Friday, October 06, 2006

Now this is good!

This week we took Boris, Norris and Doris to the Science Museum in London. Not only is the museum brilliant, but most of it is free too! Its 7 huge floors are packed with inventions past and present, planes, trains, engines, ships, rockets, and the like - as well as all manner of interactive exhibits about things as diverse as the human senses and electricty generation.

The basement was always my favourite part as a child, as all the exhibits there are interactive. These days it is called the "launch-pad" and Boris and Norris could have spent a week there, pushing buttons, twiddling knobs, pulling handles etc etc. These manipulate a bewildering array of things such as archemedes (sp?) screws, hydo-electric generators, bubble-makers, railtracks, plasma-balls, the list is endless. The 3D cinema was fun and even little Doris (17 months) had a good go with the groovy 3D glasses required, where we watched film about African wildlife.

Time ran out and we had to head back out of London, realising that we had only managed to see a fraction of the whole thing. I didn't get to see the Brunel exhibition, and the wife didn't get to the history of medicine gallery. The kids are desperate to go back sometime, and considering that its free - I think we might manage it next time we're in London.

The only thing missing was the old van der Graff generator to make your hair stand on end. Probably another victim of the health and safety executive!

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