A Kid's Guide to the World Science Festival

Family Days: A Kid’s Guide to the World Science Festival

Did you know you weigh slightly less with the moon overhead? Or that a piece of paper can be folded no more than seven times?

Science. It may very well be the one subject your children love to hate. That’s why Mayor Bloomberg and dozens, of scientists, journalists, and community leaders are joining together to create the first annual World Science Festival. Once you get past the impressive list of speakers, which contains enough variety to suit every taste, check out the listings of events ranging from today to Sunday.

Here are a few of my potential favorites:

Friday

Cool Jobs
4:00pm
Meet a group of people who have much more fascinating jobs than you or me. Need proof? Ben Schwegler designs roller coasters for Disney theme parks. Christopher McKay explores Mars. Sylvia Earle preserves marine ecosystems (and consequently spends much of her time underwater). And Peter Diaczuk resconstructs crime scenes for the New York Police Department. Jealous yet?

The Sixth Extinction
8:00pm
Don’t let the overly scientific titles scare you. A bioacoustician (studies nature’s sounds), a Paleontologist (studies fossils), and a photographer (self-explanatory) come together to show visual evidence of endangered plants and animals in the Arctic and elsewhere.

Saturday

WSF Street Fair
10:00am - 6:00pm
Let your kids meet some of their favorite television characters in Washington Square Park. Joining in the festivities will be Clifford the Big Red Dog and Snook from PBS’s It’s a Big Big World. There will also be a Magic School Bus, courtesy of Scholastic. Teenage boys can keep themselves occupied over at the dissecting table or, of course, by building a lifesize robot. Just make sure they don’t bring any stray animal parts home with them.

Science of Disney Imagineering
10:00am, 12:30pm, and 3:00pm
Special guests Nemo (from Finding Nemo fame) and Lucky the Dinosaur will be on hand to answer your unsolved questions about the world of make-believe. “Why are we tracking elephants and what are they saying to each other? What happens when you freeze air?” From special effects to roller coaster simulations, this lecture will definitely be a family favorite. Also, it’s the only one being repeated three times on Saturday.

Science of Sports
3:30
Your favorite athletes, ranging NBA players to Olympic athletes, will show you the true meaning of sportsmanship with one-on-one activities demonstrating the correlation between science, athletics, and the human body. This one is truly for your budding teenagers or already-teens as running, basketball, and skiing are among the sports included.