We all know that electrical signals are undetectable to the human eye, but that doesn't stop the Franklin Institute (222 North 20th St., Philadelphia, Penn.) from trying to prove they exist.
With just a simple text message or call with your own phone, a light-emitting diode will respond with a LED light show. What if a high school had this technology? We're thinking it'd be similar to a Pink Floyd light show concert times 100 (you know, those kids today just love cell phones). Onto a another subject -- when are TVs getting smell-o-vision?
Back to reality: the Franklin Institute houses live science shows, interactive science carts and demos. Take a ride on the Baldwin train, sit in the Spin Ride or swing by the observatory to look at the sun through a powerful Zeiss telescope.
Other attractions include the Adventure Flight 4D, Max Flight and the Sky Bike, which lets you figure out your center of gravity as you pedal across a 60-foot-long wire with a one-inch diameter (eek!), 28 feet above the Bartol Atrium. The Sky Bike is the only high wire bike on the east coast (and only $3).
You can also watch 3D films at the Franklin Theater, discover the stars at Fels Planetarium (second oldest in the Nation) or nom on the visual eye candy that the IMAX theater has to offer.
Interactive science carts around the museum show kids how to make paper, decode stars, discover the properties of light and more. Demonstrations are a common occurrence at the Franklin Institute as well -- watch eye and heart dissections. or learn to balance while you take a Segway ride in the museum.
This Feb. 5 from noon to 4 p.m., join in for Family Sunday at the museum for the Giant Mysterious Dinosaurs. Paleontologists and dinosaur researchers will be on hand to answer questions and discuss the dinosaurs on display.
Worth the Trip
Museum admission is $16.50 for adults and $12.50 for kids. Admission includes a show in the Fels Planetarium. Hours are 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
