by EMILY SZPAK Social Media Coordinator
Our journalism class took a field trip to the Liberty Science Center On Tuesday, February 25 to check out some of the neat exhibits. The museum has upgraded significantly since the last time I was there, and there are plenty of new interesting exhibits that all ages can enjoy. In my time at the Liberty Science Center, I got to spend it observing the Skyscrapers! exhibit.
Located on the first floor (out of four!) is the exhibit showcasing the evolution of skyscrapers around the world. The display includes activities for all ages for which to participate. Skyscrapers! contains 9/11 artifacts from which you can gather a greater appreciation of the events and the science behind it all.
The floor also contains a fun magnet-powered crane. Here, children can put on their safety jacket and hard hat, and use the machine to move things like a real construction worker. From personal experience, it was not easy! It shows you how hard it really is to construct anything out of large materials.
Another part of the exhibit was where you can measure how much force you can pull on a cable. Most of the Skyscrapers! activities involved force and building structures, which we can connect to the strategic physics behind it all. For the younger ones, you could count on that classic bin of building blocks, allowing anyone to build their own structure for themselves.
One of the scariest activities that you could partake in was the walking on steel beams 18 feet in the air, an exhilarating experience for anyone who met the height and weight requirements. With no net and only a harness, this attraction allows you to walk on a narrow steel beam, just like a real construction worker. Its main purpose was teach you how dangerous a construction worker’s job can really be.
An attraction that I got to partake in personally was the “hurricane in a box”. In a large box containing many vents and a high powered fan, we were able to experience a simulated hurricane to show us how buildings are tested for weather.
We entered the box dressed in ponchos and goggles, and could immediately feel the humidity. We knew we were in for a real show. After watching a short video, our guide came in and showed us 50 mph winds, which were not too catastrophic. He then cranked it up to 100 mph and you could feel the difference.
The overpowering winds had our ponchos blowing around violently. However, that was not the end of it; he added rain. The rain made a difference because it added a stinging, whipping feeling. The simulation felt close to real.
Overall, the Liberty Science Center was an interesting experience and taught the entire class a lot. After making our way through each and every exhibit, we headed home. I think I speak for everyone when I say that the Liberty Science Center brought us lots of fun and we enjoyed ourselves immensely.
When’s the last time you went to the LSC?