Few weeks ago, we went to MIT to see their nuclear reactor but this time we changed from the atmosphere of institutions and took a field trip to the Museum of science. We walked as a group from Suffolk to the museum, which is located in Cambridge. We were asked to examine, explore, and go through all the expositions that were related to sustainability, energy, and technology.
Fortunately, we arrived exactly when the electricity exhibit started in the theatre of electricity. An expert in that field was explaining to the audience the use of Faraday’s cage theory. He started by defining high voltage as the possibility of causing a spark in the air, and the danger of electric shock by contact. He later on made some electrical discharges, that we could see with the naked eye, to strengthen his argument. As we went through the presentation, the expert got our real attention and encouraged us to be engaged in his presentation. Therefore, he entered the cage and allowed high-voltage discharges from an electrostatic generator to strike the outside of the cage. We were all feared by the bad consequences that might happen but the expositor explained that the Faraday’s cage distributes the charge around the cage’s exterior and cancels out electric charges within the cage’s interior. In other words, it is a hollow conductor, in which the charge remains on the external surface of the cage. As far as I’m concerned, I believe that what made the experiment captivating was the fact that the guide could make music by changing the value of the current. The high voltage electricity was released from the electrostatic generator, which in turn reached the poles and made some specific musical tones. The experiment was thought provoking and made me speechless.
After finishing the presentation, we left the electricity theatre and went to the solar section. The Section displays a range of activities, which aim to bring about a “clean energy society”. Its focus is to present exhibitions that create an interest in global environmental issues, as well as to raise the profile of photovoltaic science among the younger generation (future leaders). One of the exhibits was a “mini” solar panel, which transforms sunlight into electricity. The panels are designed so that the charges will flow in one direction and can be used to do electrical work.
After that, my teammates and I went to the wind section, which mostly was about wind turbines. People have been using wind power for centuries to accomplish various tasks. The concept of wind turbines is simple. They convert the energy of moving air into electricity. According to legacy.mos.org, the wind spins the turbine’s curved blades, creating torque that turns a gear train and drives a generator. The electric current that will be generated can be stored in different ways, but mainly it is stored in batteries.
With the massive exhibits exposed in the museum, I took the initiative with my teammates and started thinking about our High school project. The museum gave us plenty ideas that helped us sort out the best suggestion.
http://science.howstuffworks.com/faraday-cage.htm
http://panasonic.net/sanyo/solarark/en/lab/
You presented Faraday’s cage in a sequential story that made the concept more understandable and exciting. You could also picture the music produced by the release of the current as a floor filled with balls, so when you throw a ball and it hits another one on the floor. This loop of balls hitting each other will keep going until every ball on the floor is hit. So, when the current is released into the air, it kind of pushes the air molecules until your eardrums receive these pulses of pushed air as musical tones.
I liked you included photos both of MOS and other places even though you were initially talking about the MOS. It shows that not only MOS does participate in renewable energy, but places all over.
I loved the way you explained Faraday’s cage.