I made a stingray touch tank-NOW-what are your favorite science center displays I should try to add in miniature?

[Dmmetler]

For my next project-I'm trying to give my little critters a science center 🙂 

Edited April 12 by Dmmetler

[Terabith]

I love this!!!!

[MercyA]

Wow!!!

[Faith-manor]

This is adorable!

[Dmmetler]

Fot those interested, it's a doll wading pool from Dollar Tree, sand, clear glue (available by the gallon because kids use it to make slime), little seashells from old costume jewelry, beads, star-shaped resin gems, and cut paper. Lots of layering and drying. 

[Wheres Toto]

That is super cool.   Youngest dd LOVES LOVES LOVES touch tanks.  It's like her happy place.   I run a homeschool science center and it would be neat to do a miniature science museum at the science center (I don't have anything as cool as a touch tank, just classes, a turtle, a scorpion, and cockroaches).

[Dmmetler]

23 minutes ago, Wheres Toto said:

That is super cool.   Youngest dd LOVES LOVES LOVES touch tanks.  It's like her happy place.   I run a homeschool science center and it would be neat to do a miniature science museum at the science center (I don't have anything as cool as a touch tank, just classes, a turtle, a scorpion, and cockroaches).

You could do one where the kids create little displays/room boxes :). 

I'm tentatively planning to build this in the old Barbie townhouse, and add animal tanks and displays. Maybe a solar system model, a giant pendulum from the ceiling, a dinosaur skeleton or two .... Since it's a Barbie scale house, I have a ton of ceiling height compared to my little critters, so oversized museum displays would help to make the scale seem logical. 

 

Edited April 12 by Dmmetler

[ikslo]

Tornado!

[KungFuPanda]

The jellies!!!

wait. That’s the aquarium. How about a planetarium, bed of nails, or Van De Graaff generator?

Edited April 12 by KungFuPanda

[Dmmetler]

18 hours ago, KungFuPanda said:

The jellies!!!

wait. That’s the aquarium. How about a planetarium, bed of nails, or Van De Graaff generator?

My plan is to do some of our favorites and not be too worried about whether the actual display is at the aquarium, nature center, science center, etc. 

I started on a projector for a planetarium yesterday, and my DH peeked in

 

DH-"So, what are you making now"

ME-"Look at see if you can tell me"

DH-"You're giving them a death ray?"

.....might need to do a little work on my design!!!

[Dmmetler]

Here's the "death ray", plus two more displays (these are boxes from washi tape, so they have clear plastic lids, but the glue needs to be fully cured before I put lids on them).

[gardenmom5]

My two absolutely favorite things from the Pacific Science Center when I was a kid were:

The Galton Probability machine - which they got rid of . . .

 

The gravity well.  Spin your marbles, and watch how long they go round before dropping into the well and disappearing.  Dudeling loved it too.  Was so sorry to see it basically taken out, 

 

There was a "spinning table".  I don't remember what it was called.  Looked like something for fluid dynamics in the form of Jupiter's red spot.  The table would go either way, and the particulates inside would rotate at different speeds.  You could get different bands of particulates rotating different directions if you spun it fast one way, ,then abruptly changed to the opposite direction.

[MercyA]

Love, love, love the snake habitats!

[Dmmetler]

The science center is progressing, using cardboard boxes and plastic packaging. 

 

I suppose it makes sense that the stuff I think of first is mostly animal-related.

 

 

 

[Faith-manor]

I would be a big fan of a work table with a miniature rocket build in process. 😁

[cintinative]

What about one of those stream table/canal lock systems?

I'm amazed you can make these things!

[Dmmetler]

Added a few more displays. Need to do some painting and lots of signage, and more interior walls, but physics, space, and tech are all moving forward. 

[Dmmetler]

[Dmmetler]

[Carol in Cal.]

Working volcano model built around a miniature 1 liter bottle.

Diorama of archeologists opening a mummy case.  Maybe a cat mummy beside it?

Buoyancy tank

Rock cycle display with samples of various kinds of rocks.

 

[Eos]

On 4/19/2024 at 10:52 AM, Dmmetler said:

Added a few more displays. Need to do some painting and lots of signage, and more interior walls, but physics, space, and tech are all moving forward. 

I love these. The last one reminded me of when I was little and saw a gravity pendulum knocking over dominos one by one. I was absolutely convinced that the world would end if that pendulum stopped.

[Dmmetler]

6 hours ago, Eos said:

I love these. The last one reminded me of when I was little and saw a gravity pendulum knocking over dominos one by one. I was absolutely convinced that the world would end if that pendulum stopped.

The one that this was inspired by is at the Smithsonian 🙂 

[Carol in Cal.]

6 hours ago, Dmmetler said:

The one that this was inspired by is at the Smithsonian 🙂 

I grew up near the San Francisco one.  Never did quite figure it out!

[Dmmetler]

[Faith-manor]

43 minutes ago, Dmmetler said:

This is great!

[Dmmetler]

I'm not sure the satellite isn't too big, but the pump from an empty saline container looked right to make one. 

[Dmmetler]

The SSC physical science wing is coming together. And yes, there is a rocketry demo going on for @Faith-manor 🙂 in the space science hall. 

 

[Faith-manor]

14 hours ago, Dmmetler said:

The SSC physical science wing is coming together. And yes, there is a rocketry demo going on for @Faith-manor 🙂 in the space science hall. 

 

This is great!!!