Adventures in Learning

The first snow of the season fell on Sunday November 2, and while it was beautiful to see for a Texas transplant, it was also a bit daunting to step out in the cold wet weather unless absolutely necessary. But I maintained my resolve! There was a special once-a-year chemistry demonstration by Dr. Bassem Shak ashiri of the University of Wisconsin at the Boston Science Museum on the heels of the American Chemical Society’s Chemistry Week, After having watched Dr. Shakashiri’s appearance at MIT on YouTube, I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to miss. And I wasn’t disappointed.

Dr. Shakashiri puts on his chemistry demonstrations at various cities nationwide to audiences of all ages as part of his Science Is Fun online laboratory. Besides the special effects created by the chemical reactions, Dr. Shakashiri also explains the principles behind them.

We were treated to some dry ice (solid carbon dioxide) sublimation making a smoke screen, acid-base indicators that turned solutions all colors of the rainbow, and even a glow-in-dark solution!

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The are a myriad of other exhibits, many of which are interactive, to explore at the Boston Museum of Science. Visitors can enjoy learning experiences in a variety of fields including agriculture, the human body, disease states, engineering, and physics. Here is a quick sampling of the various exhibits I encountered.

Chemistry Interactive Demonstrations As Part of the American Chemical Society’s Chemistry Week