Physics Fair draws young visitors and participants
This past Saturday afternoon, the physics department hosted its fifth annual Physics Fair, transforming the Bloomberg Physics and Astronomy Building into a bastion of science. The building's floors and courtyard were filled with observers of the various physics experiments.
Judging by the conspicuous presence of a large trebuchet strategically placed in front of the building, one could suppose that this was no ordinary weekend.
Freshman physics major Jake Mokris, a member of the crew of excited students preparing the catapult-like device for fire, described his fascination with the fair and his decision to volunteer. "I had actually seen the Physics Fair two years earlier, and it was one thing that made me want to come here. I liked how students were involved with the professors and in playing with the demos."
The crew drew a large crowd as they fired melons down the hills facing the Homewood campus. They explained the capabilities of their powerful device while bystanders scampered after their shots, measuring the distances.
The Physics Fair featured an array of physics demonstrations and exhibits. It was an effort to reach out to the local school community and to present some of the innovative research taking place at the University.
Professor Bruce Barnett, the Fair's chief organizer and the man responsible for first creating the event here at Hopkins five years ago, described how the fair began.
"This was my idea of getting out into the local community. I wanted to connect university research with high school teachers, and to try and get more people, particularly high school students, informed and interested in science," Barnett said.
By teaming up with sponsors including Quarknet, the National Science Foundation and other physics-based scientific companies, Barnett sought to provide both a stage to show off some of the department's work and to give local area high and middle school students a chance to compete and become more interested in science.
Judging by the conspicuous presence of a large trebuchet strategically placed in front of the building, one could suppose that this was no ordinary weekend.
Freshman physics major Jake Mokris, a member of the crew of excited students preparing the catapult-like device for fire, described his fascination with the fair and his decision to volunteer. "I had actually seen the Physics Fair two years earlier, and it was one thing that made me want to come here. I liked how students were involved with the professors and in playing with the demos."
The crew drew a large crowd as they fired melons down the hills facing the Homewood campus. They explained the capabilities of their powerful device while bystanders scampered after their shots, measuring the distances.
The Physics Fair featured an array of physics demonstrations and exhibits. It was an effort to reach out to the local school community and to present some of the innovative research taking place at the University.
Professor Bruce Barnett, the Fair's chief organizer and the man responsible for first creating the event here at Hopkins five years ago, described how the fair began.
"This was my idea of getting out into the local community. I wanted to connect university research with high school teachers, and to try and get more people, particularly high school students, informed and interested in science," Barnett said.
By teaming up with sponsors including Quarknet, the National Science Foundation and other physics-based scientific companies, Barnett sought to provide both a stage to show off some of the department's work and to give local area high and middle school students a chance to compete and become more interested in science.
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