series in time of 1,1/2,1/4, 1/8... which leads us to one of Zeno's paradoxes there are an infinite number of bounces in a finite time interval. Make a recording of count the bounces. Do it with a metal can, a balloon, and a marble.


Computers

Many people consider computers as the cure to all of education's problems. I consider them as one of a vast number of tools which can be used to help people learn. When I was invited to speak to teachers once on how to use computers in science teaching I began with these two heretical activities.

In many schools there is no money available to buy a stroboscope or a good source of polarized light. However there is money available to buy computers. In these two activities we show how to use computers as stroboscopes and as sources of polarized light!

Polarized light from a laptop computer

Desktop computer stroboscopes.

 

Screen Savers on Tech TV

Here are links to the activities that Paul did on the Screen Savers television program.

Computer Screen stroboscope.

Polarized flat panel computer screens.


Chemistry

Atoms, Elements, and the periodic table

A TI workshop, 9 Nov 2002

Energy Levels of a Chair find the energy level diagram of a wooden chair.

The Bohr atom, Use an inverse square force well (sold as a gravity well) to explore the energy levels of atoms .

Changing Energy Levels, Use a rubber band and a paper plate to model the energy level changes of an electron in an atom.

Film can periodic table Make your own periodic table model with film cans full of pennies.

Filmcan Periodic Table

Chemistry Blowout 18 Nov 2000

Burn a Peanut
An activity from the Food Science Workshop 21 Oct 2000

Counting Calories
A web page on how scientists count calories in food.

Water Workshop 27 October 2001

Eric Muller presented his newly developed activity about electrolysis of water.

I presented two activities:
Boiling water at room temperature in a syringe.
and on surface tension.
Floating Coins


Exnet

Exnet Trainings

Exnet is a partnership of museums who have sets of Exploratorium Exhibits. Here are some activities associated with these exhibits which we do at teacher professional development workshops at the Exploratorium.

Exhibit Set 1, Omniplex, Oklahoma, March 2005

AMNH, Exhibit set D, New York.

Exhibit Set A (Draft) Los Angeles

Exhibit set #2 (Draft) Rochester NY

Exhibit set #3 (Draft) COSI Toledo

Exhibit Set #5 (Draft) Fort Worth

Rochester Exhibit Explorations

Here are some of the lessons from exhibits including
Gravity Well.
Pendulum Snake
Relative Motion Pendulum

Orlando Science Center

Here are the written versions of activities I presented at a science lecture for teachers and also on the floor of the museum, on the 24'th of August 2002.


CILS

CILS day 1

A two week workshop exploring Informal Learning using Science Exhibits.

Paul Doherty

ILC 2003 The Informal Learning Certificate program presented by CILS at the Exploratorium.

What do you see?

Here are my explorations first using exhibits and then using exhibits which have been converted to simple classroom explorations.


Summer Institutes

Attend a Summer Institute on the Web.

On June 28, 2004 I start teaching a month-long workshop for high school physics teachers. This year will be the 22 nd time I have taught this institute.

Join me each day to see what questions we ask.

Each day is full of explorations of a specific topic. Here is the plan, we'll see what actually happens!

Teachers explore shadows
Teachers making images of the sun with pinholes made by crossing their fingers.

TI Supply carts, these crucial carts full of simple supplies are necessary when doing hands-on science.

TI Bulk Storage Cabinets.

Paul's Notes

Planetary Physics 2004, with Paul Doherty, Eric Muller and Eric Wegryn.

Mars, Venus, Saturn and Comet Wild 2

Summer Institute 2003
Conceptual Physical Science
with Paul Doherty and Don Rathjen

Geology with Paul Doherty and Eric Muller


Where to find stuff

TI Supply carts, these crucial carts full of simple supplies are necessary when doing hands-on science.
TI Bulk Storage These materials are in the gray cabinets


Miscellaneous

CSET

Teacher workshops to prepare for the CSET exam.

GIREP 2005

A lecture and presentation for the physics conference in Ljubljana Slovenia.

Bay Area Institute 2005

Using Exhibits to Teach Science Content in Teacher Professional Development Workshops

LIGO 2005

A workshop on motion, waves and interference of light.

Scientific Models

April 9, 2005 a TI workshop on models of scientific phenomena.
A model for polarized light.
A model for electric current using magnets.

Syphon physics, an explanation of how syphons work.

Tidal Evolution, how moons synchronize their rotation

San Mateo Teacher Workshop, 2005

Northern California AAPT, 6 November 2004

American Association of Physics Teachers

New Explorations from the Exploratorium

Paul Doherty and Don Rathjen

Popular Errors

Polar Bear fur is fiber optic. NOT

Glass is a liquid. NOT

Urban Legends of Science

Workshop 7 February 2004.

CMSESMC Keynote Presentation 7 March 2004

Doing science with inexpensive materials.

Coming Soon.

Bringing Mars Down to Earth

A lecture presented in Italy for Astronomy Week, in April 2004. The lecture was given in Naples, Rome and Perugia.

Physics at the Exploratorium

This lecture was given in Pavia and Naples.


Burning magnesium in CO2

Exploratorium booth

NSTA , Atlanta April 1, 2004

ARISE Teachers: January 16, 2003

Day 1 Chemistry:
Ice Balloons
Soap driven convection in milk.

Day 2 Geology
Journey to the Center of the Earth

National Educators Workshop
15 Oct 2002

Here are the written versions of explorations of magnetism and sound I presented at the science workshop for teachers.

Screen Savers on Tech TV

Here are links to the activities that Paul did on the Screen Savers television program.

Computer Screen stroboscope.

Polarized flat panel computer screens.

Origins at CERN

Hands-On activities to accompany the Origins Webcast about the particle accelerators at CERN.

Check out the particle accelerator in your home.

Coming, Origins, Hubble

Raft Dinner

Eric Muller and I provide science entertainment at dinner for RAFT

Water Waves

The Origin of Water Waves, putting oil n water.

A part of a physics of surfing workshop given by the Exploratorium Teacher Institute and club Ed at the beach in Santa Cruz, 15 October, 2000.

Surfing Science

Is now available on the Exploratorium website! Go To Surfing Science.

Draft explorations

Physics of Surfing

Wave speeds in practice

Wave speeds in Theory

Sweden Spring 2000

Activities from Sweden

Buoyancy, compare aluminum foil to crumpled aluminum foil.

Candles in a jar, observe candles at different levels in a jar go out one by one.

Old Water Glass, Tip an inverted glass full of water covered by acetate. Water leaks out to be replaced by air.

Nose Cone, Look through a cone and find depth perception difficult.

Dry Tongue, dry taste buds don't work

Bouncing Egg, bounce an egg off a basketball and watch out.

Mica, heat mica and it will expand.

Pump, make a pump in a film can.

Colored Shadows Mirror, a mirror at the colored shadows exhibit is fun.

Spoon Rattleback Spin a bent spoon and watch it stop spinning and reverse its motion.

Bubbles in a Bottle A 2 Liter bottle can be filed with soap bubbles. Study the bubble patterns.

Candle in a vacuum Burn a candle in a vacuum jar. Notice how the flame changes in low pressures.

Two Head Harp Two people can share the sound of a head harp.

Electric Dill Use dill weed in oil to show electric fields.

Magnetic Push-Ups make one magnet fly over another.

Microwave activities. These activities may be dangerous.

Ball Bounce in a Mirror, Bounce two balls at the same time, one in front of a mirror and one behind. Stop bouncing one and ...

Electrostatic clearing of mist, Use a Van deGraaf to charge up your finger then use the finger to clear away mist.

Right and left, explore the meaning of right and left.

Right and left in 3 different mirrors. Explore what flat, cylindrical, and spherical mirrors do to right and left.

Vacuum Bottle Collapse A Vacu-vin is used to collapse a plastic bottle over and over again.

Attract a water surface electrostatically A bulge can be raised in a water surface using electrostatic attraction.

depth perception through a nose cone
Nose Cone

Model Madness, Nov 13, 1999

In Using Models as in living life
the most important thing is to know
when to stop.

Magnetic Atmosphere Model

Domino Model of a Nerve Impulse

Electric Current Model

Energy Levels of a Stool

magnet model of te atmosphere
magnet model of the atmosphere

 

NSTA Philadelphia 2003

Iron Science Teacher

Battle NSTA conference books

Straw Oboe

Explo Booth Demos

Exponential Dominos

Floating magnets in copper.

Exploring Space with Light

A two part exploration inspired by the art of James Turrell. Offered in collaboration with the Sonoma County Museum.


From my Books

I developed these workshops based on books written by Pat Murphy and me.

Patterns of Nature

Colors of Nature

 

Scientific Explorations with Paul Doherty

©2001

31 January 2001