Education
Museum Shows
Hidden Power
This program developed by The Franklin Institute, in partnership with Penn State MRSEC, through funding by the National Science Foundation and Penn State University, is a set of eight eight cart-based, hands-on activities that highlight concepts of energy, electricity generation, and efficiency. Demonstrations of real phenomena will appeal to visitors of all ages, while interactive macro-scale models foster a deeper understanding of the underlying mechanisms at the atomic scale. These activities raise awareness of energy materials and their applications and build understanding of the invisible forces at work.
View the shows below to learn more about each demo.
Demonstrations
Sources of Power
Where can we find energy? In this introductory activity, play a "seek and find" challenge to find the sources of power in a scene from everyday life. Familiar sources, like solar power or batteries, are easy to find, but visitors will be surprised to discover more uncommon sources of power such as differences in temperature (thermoelectricity) or mechanical pressure (piezoelectricity). This activity is designed to set up any of the accompanying demonstrations.
Procedure Sheet: PDF
Turbines
Most of the electricity in the United States is produced by steam turbines. In this activity, use a hair dryer, representing steam, to spin a fan and generate electricity. Swap out different fuel cards to explore the multiple sources of energy, including coal, nuclear, and biomass, that are all used in power plants to heat water and create steam. The activity can be extended to include discussions of wind and hydropower.
Batteries
Batteries are essential for powering all of the portable electronic devices we rely on, but what actually happens when you charge your cell phone? In this activity, hook up a simple electrochemical cell to a voltmeter to see how chemical energy can be converted to electricity. The macro-scale model builds on this concept to explain how rechargeable batteries work. Send an "ion" ball down an energy ramp to force the "electron" ball through a circuit, then pull the electron up to recharge and drag the ion back to its high-energy state.
Solar Power
Harnessing the power of the sun holds great promise as a source of renewable energy. In this activity, shine light on a solar panel to spin a miniature plane. Then, play pinball with a model "electron" to understand the atomic mechanism. Add enough energy to excite the electron - but will it produce electricity or fall into a hole? Visitors can experiment with the design of the pinball board to think about how to increase the efficiency of photovoltaic cells.
Piezoelectricity
Change the shape of a piezoelectric material, and you can create electricity. In this activity, test this phenomenon by shaking a polymer strip or tapping a ceramic transducer to light up a small bulb. Explore atomic models to see how negative and positive charges become unbalanced, producing electricity, when you bend a polymer or squeeze a crystal. Finally, learn about real life applications as you create a 1000-volt piezoelectric spark!
Thermoelectricity
Take a fan attached to two metal fins, put one fin in hot water and one in cold water, and soon the fan starts spinning - it's thermoelectricity in action. The macro-scale model in this activity demonstrates how thermoelectric materials produce electricity from a simple temperature differential. Add energy to the "hot" side by drumming on the edge of a tray while your partner keeps the other side "cold" by holding it still, and watch the "electrons" in the tray migrate from hot to cold.
Light Bulb Efficiency
Choosing efficient light bulbs is a simple way to conserve electricity. In this activity, use your senses to compare the efficiency of different light bulbs. Feel the heat generated by incandescent, compact fluorescent, and LED bulbs. See the components that produce light in each type of bulb. Then listen to the sounds of the macro-scale models that represent the heat- and light-producing collisions of the electrons in each type of bulb - which is the quietest and most efficient?
Light Emitting Diodes
The materials inside LEDs produce efficient lighting in a rainbow of colors. In this activity, experiment with different colored LEDs to discover how colors of light carry different amounts of energy. The macro-scale model demonstrates how the properties of semiconductor materials create each color. Drop an "electron" ball from different heights - representing the energy gap of the semiconductor - and watch it catapult a "photon" into cups of the corresponding color.
Specific Shows
