Brightest_Kidz: A Place 2 Learn

“Winner of a Parents’ Choice Award, Dr. Toy’s Product of Excellence Award and an iParenting Media Best Product.”

Build a model of a manufacturing plant with working tanks, pipes, valves and pump with this unique 300 piece construction set. Construct a model of an ice cream factory, a water treatment plant, a distillation plant, and many other industrial structures. Discover how a siphon works, balance the flow through the plant by adjusting the valves, and learn the basic principles of fluid dynamics. Build the structure, place the submersible pump in the tray, add water until you completely cover the inlet on the pump, and then enjoy reconfiguring the pipes, opening and closing valves and watching the action!

This is a remake of the old Kenner set with the same name. I remember getting this kit for Christmas when I was a kid. Kenner had the pump built into the base and it used 2 D batteries. I remember building the different arrangements, then using the colored dye tablets that came with the unit and watched the pump push the colored water around. I was especially engrossed with the tilt valve and the float valve. I also liked the little shut off valves and the spray heads. This is a neat kit and may be why I chose a career as a Chemical Engineer. Get one for inquisitive minds! Or get one for the big kid in your life! - Customer Review

• Build a 1/87-scale realistic hydrodynamic plant
• Uses working tanks, pipes, valves and electric pump
• Design the plant, build it and add water
• Use valves to adjust the flow
• Build several different structures – an ice cream factory, a water treatment plant, an oil refinery, a distillation plant, and more
• Ideal for middle and high school level science fair projects
  

I am not a sun worshipper. I don't like to lay out in the sun or even spend much time doing anything under a hot burning sky. I like what we call "sweater weather" - early spring and late fall are typically my favorite seasons. I do not like "sweat-er" weather so any temperature over 70 degrees F does not sit well with me. I also like storms. Big thunder storms with brilliant flashes of lightning and pouring rain. Of course I enjoy these from the safety of my home. Here's a couple of neat activities that allow you to make your own weather.
 

What you need

Black paper  

Gallon jar

Colored warm water 

Matches 

Gallon size bag of ice

What you do 

1. Tape the black paper on the back of the jar, so you can't see through the jar.

2. Fill one third of the jar with colored warm water.

3. Light the match and hold it over the jar opening.

4. After a few seconds, drop the match into the jar and cover the top of the jar with the bag of ice.

5. Record your observations.

Can you see anything happening inside the jar?

You should see a little cloud form. Repeat the experiment until you do.

Why does the cloud form?

The warm water heats the layer of air that it touches. Some of the water evaporates into the air forming water vapor. The warm air containing water vapor rises, and then cools, as it comes in contact with the air cooled by the ice. When the water molecules cool, they slow down and stick together more readily. The particles of smoke act as nuclei for “bunches” of water molecules to collect on. This process is called condensation. As the atmosphere (air) cools, water vapor suspended in the atmosphere condenses into water droplets around condensation nuclei (tiny particles of dust, ash, pollutants, and even sea salt).

From: Web Weather for Kids 

Here's a neat trick that is both funny and scientific. Did you know that it is impossible to fold any piece of paper more than nine times> You scoff? It's true! Watching your friends fall for this simple but sinister dare is only half the fun! With math as your secret weapon, it's a sure thing they won't be able to fold a sheet of paper in half more than nine times! What you'll need: any kind of paper, of any size or thickness, that can be folded in half.

What to do:

• Challenge your friends to fold a sheet of paper in half more than nine times!
• Be sure they divide the paper in half evenly on each fold. They can make the folds in any direction: along the paper's width, height, or even on a diagonal.

What happens:

  They just can't do it!!

Why this happens:

  The number of paper layers included in a fold increases through a process called geometric progression. You create two layers of paper with one fold, and with two folds you create four. Your third fold will yield eight layers, and by the time you make your seventh fold you are trying to crease 128 separate layers of paper! So a piece of paper, regardless of size and thickness, can't be folded in half more than nine times since it would be like trying to fold a book!

From: Yucky Discovery 

As long as we are on the subject of yuck, Oh Yuck! The Encyclopedia of Everything Nasty is a massive compendium of alphabetized crud that explores the science and history behind all the vile, unsavory, noxious, repulsive and icky stuff humans and animals do, this book is a great way to get students interested in science. 212 pp., softcover. Available from Science Kit.