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Little Shop Of Physics Hosts Open House, Demonstrations Feb. 28

Monday, February 16, 1998

FORT COLLINS--Colorado State University's Little Shop of Physics will set up its traveling show of unusual physics demonstrations as part of the annual Physics Bowl competition Feb. 28 on campus.

The Little Shop of Physics exhibit will run from 11 a.m.- 6 p.m. in the North Ballroom of the Lory Student Center and is free and open to the public. The exhibit features more than 80 hands-on experiments that use everyday objects to illustrate the basic principles of science. Demonstrations include levitating a bowling ball with air, using a cordless drill to generate electricity and creating sound effects with a 100-foot piece of irrigation pipe.

Brian Jones, physics instructional lab coordinator and director of the Little Shop of Physics, said the main goal of the event is to expose youth to the basic concepts of physics and science in an engaging and interesting way.

New additions include a pen laser that transmits sound, a tank with fish that seem to glow in rainbow hues, and a special mirror that lets you mix your facial features with those of a friend. In addition to the hands-on displays, there will be presentations throughout the day including "The Physics of Magic," "Physics of Martial Arts" and "The One Million Volt Tesla Coil." Also planned is a special workshop in which children can make something to take home and create their own experiments, and an ice cream social where the ice cream will be made from scratch in less than two minutes.

"These interactive demonstrations and activities provide a great opportunity for showing youth of all ages how science really shapes our daily lives," Jones said. "We welcome everyone to come and see the new and existing exhibits that are part of the Little Shop of Physics."

The Little Shop of Physics is an outreach program sponsored by Colorado State that has visited over 80,000 students statewide. The shop is run by Jones and a staff of 10 undergraduate students who design and transport the creations. The shop presents the experiments to the schools, then works with teachers to develop classroom materials that augment the experiments.

Look for details about the open house on Little Shop of Physics Web page at http://BrianJones.CTSS.colostate.edu/ or call (970) 491-5131.

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