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Iloilo museum offers
interactive science |
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Source: Inquirer |
Author: Nereo C. Lujan |
Date: 1999-10-07 |
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JAN Marie, 3, pulls a nylon cord to
raise a four-foot pipe from a tray of
liquid soap to stretch a thin film where
constantly changing colors can be
seen.
She blows gently on the
film and varied spherical
shapes appear. More
colors flash. After several
seconds, the film breaks
and vanishes.
Delighted at what she saw,
the little girl kept on
repeating the experiment
for 10 minutes.
Jan Marie may have been entertained but unknown to her, she
has been experiencing the science of light frequencies, where
colors are created in the film from a mix of different beams of
light.
She has been playing with Rainbow Bubbles, one of 38 exhibits
at the Iloilo Science Centrum (ISC), a 700-sq. m. museum inside
the Iloilo National High School campus.
''This center was built to make learning and discovering science
by children a more personal and enjoyable experience,'' said
Elena Jison, chair of the Iloilo Science Society (ISS).
The ISS runs the museum, which was opened in 1995 with the
assistance of the Department of Science and Technology and
the Department of Education, Culture and Sports.
The center has 11 galleries showcasing educational and
interactive exhibits on mathematics, energy, sound, force and
motion, electricity and magnetism, environment, reflection,
perception, light and color, electronics and liquids.
It also has a Personal Science Laboratory (PSL), a
computer-based science exploration tool consisting of quality
probe ware, curriculum and easy-to-use software.
Then Iloilo City Rep. Rafael Lopez-Vito provided the funds for
the construction of the first interactive museum in Western
Visayas.
Critical thinking
Jison said the ISC sought to increase children's critical thinking
skills and help develop their intuition.
''This way, children can more readily establish their own place in
the world with the power to question, create and contribute to
the betterment of the world,'' she explained.
The ISC has become a favorite destination of study tours of
pupils from public and private schools in Panay. ''There were
even classes from Bacolod City who had to come over to Iloilo
City just to visit the center,'' Jison said.
Bacolod is about an hour's ride by fastcraft from Iloilo.
Science and technology become more fun and exciting when
people see their relevance to their day-to-day life, and when
difficult concepts are presented in simpler ways, Jison said.
''This is why we wanted to make learning science a more
personal and relevant experience by introducing interactive and
participatory exhibits.''
She added that learning by doing at one's own pace and actions
was the heart of interactive learning. Thus, in the ISC, children
and adults are encouraged to manipulate the exhibits, ask
questions, make decisions and experiment.
''This is our way of promoting science and technology
consciousness among the youth and the various sectors of
society,'' Jison said.
Favorites
Among the favorite exhibits are the Bicycle Wheel Gyro, the
Bernoulli Blower, the Whispering Discs, the Echo Tube, the
Anti-Gravity Mirror and the Moebius Bar.
The wheel gyro explains the conservation of angular momentum
where a person is asked to sit on a swivel chair holding a
rotating bicycle wheel. When the person tilts the wheel on its
side, a force created by the rotation turns the chair the other
way.
This means that any change in the direction and speed of any
component of a system must be accompanied by an equal
opposite change to maintain balance.
The Bernoulli Blower is a cone-shaped instrument where a ball
is kept afloat several inches over it, demonstrating the principle
that the faster the air moves past a surface, the smaller the push
in that area. Such principle makes airplanes fly.
The Whispering Discs allow one standing before a disc to hear
a friend's whisper from another disc 10 meters away. These
explain the reflection of sound waves.
The Echo Tube also explains reflected sounds. When one claps
near the mouth of a big tube, it creates a disturbance in the air
column inside, causing a vibration and generating sound waves.
Floating in the air
The Anti-Gravity Mirror demonstrates symmetry in mirror image.
A person appears to be floating in the air in the mirror when
lifting one foot and standing on another that is hidden behind
the mirror.
The Moebius Bar is circular jungle gym where children, walking
along the surface of a twisted bar, observe that they always
return to the same spot after traversing the entire surface of the
band.
''We will put more exhibits once funds are enough, especially
after we collect the various pledges that we got,'' said Genaline
Dignadice, ISC managing director.
The center raises funds through pledges, annual membership
dues and entrance fees.
Science Secretary Filemon Uriarte Jr. has pledged P500,000 for
the museum when he was guest speaker during its 4th
anniversary celebration on Sept. 10.
Donations
A number of benefactors have also donated money for the
maintenance of the exhibits.
The ISC has three types of annual membership, which is also
aimed at raising funds. For P500, one can become an individual
member, entitled to one unlimited pass; P1,000 for family
members, four passes; and P5,000 for corporate members, 20
passes.
Students are encouraged to become members of the Junior
Interactive Explorer's Club for P50, which entitles them to a
three-month unlimited entrance to the ISC and discounts on
special events.
Students are charged P15 entrance fee and adults, P30.
Dignadice said birthday parties can also be held inside the
center on special arrangements.
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