Exploratorium 40th Anniversary Calendar of Celebrations
November 2009
http://www.exploratorium.edu/40th/

To celebrate its 40th Anniversary, the Exploratorium offers the following electrifying, evanescent, and enlightening series of events. Note admission is free for the public on the November 4 as well as on the weekend of November 7& 8.  The schedule of events is as follows:

Wednesday, November 4
Free Admission, 10am-5pm

Thursday, November 5, 2009
Exploratorium After Dark – Electrifying Science with Dr. MegaVolt
Dr. MegaVolt® Jousts High-Voltage Tesla Coils to 200,000 Volts
Discharged in the Form of Astonishing Electrical Arcs
Exploratorium After Dark – Special 40th Anniversary Evening, 6-10pm
Cocktails, Conversation, and Adult-Oriented Programming

Blow your mind with the electrifying science of Tesla coils and Austin Richards, Ph.D. – aka Dr. MegaVolt®. This electrifying Exploratorium Science After Dark event will feature Dr. MegaVolt® jousting with 14-ft. electrical arcs from his high voltage Tesla Coil on the evening of Thursday, November 5, 2009, a special 40th Anniversary event.  This event is included in the price of admission to the Exploratorium. To sign up for the Exploratorium’s After Dark email list and receive event details, contact afterdark@exploratorium.edu.

40th Anniversary Celebration Weekend
Saturday & Sunday, November 7 & 8 – Free Admission:
Tom Noddy’s Bubble Magic November 7th and 8th, Times TBA
A Free Celebratory Weekend for the Exploratorium’s 40th Anniversary
Other Weekend Special Events Include Behind-the-Scenes Tours, Science,  Crafts and DIY Demo’s, Films, and a 40% discount on Tactile Dome admission

Tom Noddy blows bubbles inside of bubbles. Smoke bubbles. Inside-out bubbles. Caterpillar bubbles. Yin-Yang bubbles. And, on November 7th and 8th, 2009, at three shows daily (times TBA), Tom Noddy will present Bubble Magic at the Exploratorium, as part of the Exploratorium’s 40th Anniversary celebration.  Thirty-seven years ago, Noddy bought some dime store bubbles as a source of cheap entertainment. He has since become a bubble troubadour, traveling around the world to learn all there is to know about the art and science of blowing bubbles, talking to physicists, mathematicians, chemists, biologists, architects, magicians and kids during his travels.

Cutting Ice into One
Saturday, November 7, 2009
A Stranger-than-Friction 40th Anniversary Event

Check out this stranger-than-friction phenomenon. Imagine a big block of ice suspended from the ceiling of the Exploratorium. Now imagine a wire wrapped around the middle of that ice block from which is hung a motorcycle. Chill out with other skeptics and watch the motorcycle fall to the floor as the wire cuts through the ice, but bear witness—the ice block remains one whole piece!

Saturday, November 14
Operate!

Forget those medical shows on TV. Get the true scoop on surgical tools and techniques from members of the Association of periOperative Room Nurses (AORN). Their fascinating demonstrations will be performed without the use of real patients from 10am–3:30pm. Try your hand at a “seedectomy,” where you’ll have a chance to use keyhole instruments to remove a seed from a pumpkin. AORN’s mission is to support registered nurses and achieve optimal outcomes for patients undergoing operative and other invasive procedures.

Sunday, November 15
Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens:
Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up
A Conversation with Author K.C. Cole
McBean Theater, 3pm
Award-winning science writer K.C. Cole shares tales from her new book Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009). Discover the never-before-told story of Frank Oppenheimer, physicist, educator, brother of J. Robert Oppenheimer, and founder of the Exploratorium. Believing that “without understanding, we’d all be sunk,” Frank Oppenheimer created the Exploratorium to be a museum of human awareness that combined art and science while encouraging play, experimentation, and a sense of joy and wonder; its success inspired a worldwide revolution in museums and science education. A friend and colleague of Frank’s for many years, K.C. drew from letters, documents, and extensive interviews to tell this tragic, funny, and uplifting story of a man whose irrepressible spirit would inspire so many. Since capacity is limited, reservations are strongly recommended. Go to www.exploratorium.edu/40th/kcpanel. Admission is free for members, and included in the price of admission for non-members.

Joining in the conversation are those looking at the origins and nature of the Exploratorium, including San Francisco Chronicle’s eminent science editor, David Perlman who knew Oppenheimer and the Exploratorium at its founding, along with others who were there at the start.  Discuss the genius Renaissance man, as well as the Exploratorium’s vibrant creative culture, an Oppenheimer legacy. To learn more about K.C. Cole, go to www.kccole.net.

Rewind Launches November 20, 2009
Featuring Laurie Anderson, Philip Glass, Steve Reich and others circa 1980’s
Starting November 20 listen online at http://www.exploratorium.edu/40th

In celebration of the Exploratorium’s 40th Anniversary, we have opened our archives to present Rewind, podcasts from our seminal Speaking of Music series. Speaking of Music was presented by the Exploratorium from 1977 to 1991. In it, live conversation/performances with the leading contemporary composers, followed by audience-artist interactions, were heard live and also recorded. Artists like John Cage, Laurie Anderson, Philip Glass, Frank Zappa, Steve Reich, Trimpin and many others, whose reputations and stature have only grown over time, were captured in an earlier moment in their creative cycle. On November 20, the first four downloadable podcasts will be available, and then one podcast a month will be added for the entire 40th anniversary year finishing up in November 2010.

Physics of Toys: A Knack for Snacks
Saturday, November 21, 2009
11am-3pm

Physics of Toys, an interactive laboratory that explores toys in a one-on-one workshop in which children and adults alike investigate the science of everyday things.  Toys based on the Exploratorium book Exploratorium Science Snacks. Take what you make home.  Physics of Toys is included in the price of admission to the Exploratorium.

Other events throughout the year.