The Holiday season is upon us and, like many schools, COSI On Wheels is on hiatus until the first week of January. This is a rare time of year when all of the Outreach Educators are in the building together. To mark this occasion, we always bake cookies for our coworkers as a thank you for all of the support they provide to us throughout the year.

The first Monday of our break, the entire Outreach Division (including our coworkers in Student Teacher Programs and Electronic Education) gathers together to assemble and distribute the cookie plates.

Once all of the cookie plates are assembled, we all sign an insert to express our thanks for all of the help and support the COSI Team provides for us.

After the card is placed inside the bag, we take a moment to lick one cookie in every package! We feel that, in the spirit of holiday giving, we want to share all of the lovely antibodies we’ve acquired from students on the road!

Once the cookie plates are finished and hermetically sealed inside their Ziploc bags, we hand deliver them to every division and partner here. These cookies will go on to provide much needed sustenance, sugar, and saturated fats to our team during this strenuous work season.

After the cookies are distributed, we have our annual gift exchange. During this cherished ceremony, we display how well we know each other by carefully selecting the PERFECT gift for the coworker that we randomly selected out of a hat a few weeks earlier. This year’s gifts ranged from a Dwight Schrute Bobblehead to White Castle Gift Cards.

In true holiday fashion, we then enjoy the traditional COSI On Wheels meal of pizza, salad, and soda while sharing stories of the first few months on the road.

From all of us at COSI On Wheels, we’d like to wish you and yours a safe and happy holiday season and a prosperous new year!

Have you been pressured to be able to attend the parties and events these last few weeks? How about the corporate leaders of the community who have so many other demands on their time? Can’t imagine the tightness on their schedules and how they make it to all the activities they want or have to attend.

Now I know how at least one of our community’s corporate leaders is able to maximize his time.

Jim Hagedorn, CEO and Chairman of Scotts Miracle-Gro, is a supporter with his family of an incredible initiative at COSI. Our Miracle-Gro Cap Scholars (MGCS) program is working with over 40 youth since 5th grade (three now poised to graduate) to help support their development and access to college. Meeting certain requirements, Scotts and the Hagedorn Family Foundation will pay their college tuition! An incredible commitment and pretty life changing where over 80 percent of the youth would be first generation college attendees.

So the youth mean a lot to us as COSI team members and to the Hagedorn family. Hence, the holiday party with the MGCS teens, their families, Jim’s sister Sue, and our Scotts MiracleGro mentors was important to all of us. Jim had a corporate conflict that evening, but he still made the effort to show everyone he cares. So how did he make it work? Well just look at the picture.

It isn’t every day we have a donor/supporter drop his helicopter in front of our building—but that is exactly what Jim did!

An Air Force vet and former F-16 fighter pilot, flying to COSI seems a natural to someone like Jim. And I received a bonus walking him out of a good overview of the technology behind his helicopter—something I have a greater interest in now that I have a Navy helicopter pilot for a new son-in-law.

When I see the effort our donors make to show their support, it makes me grateful for the personal connections we’ve established (and the fun stories I get to share!)

Science Museum to host Muslim Heritage exhibition

The Science Museum today announced that it will host a new exhibition, 1001 Inventions: Discover the Muslim Heritage in Our World, which traces the forgotten story of a thousand years of science from the Muslim world, from the 7th century onwards. The free exhibition, which runs from the 21 January to 25 April 2010, will look at the social, scientific and technical achievements that are credited to the Muslim world, whilst celebrating the shared scientific heritage of other cultures. The exhibition is a British based project, produced in association with the Jameel Foundation.

Featuring a diverse range of exhibits, interactive displays and dramatisation, the exhibition shows how many modern inventions, spanning fields such as engineering, medicine and design, can trace their roots back to Muslim civilisation….

Another shot from our trip to the Science Museum. This was three tubes of coloured liquid each of a different viscosity. When you pushed the button they all had bubbles in them, but the bubbles moved at different speeds in the different liquids. I just loved the colours with the bubbles.

Shot with Canon 350D, f/4.5, ISO 200, Canon 18-55mm lens @ 35mm

Post by Jonathan Barnes

As COSI Employees, Outreach Educators are required to wear the Look uniform (or the costume for our particular program) while in schools. The “Look” involves us wearing our COSI shirts with a pair of black pants or khakis. The shirts are either blue or kiwi green and have the COSI logo on one side of our chest with our nametag on the other.

One of the first things I mention during the morning assembly is my name. When I do this, I typically motion towards my nametag, framing it between my hands “en vogue” style. What never ceases to amaze me, however, is how quickly students seem to forget our names… in spite of the fact that we wear nametags every second of our day. Sometimes, students will walk right up to me and ask me my name again.. At this point, I’ll usually begin to “frame” my nametag again while saying,

“Gee… If only COSI gave me something that would inform people of my name. If only there were some sort of device on my shirt that would clue people in to what I prefer to be called. IF ONLY I had something… something like a NAMETAG.”

This usually gets the point across.

Even after all of that, I’m not usually known as “Jonathan” while in schools. More often than not, students will call me “COSI”.

“Hey, COSI, can you do the fire trick again?”

“Hey, COSI, where can I get liquid nitrogen?”

“Hey, COSI, can I eat the marshmallow?”

While it can be cute, especially from kindergartners, my acerbic wit has started to get the better of me. Now, when I have older students call me “COSI“, I respond by calling them “school”.

“Hey, COSI, what made the cork pop off?”

“Well, school, it was actually a chemical reaction between the citric acid and sodium bicarbonate within the Alka Seltzer.”

I’m actually amazed when students pick up on the joke.

Today was a little different, however. Today, I was presenting our “Launch Into Space” program at Waynesfield Goshen Elementary in Waynesfield, Ohio (near Wapakoneta). Shortly after today’s assembly, the cutest kindergartner came up to me and said,

“COSI, will you come back next year? Because, if you do, I’m going to bring a rocket to school… I asked for a rocket for Christmas and I’ll bring it next year if you come back.”

This absolutely melted my heart. I asked him what his name was.

“My name is Cole.”

“Well, Cole, my name is Jonathan, and I’m not sure if I’ll be the one back next year, but, if it’s me, I’d love to see your rocket.”

His response…

“OK, COSI!”

Another shot from our trip to the Science Museum. This was little lumps of dry ice being dropped into water. They melt and fizz, racing around the surface of the water. Very cool.

Shot with Canon 350D, f/5.6, ISO 400, Canon 18-55mm lens @ 35mm

Post by Kat Fairman

A recent experience had me wondering, “How far will kids go to bring the fun and excitement of COSI to their hometown?” I ran into a state trooper who suspected it could go much further than asking nicely.

I was driving on a two-lane road through Carroll County in Appalachia Ohio. It was a cold day, and I was bundled up in a hat and an old puffy black coat. Suddenly, I passed a state trooper traveling the opposite direction. It wasn’t long before I looked out my mirrors, and saw what appeared to be the same state trooper following right behind me. I considered the fact he may have made a special turn-around to follow me, but I hoped he hadn’t. I drove for several miles down the road, and then I started to worry. Why was he following me? Was I breaking any laws? I wasn’t speeding. Maybe there was a weight limit? How expensive is the fine for that? I grew more and more anxious when suddenly, the police lights went on. I pulled to the side of road, took a deep breath, and began to fish my driver’s license out of my backpack. I rolled down the window as he approached the truck to listen to why I had been pulled over.

He explained, “I pulled you over for a couple reasons. First of all, when I passed you earlier I could have sworn you were a ten-year-old boy driving this thing.” I responded with the first thing that popped in my head. “Oh!… no”

He told me he just wanted to run my driver’s license real quick and I would be on my way.
I couldn’t believe it. That was it?! I was able to ignore the shot to my ego for being told I look like a ten-year-old boy. What a relief!

When he returned he apologized for calling me ten-year-old boy and explained that he just wanted to make sure the truck wasn’t stolen. I told him I understood, and then I was on my way in no time all, just as he had promised. It’s a good thing there are no laws against looking like ten-year-old who had just committed grand theft auto.

Here is picture of me behind the wheel on that day. I suppose the hat and coat are rather “boyish”.

We went to the Science Museum recently. What a great place to take kids! There are so many hands on things to do, and some cool things – like this bubble wall:

Shot with Canon 350D, f/5.6, ISO 400, Canon 18-55mm lens @ 52mm

08 December, 2009, Tuesday – After we had a hearty late lunch in a classic Chinese restaurant, EMERALD GARDEN in Manila, we explored a place that is exclusively dedicated to fun and learning.

My wife, Tina and I usually maximized our days off from work by spending extra quality time with our preschooler son, Gabby.  And whenever we go out, we always make sure that Gabby will enjoy.  Just a couple of weeks ago, we went to PHILIPPINE SCIENCE CENTRUM in Riverbanks, Marikina City and seven days back we had another special trip to MUSEO PAMBATA in Roxas Blvd., Manila.

This interactive children’s museum allows visitors, both kids and young-at-hearts to touch exhibits, play and experienced everything hands-on. It’s a place that encourages a total-senses-child learning.  I believe in that too –I always tell my nursing students and reviewees that ‘learning is easy when all senses are utilized’.

Since Museo Pambata was only established in 1994 when Tina and I were already college students, we had no chance to be there during our wonder years.  Nevertheless, it isn’t too late to become a kid again; not that we’re having 2nd childhood already, heck no! we’re too young to have dementia and all, LOL But with Museo Pambata, the kids in us were unleashed once more!

Illustration above via MUSEO PAMBATA.

Who says learning can’t be fun?

The museum is divided into several sections : PAMILIHANG-BAYAN / Market Place,  PAGLAKI KO / Career Options, KATAWAN KO / Body Works,  TUKLAS!/Science Through Discovery, MAYNILA NOON / Old Manila, KALIKASAN/Environment, and many more.

I personally found the MARKET PLACE as most amusing.  Kids can assume to tend a store or pretend shopping in wet and dry sections or perhaps in a shoe or drug stores.

In PAGLAKI KO / Career Options, Museo Pambata gives children a bird’s eye view of work opportunities when they grow old.  Gabby enjoyed becoming a community worker for a while…

Money matters! Even kids should learn that hard-earned money should be valued at all cost.

There’s a small section near the Market Place where kids get to feel how it is to be in rural areas of the country…

While the Market Place seemed the most amusing, KATAWAN KO /Body Works section’s the most interesting for us.   Just like in the old  Science Centrum years ago, there’s a similar version of those anatomical parts in humongous scales! It’s hard to resist not to go through the exhibit’s main entrance – a wide-mouth! One will pass through it down to esophagus, stomach, and intestines and out to you-know-where!

In TUKLAS / Science Through Discovery, there are similar pieces that we’ve seen already in PHILIPPINE SCIENCE CENTRUM but Museo Pambata’s versions are more well-maintained; thus, more inviting for visitors.

What’s a museum without retelling a history ?  On the first floor of the museum are 2 fascinating exhibits — KALIKASAN / Environment on the left side, and on the right, MAYNILA NOON / Old Manila.  

Have you seen a small scale of Binondo Church or Basilica Minor de San Lorenzo Ruiz? FYI, It’s a nice replica where visitors can go inside and take pictures of the church.   This section of Old Maynila also brings back museum goers to the era of Galleon Trade and the days when Meralco Tranvia de Manila was still one of the modes of transportation in Manila.  Sayang, authorities could have kept this tram until now for people to appreciate and still serve its purpose like the tram in San Francisco. Oh,well, at least we have the LRTs now.  

Who says learning history is always boring ?

I cannot imagine Pinoy History without Dr. Jose Rizal, Katipunan and the evolution of flags…

The old Pinoy house, furnitures and all also caught our interest…

Some important aspects of Mother Nature is replicated at the section called KALIKASAN /Environment…

Do you agree with me that every Pinoy kids should be brought to this fun place ?  I wish parents are reading this post.

Have you been to Museo Pambata ?  How was your experience ?

MUSEO PAMBATA, Roxas Boulevard corner South Drive, Manila (It’s beside US Embassy in Manila and at the end corner of Kalaw Ave. and Roxas Blvd.)  Entrance fee is PhP 100 for kids and adults, walk-in. Teachers with valid ID are free; Manila residents are given discount.  Museum is closed every Mondays.  Museum hours : 8AM-5PM (Aug-March) and 9AM-5PM (April-July).

Post by Jonathan Barnes

As an Outreach Educator, my favorite part of the day is usually doing the morning assembly for the school. I love greeting the students as they walk in, getting them excited for the science to come. I often times venture out into the hallway to usher them in. One of my favorite things to say to students as they march down the toward their school’s gym is, “Move fast and quiet; just like a ninja!” Yesterday was no different.
I had just ushered in the first graders at a lovely elementary school near Powell, Ohio when one of those all-too-cute first grade girls looked up at me and, with all of the excitement she could muster, said, “I’ve been to COSI!”

I get this comment quite often and have become fond of saying, “I’ve been to COSI, too!” This tongue-in-cheek joke usually gets one of those adorably indignant and funny responses like, “But you work there!” Yesterday, however, this young lady caught me a bit off guard.

After I gave her my standard line of, “I’ve been to COSI, too!” she looked back up and said, “We got stuck in the elevator there!” I pride myself on my skills as an improvisational comedian, and this tiny dropping of adorable managed to get the improv juices working. Without missing a beat, I squatted down to her level and asked her in a serious tone, “Did we use the teleporter to beam you out?” She looked back at me and said, “Yep!”

Now COSI is THE Center of Science and Industry, and we do have some amazing gadgets that do incredible things, but, unfortunately, Scotty from Star Trek isn’t one of our exhibit engineers. Nevertheless, this girl made me laugh and provided a great start for my week.

Post by Christine Barnett

There’s one at every school. You know, the kid that knows everything, and must tell you all that they know. As an outreach educator, I love that kid!

Those kids are the ones that raise their hand for every question asked in the assembly, they are always willing to be a volunteer for any experiment, and they ask great questions. During the hands on sessions they keep the parents running the activities on their toes, and really get involved in what is happening at each station. These students start conversations that tweak and improve the way that we are teaching all of the students. They may be considered the “know it all” by their classmates, but I consider them as gems. Their enthusiasm for learning keeps me going and reminds me, if I can instill just a little bit of that same enthusiasm in their classmates, my job is worth it.

One student, at a school I visited recently, really sticks out in my mind. We just happened to be visiting the school on his birthday, and he was extremely excited. His excited face and rapidly waving hand got him picked for an experiment during the assembly, and he did an excellent job. When his class came back for the hands on session he came up and asked me if I remembered him. Now normally I smile, nod and say “Yes, you did this experiment.” With so many students and so many schools it is very hard to keep track of names. This time though I remembered his name, and I think it made his day. For the rest of the session every time he did a different experiment he came back and told me what he learned and some extra things he knew about the topic. At one point his teacher told him to “Stop bothering the COSI lady” but I didn’t mind at all, his excitement was contagious and it made my day.

When all of the experiments were packed back into the truck and I was about to leave for my next school, he spotted me one more time and shouted in my direction “COSI is my best friend!” I waved and drove away with a huge smile on my face.

There is a quandary that many science centers are in—traditional “attractions” that many people have fond memories of, such as a planetarium, are costly to operate and maintain, yet overall attendance in purchasing tickets declining. We were forced to close our planetarium after the budget crunch hit us hard back in 2004 for the reasons just stated.

Yet I still often hear about people wanting us to reopen the planetarium.

So we’re running an experiment this holiday season, renting new equipment and shows and trying it out on the public with the traditional experience souped up with a new system presenting them.

But I’m not kidding myself that national trends will be reversed here in Columbus—so it’s going to be tough, if not impossible, to support keeping the planetarium open just on public attendance.

So in the spirit of our “center of science” concept and adding more dimensions to COSI as a public outreach to scientists and researchers in our region, we’re also testing out the potential of using the old planetarium as a digitally driven, immersive presentation space. With that in mind we are re-titling the planetarium the Dome Theater.

So during this trial period we’re also bringing in astronomers, researchers, and businesses to test out the capacity of employing the Dome Theater as a one-of-a-kind in the region immersive presentation space of anything you can produce digitally—from space images from the world’s largest telescope (that OSU uses) to complex scientific or business data crunched and presented graphically through innovative software.

So we’re seeing if there is enough interest in using the theater both for business and research use as well as with our traditional public. If we can make the financial model work combing robust use on both sides, we’ll seek the funds to reopen the theater on a regular basis.

So if you have been one of those wishing we’d reopen the “Dome Theater” this is your chance to enjoy the experience again and vote for its future with your ticket!

I’m participating in the Best Of 2009 Blog Challenge.  Every day this month, I write something different about what’s happened this year.

Here goes… the best trip of 2009.

The budget for travel has been a little tight this year, what with a new baby, a new kitten, and a small Fiat to keep fed, sheltered, and healthy.  (The most expensive by a mile?  My precious, precious car.)  We’ve had a few weekends away and days out, mostly to places within driving distance.  However, during September, I did manage to lug my camera to London on the train.  In the underpass on the way back to the tube from the Science Museum, I came across a troop of Scouts.  I imagine they had an enjoyable day out.

The best trip of 2009?  Not mine, but somebody else’s, although I was pretty pleased with the resulting photos.

When the Science Museum of London first introduced Launchball as a flash, physics based puzzle game for the internets back in 2007, i spent more time than i should have mastering all the levels. now they have it for the iphone, with 30 new levels, and the ability to create and share levels. all for the low low price of $.99. Go get it!

Post by Nicole Mackey

I think one of the best perks of this job has to be the surprise thank you letters from students. I’ve been handed hand-drawn thank you notes from individual students and stacks of students’ thank you letters from their teacher. I’ve even found envelopes full of letters in my mail box on Monday mornings. I love reading what the students found to be “the coolest thing ever!” or how they interpreted a hands-on activity.

This week, a coordinator showed me a stack of thank you letters she received from the fourth graders. The PTO sponsored this visit and we had local high school students as our volunteers. She copied them for me and I wish I could share all of the letters with you. And just so you know, these are all as written by the students.

Enjoy!

“Thank you for doing this for us. It is very fun. You guys ROCK!…I hope when I grow up I can be a COSI worker too.”

“Thank you for the PTO for making this happen by our fund raser. It is probably the best thing we do with the money. Thank you so much for making this happen.”

“Thank you for letting us be apart of that nice assembly. It was really fun and cool. I never knew science could be taught that way. It was a very cool and eye catching assembley. My favorite part was when Hunter poored the water in and made it spin. … I really like to do science. Especailly the way we did it today. Thank you so much!”

“I can’t wait till we get to go to the gym again. I’m so excited. Next year, we’ll actually get to go to COSI! Thank you so much!”

“Thank you for letting us do all that fun stuff. Those segway things are AWESOME! It was cool that we had to charge it. The centers looked cool. I scared everyone when the bowsey ball went crash! I am excited to go next year. ” (this is from one of my volunteers from the assembly.)

“It’s very fun and exciting for everyone. The skooter was very fun. Plus I know so much more about energy now. I bet you put a lot of effort into this project. A big thanks to the high school helpers, too. Without them, the hands on activities would be a mess. So, they deserve some credit. Everyone was a big help though. I had lots of fun, please come back next year!”

The letters are always honest, the drawings are adorable and please keep them coming!

Now, how did my son’s head get separated from his body and now served on a platter with fruits? Where the heck are his other body parts?   Amazing isn’t it ? This and many more are the things we experienced at Philippine Science Centrum.

Last Saturday afternoon, my wife, Tina while still on duty in the O.R. agreed to my suggestion of going to this educational place for our son, Gabby.  After receiving her confirmation via SMS, we met up after her work near our place; we all hurriedly grabbed a bite at McDonald’s and off we went to Marikina Riverbanks where Philippine Science Centrum is located.

I recall joining field trips during my elementary years back in the 80s when one of those itineraries we visited was Science Centrum somewhere in Pasay (or was it in Manila?).  But just last week, I found out that PSC is already in Marikina (or is it only a branch?).

So what else did we see in the exhibit ?  …Don’t you wish to have 3 colored shadows ?

There’s that LASER HARP or a wonderful string instrument less the strings!

In this Laser Harp, each laser is focused and concentrated to sensors (photocells). These are connected to a computer and corresponds to a specific note. When the harp is tapped and lasers are blocked by a visitor’s hand, the sensors send signals to the ’microcontoller-synthesizer’ to play the corresponding note.

Another interesting we’ve seen was a demonstration of how tsunami can occur.

With just press of a button, an ocean-calamity can be simulated.

This is the saddest part… Visitors can also view actual clips from that scary incident in Thailand and other parts affected.

Moving on…to OUTER SPACE!   C’mmon, fly with us to the moon

This greeted us at the entrance to SPACE GALLERY of the centurm…

The rings to simulate rotation outside our planet were tied up allowing no one to use it that day. I’m not complaining for I don’t think we’ll permit Gabby to stand on those ‘roller-blade-like-shoes’ which I consider septic. The staffs of the PSC should spray antiseptic to each exhibits at least after a day’s work so as to prevent transmission of diseases. Good thing we always bring alcohol and Gabby always keeps an alco-gel at hand.

But the part where anyone can check his weight on other planets by stepping on a scale is cool!

There’s this monitor where one can peek through and take a photo of his face; then with a press of button, the picture will be shown in the face part of an astronaut model for few minutes.

This one is called ARCHIMEDES’ SCREW…

In Archimedes’ Screw :  As the visitor rotates the wheel and at each turn of the screw, the open lower end scoops up a volume of water. The water becomes trapped in the air pockets between the screw thread. By continously turning the screw, water slides up the length of the screw and pours into a reservoir.

Do you want to enclose yourself in a giant soap bubble?

or witness how a miniature SOLAR CAR can rotate around an axis ?

Would you like to know if you can run faster than Elma Muros ?

or try to move a skeleton by being a stationary cyclist too?

Everyone not only kids, should know and practice this for Mother Earth’s sake.  Press the button to identify biodegradables from those that we have to recycle, reduce, reuse.

Other than those hands-on-interactive exhibits, there are also giant posters for good read

PLASMA SPHERE !

Have you ever heard of a SYMMETROSCOPE ?

SYMMETROSCOPE : What’s going on ? The drawings on the disk are parts of a circular object. As a drawing fits a corner formed by the sides of the tube, this drawing is reflected by the three mirrors.  The reflections bounce back and forth. This is why you can see many reflections of a whole circular object- a slice of a pizza becomes a whole pizza!  

BTW, we arrived at Science Centrum last Saturday with only few kids and a pair of parents and after few minutes, the children and teachers from schools came in troops for their field trip.  Their visit was guided by the staffs who explained everything inside the building.  And since we came as walk-in, we had all the time to enjoy each exhibit.

Gabby’s educational field trip was initially scheduled last October but since the country was devastated by two great typhoons (who could forget Pepeng and Ondoy?), it was moved to January 15, 2009.  Tina and I decided to come as it will serve also as Family Day of their preschool.  Although we’ve been to the itineraries up North, we’re still excited to ride a bus again with Kindergarten kids, their parents and teachers.  

We didn’t join during Gabby’s Nursery year so this will be his first field trip ever!  And of course we’ll take you there with this site next year.

So how did my son’s head get separated from his body ?

The direction was : Ask the visitor/friend to go inside the exhibit and position his/her head above the opening.  Then stand 2 meters from the exhibit and face the visitor/friend.  How does he/she look? 

What’s going on? You can see the head on top of the platter because it is the only part of the body uncovered. The table footings have grooves that clip the mirror’s edges so that you hardly notice that the front side of the table are actually mirrors. The mirrors reflect the side walls and flooring. This gives an illusion that the head -the only visible part is separated from the body.  

There are so many framed optical illusions in Philippine Science Centrum but this one I found special  

My wife and I were only disappointed on the poor maintenance of the facilities. This type of educational place should be given utmost importance by the local and national governments and be supported by NGOs.  It has so many potentials to be at par with similar museums and exhibit areas abroad but without much-deserved improvements, it may not be seen by the next generations. Sayang lang kasi  it’s worth the visit. 

The entrance, if I may state, is at the far end of the E-Com building making it difficult to locate unless you’ve asked via phone of its landmarks like Figaro, 711 and Mang Inasal restaurant.

If you must know, I won first place in our school’s Science fair on my fourth grade. My exhibit then was as simple as soil erosion. Perhaps more than those box with soil and bean sprouts and a box of only soil, what made me win was my explanation of the relevance of the subject.  

Thanks for reading!  It’s almost midnight as I post this and I have to doze off for my lecture series at work tomorrow.

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Philippine Science Centrum, E-Com Building, Riverbanks, Marikina City.

Admission for walk-in : PhP 100.  For more details, go visit their website here (enjoy the animated intro!)

Post by Breanne Heitkamp

I just wrapped up another successful assembly and the students were exiting the gym.  At this time, there are always a few students that break away from their classes and come over to ask questions or make comments about the program.  On this particular day, a determined kindergartner came up to me with a stern look in her eyes, and she stated “I’m going to the beach this weekend.”

I was a little perplexed at this moment, for we just completed an assembly about the human body and nutrition that ends with me blowing up a giant engine.  But from my experience, I know that students will share the most random facts of their lives, so I didn’t take offense. Instead I simply respond with a little enthusiastic, “Well, that’s nice.”

She then proceed with an order, “You and that (she points to the giant engine) are coming with me.”

At this point, I was simply confused. For I have had students tell me some of the craziest thing, but I have never had a student command me to the beach before. As a result, I said the first thing that popped in my head in an attempt for clarification, “Excuse me.”

From these 2 words and probably the stun expression on my face the kindergartner realized, she has made an error in judgment, and in an instant I saw her change her plan of attack.  All of the sudden, her stern determined look was replace with a smile and giggle. And in the softest sweetest tone and with as much politeness that she could mustard, she said “I apologize … will you and that (pointing to the giant engine) please accompany me to the beach this weekend?”

With a laugh in my heart, I politely decline.  Later I regretted this decision for who doesn’t deserve a weekend at the beach.

I’m spending the week in the Washington, DC area—partly for meetings with national and international organizations that COSI is affiliated with and importantly to also play grandpa to our little Leah

When in DC, you hear about multiple governmental announcements and stories each day—it’s part of life “inside the beltway.” I was glad to be here though and getting detailed news about the President’s announcement of his Educate to Innovate initiative in partnership with multiple companies and organizations. The announcement was of import to us at COSI and other science centers as the initiative recognizes the power of support for science investigation and learning not only in the classroom but in community resources as well.

And the objectives expressed in this new initiative mirror exactly how we see our role at COSI, as highlighted in the following statement contained in President Obama’s comments at the White House:

Everyone in this room understands how important science and math can be. And it goes beyond the facts in a biology textbook or the questions on an algebra quiz. It’s about the ability to understand our world: to harness and train that human capacity to solve problems and think critically, a set of skills that informs the decisions we make throughout our lives. So, yes, improving education in math and science is about producing engineers and researchers and scientists and innovators who are going to help transform our economy and our lives for the better. But it’s also about something more. It’s about expanding opportunity for all Americans in a world where an education is the key to success. It’s about an informed citizenry in an era where many of the problems we face as a nation are, at root, scientific problems. And it’s about the power of science to not only unlock new discoveries, but to unlock in the minds of our young people a sense of promise, a sense that with some hard work—with effort—they have the potential to achieve extraordinary things.

A video of the President’s announcement is available here:

The partners in this initiative include Time Warner Cable, our new sponsor of after school programming and special monthly science days that COSI will implement with their support. In addition to what takes place in the classroom, there are so many learning opportunities with the often non-productive (even destructive) time children and youth have out-of-school. COSI and science center colleagues around the country are developing more partnerships with schools and others to bring our special opportunities, engagement with science and technology, and resources to play an increasing role.

Coincidentally, the same day as the Educate to Innovate announcement, the Wall Street Journal published a special CEO Council report. Several Columbus area CEO’s—Michael Morris of AEP, George Barrett of Cardinal Health, and James Hagedorn of Scotts Miracle-Gro Company were participants—all partners and supporters of COSI’s educational efforts. The group defined and discussed top national priorities. Interestingly, the group of 100 top CEO’s in the U.S. concluded that “Education is an urgent national priority—well ahead of health care, climate change and financial regulatory reform…”

Wow, that says something.

We are linking with more partners locally and nationally to expand and enhance what we can do to support lifelong learning—building on that special skill set we’ve developed of linking and engaging people with the wonders and power of science and technology. You can see the variety of ways in which we’re putting forth our efforts by scanning our web site. My time in DC is partly to expand and link that through national and international partnerships.

During this time of thanks, I’m thankful that at COSI we have the talent and resources to make a difference. The challenge at times is knowing where to focus.

What do you think are the most important areas of learning for COSI to focus on?

What do you see as COSI’s most important, maybe unique, strengths to bring to the national priority of a scientifically literate and comfortable society?

I think about these questions constantly with our team here—any thoughts are always appreciated.

Post by Katherine Fairman

The other day I was at a school getting ready to begin the morning assembly when a volunteer approached me. He was the grandfather of two students. He said he had a story for me.

He told me that a few years ago his daughter went on a field trip with his granddaughter’s class. As a result, she needed someone to watch her youngest son. The gentleman agreed to take him for the day. He asked if she minded what they did on their day together. She said she did not, and his response was “Well I’m taking him to COSI!”

He then told me how he and his grandson “opened and closed the place”. Together they explored our exhibits, had lunch in the Atomic Café, and walked through the traveling Titanic exhibit. (Which will be back here in March 2010!) They both had a terrific day. On the drive home, the gentleman noticed his grandson lying down in the back seat with his eyes closed. He asked, “Are you sleeping back there?” The boy said “No, I’m just remembering all the fun stuff we did together today.” The gentleman told me this response brought a tear to his eye.

It makes me so happy the ways in which COSI brings families and friends closer together. I hope that one day I will have a similar experience with my grandchildren.

Yesterday evening I worked in the Science museum for a leukemia research gala.

I got out of the underground in South Kensington and just around the corner, there is my favourite cheese shop La Cave a Fromage. Already the window display shows the amazing range of cheeses offered. When entering the shop, the room is filled with wonderful smells of cheese and bread. It is definitely worth a visit.

Later I walked along exhibition road, when suddenly the Natural History museum was to my left, all lit up in red colours and beautiful trees with little white lights. In the corner of the museum is an ice rink which is open until the 17th of January from 08:45 until 22:00 on weekends and from 10:00 until 22:00 during the week.

Ticket prices are:

• Children (12 and under): £8.50 peak / £8 off-peak
• Adults: £13 peak / £11.50 off-peak
• Family ticket (2 adults and 2 children or 1 adult and 3 children): £34.50 peak / £31 off-peak
• Concessions: £10.50 off-peak only

Although I find the tickets a bit expensive, I will want to ice- scating as soon as possible.

Post by Jonathon Barnes

I vividly recall being seven or eight years old when my mother first showed me how to make coffee. My mother had a pretty extreme aversion to housework and subsequently taught my sister and I everything from cooking to laundry by the time we were nine. For the coffee lesson, she got out the kitchen stool for me to stand upon, showed me how to put the filter in the basket, measure out ¼ cup of Folgers, add water, and press the “brew” button. As a child, I always found it amazing that my mother would drink what seemed to be an entire pot of coffee every morning before she went to work.

Fast forward to ten years later and my freshman year at The Ohio State University. 7:30 AM acting classes in the old Drake Union are never a good idea during the winter quarter… especially if you were up until 11:30 the previous night working on homework after rehearsal. This unfortunate confluence of schedules spawned my love for coffee.

Fortunately, the theatre building had a small café that served Starbucks coffee. At the beginning of the quarter, I got cute, tiny, “Tall“ Café Mochas… by the end of the quarter I had graduated to the monster, Venti size coffee. Having discovered the wonders of caffeine, I now firmly believe that if the British had put an unfair tax on coffee instead of tea, Ben Franklin would have sworn off muskets and found some way to craft AR-15 assault rifles for the colonial army.

Ever since that quarter, coffee has been a vital part of my ability to function in the mornings. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I typically have my video game themed travel mug with me in schools. That mug always has that magical blend of Columbian wonderment that powers me through a (sometimes sleep-deprived) morning in a school.

When asked where I get my enthusiasm and energy, I generally like to reply, “COSI On Wheels runs on caffeine, sugar, and the smiling faces of children.”

This week, however, tragedy has befallen me; I forgot my beloved travel mug.

I made the discovery Monday night when I realized that my suitcase was missing my mug that features the shining face of Halo’s Master Chief. I had left it on the kitchen counter back home. I instantly dropped to my knees and shook my fists in anger. If you happen to live in the Cincinnati metro area, you may have heard wailing and gnashing of teeth around 6:00… that was me. I truly apologize for interrupting SportsCenter.

By the time morning rolled around, I had mentally prepared myself for a day without my usual caffeine fix. I arrived at my school, as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as possible without chemical assistance. Within minutes of walking into the school, my COSI cell phone rang, it was my volunteer coordinator for the day. She called to inform me that she was running late and stopping for coffee at Starbucks. She also asked if I would like some. I believe my exact response was:

“Sweet Saturn’s Rings, please, God, YES!”

Moments later, my volunteer coordinator (who shall henceforth be known as Saint Marcia of Evendale) brought me a Venti coffee from Starbucks. This heavenly brew from the shrine of Starbucks powered me through my assembly and the rest of my morning.

Such is life on the road: little sleep, lots of caffeine, and tons of science… and now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to hunt down a Red Bull for the afternoon.

There are some fun parts to my job that I never really had covered in my training—one of them being how to make presentations with a mascot at your side. Monday night I was in front of Columbus City Council sharing updates on the array of activities we have lined up for the holidays at COSI with RATio, our mascot bouncing around next to me

I was also able to share the great news that we will have Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition back for an encore starting next March 27. This is a big deal to land a major exhibition like this for COSI and our community. It takes a lot of hard negotiation and decision making when you are dealing with these major properties.

As I had not been here in 2005 for its previous run, I flew to NYC to view this 15,000 square foot exhibition at its location off of Times Square. It is impressive and impactful. And we will be having not only many new artifacts (almost 100 with 23 having their world debut here), but we’re also working with the tour company and within our team to strengthen the incredible science and technology richness the Titanic story offers.

We had over 226,000 guests view Titanic the last time with an audience representing every county in Ohio and every state in the country. Now, with our #1 ranking in place, stronger partnerships, and overall growing membership we should see a very successful run for the community and COSI.

So at least by that portion of the presentation to city council I’d learned better to let RATio do his thing while I focused on what I was sharing with city council and the cameras!

After my freezer clear-out yesterday I was left with a number of unusual ingredients to use up. This included some scallops and prawns, that rather embarrassingly have probably been there since last Christmas! So I typed in the ingredients I had into google for some recipe inspiration and a risotto seemed like a winning idea. So I had a go at it and wow, it was delicious! I should be clearing out my freezer more!

I am going to try and find some more chestnuts this afternoon to make some homemade chestnut stuffing for christmas (I freeze the mix and then defrost and cook on the day). I imagine most of the chestnuts will have gone by now but I thought it might be worth a shot!