9355629 Chiss This is a project of the Chicago Children's Museum to develop, evaluate and install a 2,200 square foot permanent exhibit called "Inventing: The Process of Discovery." This exhibit engages young visitors (primarily from 6-10 yrs.) in inventive creativity, testing, and development, and teaches them a meaningful sequence of activities for problem-solving. Museum educators and adolescent interns act as multi-cultural role models in exhibit areas and facilitate hands-on learning. Every year the exhibit will serve over 500,000 children, parents and teachers in Chicago's inner city and metropolitan neighborhoods. A large percentage of this audience is under-served minority children drawn from CCM's alliances with diverse ethnic community agencies. This exhibit provides a safe haven where young multi-cultural, often disadvantaged children may find support for science learning and be encouraged to grow and participate in the many science fairs, science clubs, and invention conventions available to adolescents in the Chicago area. ***
Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose seeks National Science Foundation grant support in the amount of $381,000 (55% of a total project cost of $693,188) to develop over a 24-month period a series of interactive exhibits exploring the subject of rhythm, including both obvious and lesser known manifestations within the natural and physical worlds. Drawing upon the scientific disciplines of mathematics, biology, physics and psychology, RHYTHM takes as its construct the idea of time, the articulation of which means for apprehending and understanding rhythm. Working with outside advisors in science education and specific content areas, Co-PI Michael Oppenheimer will develop and build 20 exhibits, which will be semi- permanently installed at Children's Discovery Museum and accessible to our annual visitor population of 350,000; exhibits will also be profiled on "Kids" Clubhouse," a television program developed jointly by the Museum and our local PBS affiliate, KTEH/54, viewed by 55,000 weekly. Matching funds are also being requested to support curricular materials and a traveling version of RHYTHM. Over a 2-year, 8-site tour the Association of Science and Technology Centers projects that the series will reach a national audience of more than 1,000,000 children and adults. As a comprehensive project, RHYTHM provides a compelling model for addressing imperatives articulated in Science for All Americans, the landmark report issued by Project 2061 of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Located in San Jose, California, the Museum serves an expanding urban area characterized by extraordinary ethnic diversity: Santa Clara County's 1.5 million residents are 42% non-Anglo, while San Jose is 50.8% Hispanic, Asian and Black.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Sally OsbergKoen LiemTom NielsenMichael Oppenheimer
As the world's largest single-dish radio telescope, Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico attracts thousands of visitors each year, of all ages and from many countries. Pride in the Observatory has caused local Puerto Rican organizations to contribute the funds necessary for the construction of the new Arecibo Observatory Visitor and Educational Facility. Cornell University, in behalf of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, is requesting $774,463 form the NSF-ISE over a two year period to develop and implement the exhibits and educational programs which will give life to the Educational Facility. Within the facility, we propose establishing an educational program centered on the theme "More Than Meets the Eye", which will reflect the general idea that we can study our world with tools which extend our direct sensory experience. The proposed program will explore the unseen sky and, in particular, the objects that fall under the scrutiny of a radio telescope. Specifically, the program will introduce the visitors to the electromagnetic spectrum as a means of exploration, will offer a framework of basic astronomy and atmospheric science, and will provide understanding of the function and operation of the Arecibo radio telescope. Some of Arecibo's most exciting new discoveries in the fields of radio astronomy, solar system radar astronomy and astomospheric science will be presented so that visitors can experience the dynamic nature of science.