Adler Planetarium

The Adler Planetarium has something for everyone. In celebration of its newest space shows, "One World, One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure" and "IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System," the whole family can take part in a variety of fun activities including Let's Go Fly a Kite, where differences between the Moon and Earth can be discovered by exploring the properties of air. Working together, families will make a kite that is safe to fly indoors. In Achieving Orbit, a Design Challenge activity, participants use balloons to investigate how a multi-stage rocket propels a satellite into orbit.

American Society of Plant Biologists

What's so cool about plant biology and scientific thinking? Visit ASPB's booth to find out. Beth Judy, the voice of public radio's fact-filled but fictional Plant Detective Flora Delaterre, will join plant biology professor Chad Jordan of North Carolina State in leading fun, informative, hands-on plant science activities. Dig in and plant a discovery garden. Take a closer look at plants with some easy-to-use microscopes, some you even can make and take home. Discover the medicinal benefits of plants through art and radio. Collect fun materials to share with your school or community.

Argonne National Laboratory

Some of the best teams from Argonne National Laboratory's 14th Annual Rube Goldberg Machine Contest for Chicago-area high schools will demonstrate their inventions. Each year, up to 12 high school teams experience the fun and creativity of science and engineering by building wacky machines that use at least 20 steps to complete some mundane task. This year's task is to replace an incandescent light bulb with a more energy-efficient, light-emitting design.

Carnegie Mellon University

Faculty and students from the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University invite you to an interactive presentation to find out what computer science is really about. It will include: Guess who is the computer scientist? What IS computer science? What can you do with it? Watch videos about Baldi, a totally synthetic talking head, and the Robot Soccer World Cup in which Sony AIBO dogs compete. Meet "Billinda" our robot dog. Puzzles will tickle your brain cells.

Chicago Academy of Science's Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Stop by to see the Illinois Energy Bike. See how much power you can peddle with the stationary bike that transfers your pedal power to real power by operating light bulbs, fans, and other electronic appliances. Visit with one of the museum's live animals as we bring out the walking sticks! The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum was founded in 1857 as Chicago's first museum dedicated to educating the public about nature and science through the preservation and display of native specimens, classroom activities, and dissemination of scientific knowledge. Today the museum continues the academy's tradition of research, conservation, and education about nature in the Midwest through participatory exhibits and programs, educational outreach, and ongoing scientific activity.

Fermilab: Mr. Freeze!

This fast-paced show about the fascinating field of super cooling involves a demonstration for children and families. Fermilab engineers use liquid nitrogen to super cool magnets for least resistance; other industries use super cooling, too. Learn about this cool field.

Field Museum

Come and see real fossils from The Field Museum's world-famous paleontology collection! Get up close and personal with an exact replica of a real T. rex skull! Field Museum experts will be on-hand to answer any of your questions. Families are invited to participate in hands-on, take-home activities like creating dinosaur masks and flip books.

Kinetic City

The AAAS Kinetic City project features a variety of educational science opportunities for kids, including Science Gym, SmartFoot dance pad, the Science of Yo-Yos, and the award-winning Kinetic City After School Program.

Museum of Science and Industry

Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry, one of the largest science museums in the world, is inspiring today's students to become tomorrow's scientist through its Center for the Advancement of Science Education.

Robotis

Based on DYNAMIXEL (all-in-one actuator) technology, BIOLOID and OLLO kits has been inspiring science and technology to students and hobbyists from all ages. We focus on providing best platform so that people can find fun and enhance creativity while building robots. We're also supporting teams for RoboCup, Robo-One, RoboGames and many other events.

Science Chicago

Spearheaded by the Museum of Science and Industry, Science Chicago is a collaboration of more than 100 public and private institutions that have come together to present the world's largest science celebration. Designed to awaken the inner scientist in each and every one of us, thousands of dynamic and interactive activities will provide hands-on learning; spur thoughtful debate; enhance classroom learning; and build enthusiasm for the pursuit of cutting-edge science while establishing the critical value of science and math education.

Shedd Aquarium

John G. Shedd Aquarium, a nonprofit institution dedicated to public education and conservation, is "The World's Aquarium." It houses nearly 22,000 aquatic animals representing some 1,500 species of fishes, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, birds, and mammals from waters around the world. Its mission is to enhance public understanding and appreciation of the aquatic world. Today, the aquarium is committed to preserving threatened or endangered species. We encourage you to investigate the natural world through animals. Each hour in the AAAS Exhibit Hall, we will rotate through three different activities: exploration of invertebrate anatomy through squid dissection, investigation of animal movement through observation and prediction of hermit crab movement, and data collection and identification of a life-size inflatable whale shark.

University of Chicago: Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC)

Come explore some of the science leading to the next generation of materials with students and staff from MRSEC. We will present both hands-on demonstrations and high-speed video clips that the entire family will enjoy. They highlight our research dealing with the complex processes underlying many of the phenomena that we commonly see around us. The University of Chicago Materials Research Center focuses on developing design principles for the next generation of materials, emphasizing processes far from equilibrium.

University of Chicago: Science and Technology Outreach and Mentoring Program

Instructors from the University of Chicago's Science and Technology Outreach and Mentoring Program (S.T.O.M.P.) will run a series of interactive hands-on activities for students grades K-5 based on science, math, and engineering principles that are applicable to everyday life. Parents and their young children will have an opportunity to work together to become familiar with the basic principle of acidity through learning which household substance is actually a weak acid; explore the geometry of bottles to solve a volume mystery; learn to filter water; and create and decode their own secret messages.

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign: Physics Van

By performing and explaining exciting physics demonstrations, we show our audiences that science is fun and worthwhile for people who wonder about why the world acts the way it does. We challenge kids' mental picture of what kind of people scientists are. We show them that as long as you want to learn and have fun, there is a world of physics waiting to be discovered. The van also travels to elementary schools in Champaign-Urbana, IL and towns in the surrounding area. It is an outreach program of the University of Illinois Physics Department, part of the UIUC College of Engineering. For more information, and to find out how you can get involved, please contact us at http://van.physics.uiuc.edu.