How much do we really notice?

During training today, we looked at this exhibit but didn’t really get to finish discussing the phenomenon. This exhibit demonstrates something called change blindness, where the brain usually doesn’t notice changes in a picture when a small pause interrupts the visual field. The scene on the ExplOratorium exhibit cycles through photographs of a [...]

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The Cause and Solution

Explainers constantly push the limits of creativity in the expression of culinary arts, including the possible invention of bbq-ed bacon last Saturday at Sylvia’s house. Additionally we are known to utilize scientific processes in our day-to-day lives.
The weekend after next, let’s combine these two powers to witness the conversion of carbohydrates to ethanol facilitated [...]

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Let the chameleons be!

Explainers! This is a call to arms, because the Creation Museum is about to open, so I think it is more important than ever that we as explainers are well educated on evolution, and ready to present its facts and figures if called upon to do so. And I am thinking that the ExploratOrium as [...]

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Maker Faire 2007: photos, photos, photos!

(For a more leisurely stroll through photos, check out my flickr set.)
As Ryan said, Maker Faire was extraordinary. The ExplOratorium booth was a mixture of high and low tech wonders, simple ideas spun out into marvelous directions. Charles’s fog pool was eerie and magical; the concept if fairly simple: fog is swirled and a [...]

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Left-hand blues

So as many of you already know, I accidentally chopped my hand open while cutting some clay (beware of clay!).  As a result, I’m noticing all the things that I usually do with my left hand that I had just assumed before that I do with my right, since I’m right handed. 
Young-Jin and I once [...]

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Magical Light Painting Adventures

Whew! What a crazy weekend. A bunch of us had a great time working at the Maker Faire on Saturday and Sunday. I’m hoping Ouigi will post a slideshow of some of his awesome pictures of the whole event (a la Scrubbing Water Clean). But until he gets the chance, let me share an activity [...]

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I am half crazy

A very cool exhibit at the Exploratorium is Talk with Daisy: it’s a computer program designed to respond to your sentences in a way that is as human-like as possible. Daisy is… how to say this without hurting her feelings… let’s just say that you are more likely to get a deeply meaningful conversation with [...]

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How Does It Feel To Talk To A Fish?

Mr Fish From Fish Phone!

Ok, I’ll admit it. I was wrong. I used to doubt the ehibit “Talk to a Fish”. I thought it was super-lame- one of the lamest exhibits on the floor. I mean, come on…it’s a flourescent pink phone in a tank with a wierd blue [...]

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Keen on Achene

Ryan, I had to confirm all that stuff we’ve been saying about dandelions. The flowers do indeed become a bundle of dry fruits containing the seed, called achenes, ready to fly fly away.

BUT! Many dandelions reproduce without fertilization. This process is called apomixis and looks like an excellent crossword word. You [...]

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So bad, it’s good.

I spent a good 15 minutes on this site, looking at all the art and laughing at the fantastic decriptions.  So many people find the concept of a hands-on museum astounding, but this flat-out blew me away.  
I took oil painting when I was 14 and was really bad.  I wonder if I’m bad enough to [...]

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