In this Issue...

- Still Curious After All These Years: Four Decades of the Exploratorium

- High-Voltage Entertainment Lights Up After Dark

- A Free Weekend of Festivities

- Operate! Surgical Tools and Techniques

- Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens on Sunday, November 15

- Play It Again, Eno

- Physics of Toys: A Knack for Snacks

- Did You Know?

Still Curious After All These Years: Four Decades of the Exploratorium
In 1969, Dr. Frank Oppenheimer opened the doors of his new museum. In 1970, the Explainer Program began—with one Explainer. In 1972, the School-in-the-Exploratorium was founded to improve K–5 education; since then, we’ve added educational programs for middle and high school teachers, museum professionals, Members, and visitors, and we work with an international community engaged in science education reform. In 1974, the Artist-in-Residence program began. In 1988, staff member Larry Shaw created Pi Day in celebration of that transcendental number, 3.14. In 1993, the Exploratorium became the first independent museum to have a Web site. And, in 2009, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Exploratorium announced a long-term partnership to bring NOAA's real-time discoveries to the public. This month, we celebrate our 40th anniversary. back to top

High-Voltage Entertainment Lights Up After Dark
After Dark, Thursday, November 5, from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. features Austin Richards, aka Dr. MegaVolt®, performing with Tesla coils, jousting with electrical arcs traveling as high as fourteen feet. Create and tame sparks of your own with Senior Scientist Paul Doherty, raise your hair with our special Van der Graff exhibit, or shock your senses with high-voltage artworks, films, and exhibits. The Tactile Dome will offer special $5 After Dark tours—first-come, first-served. back to top

A Free Weekend of Festivities
On Saturday and Sunday, November 7 and 8, free admission all weekend! Tom Noddy of Bubble Magic will blow caterpillar, inside-out, dodecahedron, and smoke-filled bubbles, while bubble experts Stirling Johnson and Brian Lawrence create iridescent sculptures and invite you to make your own bubble art. You can also build mini-exhibits, take behind-the-scenes arts and history walking tours, and see films. On Saturday, the temporal exhibit Cutting Ice Into One features a giant block of ice and a motorcycle suspended above the Skylight area for a stranger-than-friction experience, and, on Sunday, Iron Science Teacher stirs up the competition with a birthday-related ingredient. Learn more at www.exploratorium.edu/40th. back to top

Operate! Surgical Tools and Techniques
On Saturday, November 14, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., get the scoop on surgical tools and techniques from members of the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN). See demonstrations of lifesaving surgical tools and techniques, then try your own hand at a “seedectomy” using real instruments to remove a seed from a pumpkin. back to top

Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens on Sunday, November 15
Hear the story of Frank Oppenheimer, physicist, rancher, and founder of the Exploratorium. At 3:00 p.m. in the McBean Theater on Sunday, November 15, K.C. Cole shares tales from her book, Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up (2009), and discusses Frank’s life and legacy with Exploratorium Director Dr. Dennis Bartels, eminent San Francisco Chronicle science writer David Perlman, Cinema Arts program curator Liz Keim, and Exploratorium physicist Thomas Humphrey. A Q&A and book signing will follow the discussion. Admission is free for Members and is included in the price of admission for non-Members, but space is limited so reserve your seat in advance. back to top

Play It Again, Eno
From 1977 to 1992, the Exploratorium, Charles Amirkhanian, and KPFA Radio cohosted Speaking of Music, in which conversations and performances featuring artists such as Laurie Anderson, Phillip Glass, Brian Eno, and David Byrne were recorded. Speaking of Music Rewind revisits this highly regarded series with podcasts of those recordings. The first six will be available Friday, November 20. Additional podcasts will be offered on the third Friday of each month through November 2010 at www.exploratorium.edu/40th. back to top

Physics of Toys: A Knack for Snacks
From 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 21, stop by the Skylight area where the Physics of Toys team will help you build your own Exploratorium-style mini-exhibits, known as “snacks.” You’ll also see our latest publication, the revised Exploratorium Science Snackbook, filled with activities using everyday materials to create classroom-sized versions of our classic exhibits. back to top




...In its first 40 years, the Exploratorium has created more than 1,000 original interactive exhibits and artworks; located its exhibits at more than 125 science centers around the world; hosted more than 250 artists-in-residence; built a 25,000-page Web site serving more than 24 million visitors a year; and trained more than 2,000 students as Explainers. back to top