Explore, Play, Discover: Websites, Activities, and More

Not all bubbles are made with soap!

The fact and fiction behind some bizarre gardening remedies.

Does the sun rise in the east? Not exactly.

Using a spectroscope, you may see that what appears to be a single color of light is really a combination of colors called a spectrum.

Activities and History

An introduction to spectra and to the space-based telescopes. The site includes a number of hands-on activities.

Our reactions may be trained, but the devices that make music sound "sad" are real enough.

Get a taste of how the earth's plates move.

Human corpses decay alfresco, all in the name of forensic science.

Your brain is always looking for blank spaces and filling them in. Sometimes, your brain leaps to the wrong conclusion. Then you get a surprise!

What can you do with a frozen water balloon? Plenty!

In the 1870s, an American woman could not vote. She could not own property in her own name after marriage. But she could play ball. . .

In Observance of the 50th Anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The Exploratorium is taking it outside to explore natural and human-made phenomena in and around San Francisco. Look for new episodes twice each month.

What does it take to block gamma radiation?

Why do road bikes have thin tires, while mountain bikes have fat tires?

Learn how living things get energy from dead ones in this interactive exhibit.

Design and build a musical instrument that responds to changing light.

Stand outside on a sunny day with a watch in your hand, and you can tell which way is north.

Grow marshmallows to monstrous proportions!

The more astronomy changes, the more it stays the same. This series of images juxtaposes ancient and modern study of the celestial bodies.

Before there were clocks, people used shadows to tell time!

Follow scientists looking for life in the hot springs of the Russian Far East.

The earth moves in mysterious ways

Listen to bird songs and try to figure out which are songs, which are companion calls, and which are alarms.

Find out how this extreme sport is governed by the principles of momentum, gravity, friction, and centripetal force. Learn skateboarding history, technology, and more!

Activities and History

Meet the robotic explorers that landed on Mars in 2004, and check out their tools and instruments.

Think you have a lot in common with a kiwi fruit? Genetically speaking, you do.

Try your hand at explaining symbols both modern and ancient, and then make your own.

The common ground between pickles, cheese, bread, wine, and many other foods.

Seasoned gardeners depend on a community of bacteria, worms, and insects to get the most out of their plantings. Find out why.

Download desktop wallpaper for your computer.

What happens to meat when you cook it?

Find out about bicycle brakes and balance, and calculate your stopping distance on a bicycle.

A profile of frog researcher Dr. Tyrone Hayes.

Can you tell the difference between human and nonhuman embryos?

View the full eclipse visible from China in 2008.

You may be surprised at the results of this "wimpy" workout.

Find the answers to common Sport! Science questions.

Stand outside on a sunny day with a watch in your hand, and you can tell which way is north.

Using a simple trick of perspective, you can dress your friends in tiny cutout clothing.

A Scribbling Machine is a motorized contraption that moves in unusual ways and leaves a mark to trace it's path.

Can you trust your own memory? Find out with this activity.