Is the word “Discovery” found in the name of your museum? …or in your mission statement? Click here to play this video (0:09). A bit of math exploration & play can be so surprising. Rewarding. It’s fun to see nature and art in new ways… to make new connections. No time pressure. No paper and pencils… our eyes open to
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We love this video! When we partner with a museum or nature center we build the possibilities together. Some activities are “pop-ups.” Others are long lasting, like this sunclock. Some activities are outside… some are inside. “Gnomon” < Do you know this word? Megan uses it in the video. See the how this sunclock was built and how it’s
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One person can make a real difference by bringing math into a family event at the Nature Center. Emmie Chng was working solo with an enthusiastic gathering of families. They learned how to make a plumbline, how to use a quadrant, how to make one at home and why we look to the north star to find latitude. Here’s the
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Theme: Get Outside! We did some survival math, sunlight tracking and compass rose designs. You can find a straight line from West to East if you track the shadow of a stick and mark its top over time. Then you can find North and South and relate that to a compass rose on a map and find your way.
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Update: The Sunclock a fully integrated part of the Austin Nature and Science Center that was featured on this Oct 2020 Tiny Tour hosted by ANSC staff! The sunclock was installed as a collaboration between MathHappens and the Austin Nature and Science Center in Summer 2017. Exhibits Director Josh Ransom sent some wonderful progress pictures showing the improvements they are
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One year later, MathHappens went back to the Neill-Cochran House Museum for Austin Museum Day! We were stationed at the Pythagorean Tables which are formed around a 3-4-5 triangle. On the 3-table, we had Tic-Tac-Toe; on the 4-table, we had chess/checkers; and on the 5-table we had vanilla and chocolate cupcakes. The cupcakes were used to display how square numbers
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We were so pleased to participate in the Nature and Science Center’s Opening of the Nature and Numbers Exhibit. We brought our favorite Fibonacci and Golden Ratio activities, and a new Mirror Symmetry Art activity that was a big hit. To see a program with some additional information, follow this link. Team Photo – We had a great time.
This year it was very chilly. We updated our plumb lines so that we can color and decorate before we assemble them. The nice folks at Save Austin Cemeteries set us up with a nifty table and tent and lots of snacks.
Wow –fuzzy photos! But a great day doing math in the great outdoors. Over 900 people attended Arbor Day on October 21st, 2017 Outside we presented the Fibonacci Tree model that shows how the sequence relates to tree branch growth, rabbit populations and bee genetics Inside at the specimen and trading room we shared calipers that help show the golden
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