ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
*****************************************************************************

This discussion brings up one of the things I have given some though
to, but don't really know yet what I think or how I feel about it...

I'm a pretty smart guy... I've seen Bernoulli exhibits for more than 30
years and seen and heard the term in physics classes, pre-flight
instruction classes, in learning how a sail works on a sailboat and have
even written copy for two Bernoulli exhibits... but in reality even though
I can see the phenomena and explain the phenomena, I don't really think
I understand the way the Bernoulli effect works... in many ways it is still
'magic'. It's the same with the Doppler effect and many other really great
science demonstrations and exhibits... they are great 'gee whiz' stuff,
but what is our purpose in teaching them and what do folks really learn
other than the sorta semi-scientific explanations and to say, wow I sorta
have some explanation for why a 200 ton airplane flies and why a train
sounds funny as it passes...  how is this different than saying it's because
some things are fire, air, earth and water based, as some other cultures
have said.  To the average person (and probably me too) it is only the
belief in the paradigm of science as a better way of explaining things that
these explanations have any more credibility than magic.

There are some physical principles I can convince myself I understand
like the way a lever works... it is very  concrete and I can see and touch
it... but how sound passes through solids, liquids, gasses but not vacuums
but light does... or understanding light as a particle or a wave, is still
something I have to take as faith (even though I know the words and can
convince other folks to believe that it is true.)

I'm not sure what my question or statements are about other than to say
that I'm still confused about how much we really can accomplish in getting
kids and non-scientist's (including myself) to truly understand the world we
live in rather than just being able to use scientific terms and explanations
to describe what occurs...

I would love some insight and comments from the rest of you...

Dave Taylor...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

> Subject: Re: Bernouilli exhibits
> *****************************************************************************
> I'd be interested in this as well.
>
> Other Bernoulli phenomena I've seen done well:
>
> A ping pong ball captured in a tube - blow air across the top of the tube,
> the ball rises.
> I believe Arizona Science Center did this one along with the blowing air
> between two balls to cause them to come together.
>
> Blowing horizontally across the top of a sheet with one end of an air hose
> lifts the rest of the sheet.
>
> Put a ping pong ball in the opening of a funnel, blow air through it and
> turn it upside down.  The ball remains floating in the funnel.
> One museum had a decent example of this:  they had air blowing down, you
> put a square piece of plastic (or foam - can't remember for sure) in front
> of the pipe that blew down.  The air actually kept the square piece
> floating - pinned to the top - quite cool, but I think most people probably
> didn't follow the instructions and put the square piece right against the
> downward air outlet (it doesn't work if you don't do this).  I may have
> seen this one in Durham Museum of life and science.
>
> Also for examples of Venturi principles, and other fluid flow phenomena you
> can blow tube through a pipe with multiple (2 or 3 or actually more if you
> insist) openings and drop foam balls in one opening.  Then experiment with
> capping the different openings. Airplay (by Montshire, marketed by ASTC)
> has a good version of this.
>
> As a side note, does anyone know where to get some good foam balls or other
> shapes for demonstrating these phenomena?  I love the idea of challenging
> the misconception of the shape of the blower affecting which shape stayed
> aloft...
>
> -William
>
>
> William Katzman                    "The important thing is to never stop
> questioning." -A. Einstein
> Director of Exhibits               "Are you sure about that Al?" -His wife.
> Catawba Science Center

> -----Original Message-----
> From:   Andrea Stark [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent:   Monday, August 30, 2004 6:02 PM
> Subject:        Bernouilli exhibits

> We'd like to make changes to our Bernouilli exhibit, which now consists
> essentially of several small blowers that can be moved around to keep ping
> pong balls in the air and/or "make a basket" with them.  Does anyone have
> examples of more interesting exhibits that demonstrate Bernouilli's
> principle or otherwise deal with air flow and could capture the attention
> of
> older visitors, yet be operable by younger visitors to our children's
> museum?
>
> Andrea Stark
> Executive Director
> Maine Discovery Museum
> 74 Main St., Bangor, ME 04401
> 207-262-7200; FAX: 207-947-6281
>
> www.mainediscoverymuseum.org

***********************************************************************
More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the
Association of Science-Technology Centers may be found at http://www.astc.org.
To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
message  SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
[log in to unmask]