The Science Guy

We also had a surprise presentation from Tyler Elkins. He was visiting his Grandmother. He loves science. He gave the children a show to remember. He displayed what happens when you put a little water in a film container and just before you put the lid on you put a quarter of an Alka Seltzer in it. Then set it down lid side down on the table and wait for it….. to go up like a rocket. The children made him repeat this until the Alka Seltzers ran out.

He also displayed what happens when you mix vinegar and baking soda… Lots of foamy stuff. Better yet, put some red food coloring in it and it looks like a volcano. Tyler is 12 years old and will some day be a great scientist.

Rocks Rock

Written by Librarian

Friday, 18 July 2008

Children examining rock samples.

We had a "Rocking" good time on July 14th. Thanks the Tim Barney family. We learned that beautiful rocks can be found RIGHT HERE in GENEVA!

Did you know that you can find petrified wood in the Pea River? Petrified wood Tim Barney showing rock samples to children. (from the Greek root "petro" meaning "rock" or "stone", literally "wood turned into stone") is a type of fossil: it consists of fossil wood where all the organic materials have been replaced with minerals (most often a silicate, such as quartz), while retaining the original structure of the wood. The petrifaction process occurs underground, when wood becomes buried under sediment and is initially preserved due to a lack of oxygen. Mineral-rich water flowing through the sediment deposits minerals in the plant's cells and as the plant's lignin and cellulose decay away, a stone mould forms in its place.

We enjoyed getting close and touching rocks from all over the world. But the most interesting were the ones found right here in the Wiregrass. Imagine walking Tim Barney showing rock sample to children. down a dirt road and finding rocks that have seashells and other sea life imbedded in them. Well, you can. There are beds of limestone that can contain very distinctive impressions of sea life from millions of year ago. Sometimes you can find a rock called "Chert" which looks like Flint. The distinction between "flint" and "chert" is often one of quality - chert being lower quality than flint. Flint was used to make weapon tips for arrows and spears for thousands of years. We also saw the process from unpolished to polished stone. It takes approximately 28 days to polish rocks. Thank you Tim Barney for enriching our minds and helping us learn more about our environment!

Mondo Magnets

Written by Librarian
Friday, 18 July 2008
It was a MONDO MAGNET MOMENTOUS SHOW! Thank you Mr. Patton of Hartford Alabama for showing us FUN things to do with magnets. We learned that Total Cereal really has your nutritional daily requirement for iron! It was proven at the Geneva Public Library, July 10, 2008. Imagine seeing cereal lift up from the bowl and stick to a magnet. You can do this too. Crush the cereal so that it the consistency of crumbs instead of flakes and get a strong magnet. Then hold the magnet over the cereal about a quarter inch above and watch the crumbs of Total Cereal jump up and stick to the magnet. You can also pick up a dollar bill, sand, some rocks with a strong magnet. A very popular exhibit: ZINGERS!!! It almost sounds like something to eat but you don't want to eat these. They are two magnets that when tossed in the air, come together with the coolest sound. Noise-makers are very popular in a library. I am glad he had a couple of pairs so that the librarian could play too. There is a technique to throwing them in the air and getting maximum "zingingness". By the end of the show everyone had achieved at least one advanced "ZINGGGG". Where do you learn about magnets? At your Geneva Public Library of course. We have "Mondo Magnets: 40 Attractive (and repulsive) Devices & Demonstrations" by Fred Jeffers.