When I was in elementary school, I was always intrigued by how and why the world moved as it does.
I pushed these thoughts aside though, as I focused on writing my sophomoric 8-year-old poetry about rain and my family. These scientific thoughts crept back up on me though, when I read online about the Maryland Science Center.
Located right at the Inner Harbor, the Maryland Science Center offers a great deal for families and college students: they host "Fridays After Five" (also at the Aquarium), where after 5 p.m. admission is only $8 (normally $18).
Accompanied by Boman Modine '08, we made our way into the Center. A long line awaited us, and I could tell that many people were taking advantage of the cheap prices on Friday nights. In addition to our admission to the Science Center, we also received IMAX tickets to see "Hurricanes on the Bayou" and a wristband, which would allow us to go up to the Crosby Ramsey Memorial Observatory.
Because we both had other plans for the evening, we decided to not see the IMAX movie. As we ascended the first stairs to go into the three-floor museum, we were quickly introduced to Newton's Alley, an interactive exhibit that demonstrates many of Sir Isaac Newton's principles. Sit in a chair and pull yourself up with a pulley. Make bubbles with soap. Play a stringless harp. Make sparks, a tornado, and clouds. We were instantly attracted, and spent a good half hour just playing around with all of the different stations. I pedaled a bike to make a lightbulb light up, created motion in a bubble, and raced bubbles up a tube.
We exhausted ourselves in Newton's Alley, playing with little kids and fighting for a turn to shoot marbles down a ramp, and then made our way up to the roof of the Science Center to the observatory.
Up a short, winding staircase outside, we found ourselves in the middle of a bubble. Another family, along with 4 staff workers, we stood in line to see Saturn. Yes, the planet. As I put my eye to the telescope and peeked in, I thought I was looking at a textbook instead of the actual planet. Once everyone in the observatory got a look at Saturn, the bubble rotated, the telescope was readjusted, and then we had a plain view of Venus. A small dot in the telescope, we were given a tiny piece of plastic that allowed us to see the light reflecting off of the planet.
The Alvan Clark & Sons 8" reflecting telescope, through which we looked, was built in 1927 and used to operate on the roof of the Enoch Pratt Free Library through the 1950s, when it was disassembled. It was renovated twice (once in the 1980s and once in 1997) for use at the Science Center. The telescope can magnify images up to 300x.
By the time we were done talking to the observatory workers, it was time for us to leave. The Science Center still had 2 more undiscovered floors! We missed Dinosaur Mysteries, Follow the Blue Crab, Fossil Quest, and Body, Space, and Terralink, as well as the Planetarium, IMAX theatre, and Science on a Sphere.
Although $8 might seem like a lot, the Maryland Science Center is the perfect place for a Friday night out. It is within walking distance from the Inner Harbor, and subsequently, the location where the Colltown Shuttle drops off and picks up students (and, as Goucher students, we ride for free!).
Fun, educational, and cheap - it might sound dorky, but it's at least a change from the typical weekend activities of drinking, watching movies (probably "Aladdin") in your room or playing in the snow.
Be the first to comment on this article!