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In this issue:
*December Break Vacation Camps are enrolling all over Westchester!
*Winter After School programs now available via online registration. Sites include Manhattan, the Bronx, Scarsdale, Yorktown, Mamaroneck and more.
*Upcoming Open Houses for Mad Science summer camp at the Armonk Tennis Club!
* NYC Public Libraries offer free Mad Science programs.
*Featured Scientist and "In the Lab" Vocab. |
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December Break Vacation Camps! |
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During your school break Mad Science is offering fun half day camp programming through recreation departments all over Westchester!
Learn the science behind cotton candy, build your own robotic car or become a secret agent! Programs can range from single to multiple days and are appropriate for children currently in grades 1-5.
Click the icon above or any of the towns where we are offering camps (listed below) for more details about the programs offered and registration.
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Winter After School Clubs at lots of locations! |
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Mad Science delivers tons of clubs at schools all over New York & Westchester county, however, if our clubs aren't offered at your child's school don't worry! You can join us for fun at one of the following cool partner locations, but register soon!
 The Greenburgh Nature Center
in Scarsdale (Off Central Ave)
 Bounce. The Party Place
in Yorktown Heights
Registration Deadline Dec. 23-Club starts week of Jan. 4
 Dino Dig USA
in Mamaroneck
Registration Deadline Dec. 23-Club starts week of Jan. 4
 74th St. M.A.G.I.C.On the Upper East Side of Manhattan
Registration Deadline Jan 18--Clubs start week of Feb. 1
 The Scholastic Store
in SoHo (B'way btwn Prince & Spring)
Registration Deadline Dec 23-Clubs start week of Jan 4  The Applebee's Dinner Clubs
(includes weekly Mad Sci program and meal!)
Clubs available at locations in Battery Park City, Bay Plaza, Cortlandt, Hawthorne, Mt. Kisco, Port Chester, Riverdale, White Plains and Yonkers
Registration Deadline Dec.23-Clubs start week of Jan. 4
To register for any of the aforementioned programs click the flashing icon below!
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Free programs at the New York City Public Libraries |
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The NY Public Libraries offer free Mad Science workshops and shows to the public quite often. Check by clicking here to see which NY Public Library programs are occurring near you this winter. |
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Quick Links |
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| Mad Science of Westchester & Manhattan
Toll Free 877-948-8319 |
| madscience@optonline.net | |
| Experiment Corner (or how to look cool in front of your kids):
Diving Raisins! |
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WHAT IS CARBONATION?
Does soda pop tickle your nose? Does it make you burp? You've heard that it's carbonation, but what exactly is that and what does it do? Here's an experiment you can do to explore the crazy chemistry behind carbonation!
What You Need
* baking soda
* vinegar
* spoon
* tall clear glass
* raisins
THE EXPERIMENT
1. Dissolve 3 level tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) in a tall glass that is half full of cold water.
2. Add three tablespoons of vinegar and gently mix. The chemicals will react and fizz.
3. Add 6 raisins to the glass and wait for the fun to begin.
THE SCIENCE
When combined, vinegar and bicarbonate of soda create a chemical reaction that produces carbon dioxide (CO2) gas. Some gas will dissipate in the water and some will escape out through the surface. When the raisins are added they sink to the bottom because of gravity and because they are denser (heavier) than water. The small bubbles of carbon dioxide gas will attach themselves to the raisins and because CO2 bubbles are less dense (lighter) than the water, they act as flotation devices. The raisins then begin to rise. As they reach the surface the small bubbles of carbon dioxide gas are released. With their "flotation devices" gone the raisins then sink to the bottom and the cycle begins all over again. It is these bubbles that pop at the surface of carbonated beverages like cola and root beer and tickle your nose when you take a drink. As you drink carbonated beverages all the little CO2 bubbles get together and form big CO2 bubbles in your insides and are released in a BURP!
FURTHER INVESTIGATION
· How many raisins rise to the surface per minute?
· Is this rate of rising to the surface constant (the same) over ten minutes?
· What influence does the temperature of the water have on the rate at which the raisins rise and fall.
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Mad Science will be returning to Camp Armonk's Open House Days on the following dates:
Sat. Jan 30th from 12-2PM
and
Sat. March 6th from 12-2PM
Come check out their amazing facility & campgrounds while we demonstrate some of the cool science we'll be doing there this summer.
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Featured Scientist-
Paul Johnson, Scientist at
Scripps Research Center
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Why do we love Junk Food?
Paul Johnson and his team conducted their research to try to figure out what effect the brain has on obesity. They fed junk food like ho-hos, bacon and cheese cake to rats, and discovered that the more junk food the rats ate, the more they wanted. This is similar to the behavior of drug addicted rats.
They found that the rats needed more and more of the junk food to feel good, and when they took the junk food away and tried to get the rats on a healthy diet, they wouldn't eat.
Research like this can help scientists determine how the chemicals in the brain affect obesity, and help develop ways to avoid obesity and the health problems associated with it.
"In the Lab" Vocab (share & discuss with your children)-
Nutrition:
(noun) The process of nourishing or being nourished, especially the process by which a living organism assimilates food and uses it for growth and for replacement of tissues.
(noun) Scholarly or close and careful scientific investigation or inquiry. |
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