September Program Descriptions
BODYLINK
Acid/Base Exploration
Ages: 11-13, 14-18
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Students will investigate the chemistry of acids and bases, learn what indicators are, and see what happens when acids and bases react. We’ll also learn about the acids lurking inside our bodies, and see how household chemicals affect pH.
Chemistry Puzzlers
Ages: 14-18
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Working in small groups, students will learn to use logic and problem solving techniques to identify two sets of unknown substances. In the process of solving the mysteries, they will learn about chemical properties and observe chemical reactions.
DNA Discovery
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Using laboratory procedures, students will extract DNA to see what it looks like up close and in person. The basics of hereditary traits and how genes are decoded will also be explored.
Eye Anatomy
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Students will dissect preserved cow eyes to learn about the anatomy of optics. They will also test themselves to learn about their own process of vision, from light to lens to brain lobes.
Membrane Mysteries
Ages: 11-13, 14-18
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
By investigating membranes, students will gain new insights into cells. Students will examine various types of membranes in action, determine how molecules move through them, and use chemicals to create their own model of a cell with a working semipermeable membrane.
Mouse Dissection
Ages: 14-18
Capacity: 10
Length: 50 minutes
Each student will actively dissect a preserved mouse specimen to explore mammalian anatomy. The dissection will mainly concentrate on identifying and examining organs, but muscles and bones will also be uncovered.
Polymers and Plastics
Ages: 11-13, 14-18
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Students will explore the chemistry of polymers. Demonstrations and hands-on experiments will illuminate the properties of a variety of polymers and provide insight into the process of identifying recyclable plastics.
Surface Area
Ages: 11-13, 14-18
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Students will learn about the relationship between size and surface area, and see firsthand how surface area affects chemical reactions, physical processes, and biological systems. Hands-on activities and demonstrations will show why surface area is an important concept in many scientific fields.
Water Wonders
Ages: 8-10
Capacity: 15
Length: 50 minutes
Through the process of scientific inquiry, students will get their hands wet and investigate the special properties of water. Small groups of students will work together to make hypotheses, devise experiments, and offer explanations about the phenomena encountered.
IMAX
Wild Ocean 3D–New This Year
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 340
Length: 45 minutes
Each year in the oceans off the coast of South Africa a great feeding frenzy takes place as billions of sardines migrate up the coast. The migration provides an annual food source for both life in the sea and the people living along the African shores. The film follows breaching whales, feeding sharks and diving gannets as it demonstrates how business, government and the local people join forces to protect this valuable ecological resource.
Ring of Fire
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 40 minutes
Travel the great circle of seismic activity ringing the Pacific Ocean that is home to half a billion people and three quarters of the world's 600 active volcanoes. Explore Mount St. Helens, Japan’s Mt. Sakurajima and the aftermath of the 1989 San Francisco earthquake. See how local populations living in the shadow of potential destruction cope with the imminent danger.
Dinosaurs Alive! 3D
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 340
Length: 40 minutes
Travel with scientists to the remote Gobi Desert and the deserts of New Mexico to discover fossils of ancient dinosaurs and see them come alive in IMAX 3D. Watch paleontologists unearth fossils and see how these ancient bones reveal the lives and deaths of these remarkable creatures.
Forces of Nature
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 40 minutes
Watch first hand as volcanoes erupt, earthquakes tremble and tornadoes lash the sky, and explore the origins and effects of these fascinating natural forces. A National Geographic production.
Africa the Serengeti
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 40 minutes
Witness the great migration of 1.5 million animals across 500 miles of the vast Serengeti in Tanzania and Kenya. Follow wildebeest, zebra and gazelle herds as lions, cheetahs and crocodiles lurk in pursuit. Stunning close-ups of these majestic animals chronicle life in this unique wildlife habitat.
To the Limit
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 40 minutes
Discover how some humans push their bodies to the limit – a rock climber scaling sheer cliffs, a skier racing down steep slopes, and a ballerina performing incredible feats on stage. Then go inside the body to fly through the lungs, the heart and the blood vessels.
The Human Body
Ages: 10 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 45 minutes
Witness the many hidden miracles that happen every day inside the male and female body, using remarkable inner body photography.
Beavers
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 400
Length: 35 minutes
Trek through the Canadian Rockies with a family of beavers as they fell trees, construct their lodge, evade the forest’s predators and transform their environment.
Antarctica
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 390
Length: 40 minutes
Take in breathtaking aerial and underwater footage revealing Earth's highest, coldest and driest continent. See penguins frolic on the ice and in the water. Watch scientists extract ice cores and analyze samples of our planet’s ancient atmosphere, providing clues to Earth’s changing climate.
LEARNING LAB
Bug Bytes
Ages: 2-4
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
They fly, they hop and they crawl. Bugs can be the most fascinating creatures of all. Participants will classify these little helpers, identify interesting insects, and examine real specimen as we follow a bug’s journey from egg to adult. The classroom will be buzzing after this science adventure.
My Sensational Senses
Ages: 2-4
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
Get ready to look, listen, smell, and feel your way around the Learning Lab as we use our senses to explore the world around us in this sense-sational class.
Senses Puzzle Solver
Ages: 4-7
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
Students will put their senses to the test in this puzzling experience. Using the scientific method as their guide, participants will touch, smell, listen, look and taste in order to solve this perplexing challenge.
OBSERVATORY
Our Star, the Sun
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 25
Length: 45 minutes
Discover the Sun's secrets while exploring sunspots, prominences, the Sun’s layers, solar flares and the solar wind. Students use the Observatory telescope to safely view the Sun, if the sky is clear. The Observatory is open to the outdoors, so dress according to the day's weather.
PLANETARIUM
Seasons in the Sky
Ages: 8 and up
Capacity: 140
Length: 45 minutes
Identify what’s in the current night sky while exploring phases of the Moon and seasonal sky changes.
Dark Matters
Ages: 10 and above
Capacity: 140
Length: 35 minutes
Explore a mystifying topic in astronomy – Dark Matter. Apparently empty space between stars in galaxies contains mysterious “dark matter.” We don’t know what it’s made of, and we can’t see it, but we detect its influence and are trying to understand it. Funded by a National Science Foundation Informal/Public Science Education grant through The Johns Hopkins University.
Live From the Sun
Ages: 8 and above
Capacity: 140
Length: 45 minutes
Discover the star we call Sun as we investigate sunspots, prominences and other changing features. If the sky is clear, real-time views of the Sun from our rooftop Observatory included.
One World One Sky: Big Bird’s Adventure
Ages: 7 and under
Capacity: 140
Length: 40 minutes
Visit Sesame Street and sing along with Big Bird, Elmo and his friend Hu Hu Zhu from China. Together they find the Big Dipper and the North Star and even use their imagination to travel to the Moon. Back on Earth, the trio realizes that even though they live in two different countries, they still share the same sky. Made possible by PNC Financial Services.
Happy Birthday Neptune
Ages: 8 and above
Capacity: 140
Length: 45 minutes
This month marks Neptune's first complete lap around the Sun since its 'discovery' 165 years ago. Come hear about planet motion around the Sun and consider how old you would be on a planet other than Earth.
SCI-ZONE
Advanced Bubbleology
Ages: 10-14
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Bubbles are a lot of fun, but they’re also serious science! We’ll explore the properties of bubbles and soap films, and see how they can be used to solve really tough math problems without touching a pencil.
Animal Encounters
Ages: 6-10
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Get up close and personal with the Maryland Science Center’s animal collection. Learn about each animal group and what makes them unique
Aqua Investigation
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
The Inner Harbor is a gateway to the Chesapeake Bay. In this class, students turn their magnifiers on Bay health as they explore the role of plants and soil in water quality by sampling water from the Harbor and modeling some of the factors contributing to its pollution.
Balance Busters
Ages: 7-10
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Forget tongue twisters! With balance busters, we’ll explore how our muscles, eyes, and ears work together to keep our bodies balanced – by seeing what happens when they don’t!
Cartoon Physics and Astronomy
Ages: 8/10
Capacity: 20
Length: 50 minutes
Watch clips from various animated cartoon shows to analyze whether they display good physics/astronomy conceptions or bad physics/astronomy conceptions. Some conceptions will be reinforced with live demonstrations of the science at work.
Chemistry is Cool
Ages: 8-11
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Chemical reactions occur everywhere in our lives, from your rumbling stomach to the plastics we use. Learn what a chemical reaction is while experimenting with everyday things found at home.
Circuits
Ages: 7-10
Capacity: 15
Length: 45 minutes
Electricity!! In this program we will investigate conductors, insulators and what is needed to complete a circuit. We will take a look at different types of circuits and will practice building some of our own. This program will include a few take home materials.
Collecting Sound
Ages: 8-16
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Microphones gather sounds and amplifiers make them easier to hear. Just as microscopes can show us tiny objects, what can you hear with a special microphone designed to extend our hearing?
Cool Tools
Ages: 4-7
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Maximize your senses when you use these tools. Students will use scientific tools such as microscopes, thermometers, measuring instruments, and balances to uncover clues that will help them solve a science mystery. Smiles will measure from ear to ear after this caper.
Electronics Encounter
Ages: 9-16
Capacity: 20
Length: 60 minutes
A circuit board in any electronic device is full of strange looking components in a variety of shapes and colors. What do they do and how do they do it? Find out as you perform a series of experiments at discovery stations.
Galileoscopes
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 18
Length: 60 minutes
Build your own telescope similar to what Galileo first used to see the Moon, the moons of Jupiter and the rings of Saturn. Learn how telescopes work and what the different kinds are. You can take your newly built telescope home to make your own observations.
How Big is the Solar System?
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 25
Length: 45 minutes
Develop a sense of scale among the objects in the Solar System and its place in the Milky Way Galaxy.
Inertia Matters
Ages: 7-10
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
What does it take to make a still object move? What makes moving objects change their movement or stop moving altogether? We will experiment with the property of inertia and how it affects us and everything around us.
Matter of Fact
Ages: 5-8
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
Roll up your sleeves and explore the differences and similarities between everyday objects and discuss their properties from shape to weight. Learn about solids, liquids, and gases as we conduct experiments and record our findings the way scientists do.
Moon
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Explore phases and features of the Moon and make a phase 'clock' for use at home.
Neuroscience
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 20
Length: 50 minutes
Study the human brain and nervous system. Learn about how the brain helps you see, hear, taste, smell, and touch. Other topics may include understanding how you learn, memory, language, and movement systems and how your brain works with them.
Paleo Detectives
Ages: 5-8, 9-11
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Dinosaurs and their modern-day relatives fascinate young and old alike. By observing fossils, live specimens and participating in some hands on activities, students will examine how scientists learn about prehistoric animals.
Rain, Rain, Go Away
Ages: 5-8
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
Discover how the sun and the Earth influence seasons, temperature, and wind. Put down your umbrella and pick up your anemometer as we learn how storms are formed and experiment our way around the water cycle. As a young meteorologist, you’ll learn how to observe, measure, and predict the weather.
Speaking for the Trees
Ages: 4-7
Capacity: 20
Length: 40 minutes
Join us as we explore the lessons of Dr. Seuss and The Lorax. Learn about pollution, ecosystems, and what it takes to be a true caretaker of the environment.
Temperature Blast
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 15
Length: 90 minutes
An introduction to the Maryland Science Center’s Citizen Science program, Temperature Blast. Combining technological tools with hands on scientific instruments, students explore Baltimore’s climate and a phenomenon known as the Urban Heat Island Effect.
The Science of Stuff
Ages: 10-14
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Materials scientists study the stuff that everything is made of, and design new materials with amazing properties that are helping to create incredible new technologies. Experiment with materials from plastics to memory wire, and make your own surprising material.
Think Like NASA
Ages: 9-11
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
When you’re in space even small problems can pose large challenges. This program will supply students with NASA related problems that will take creativity and ingenuity to overcome. Do you have what it takes to use simple objects to overcome extreme situations?
SCIENCE ON A SPHERE
Astrobiology
Ages: 14-18
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Is there other life in the universe? Learn what a habitable zone is and about methods of exoplanetary detection. Discuss what bodies in our own solar system could harbor life and explain why.
Astro Review
Ages: 7-18
Capacity: 40
Length: 30 minutes
Get an up close view of a variety of objects in the solar system.
Earth Alive
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 40
Length: 30 minutes
Explore what’s occurring on Earth the day of your visit, and see images from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Life Beyond Earth
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 40
Length: 30 minutes
Examine locations in our solar system – both planets and moons – where life might exist.
Scale of the Solar System
Ages: 8-18
Capacity: 40
Length: 30 minutes
Use the sphere to inspire a perspective of scale among objects in orbit around the Sun.
STARLAB
Sign of the Times
Ages: 11-13
Capacity: 20 (Ticketed Students Only)
Length: 45 minutes
Ever wonder what those ancient people were thinking when they named the signs of the Zodiac? This program will take a brief look at the history of the Zodiac and explore why people may have looked to the stars for answers to the future.
TERRALINK
Just Beachy
Ages: 8-10
Capacity: 20
Length: 45 minutes
Summer’s almost over, but there’s still time to learn the facts behind your summer vacation! What is sand? Can you really hear the ocean in a seashell? Make waves as we explore the science of the beach.