This year’s Family Open House at the Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory will take place from 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Open House offers family-style hands-on activities, science shows and behind-the-scenes tours. The event is free of charge. Advance registration is available at www.fnal.gov. More than 2,000 people are expected to attend.
The highlights of this year’s program will include hourly cryogenics shows by Jerry Zimmerman as “Mr. Freeze,” kids racing against a gravity accelerator, the popular Ask-a-Scientist session on the 15th floor of Wilson Hall, and tours of the linear particle accelerator and two research areas on site.
“The Open House offers activities for the entire family,” said Spencer Pasero, an education specialist at Fermilab. “Mr. Freeze and his cryogenics show are always a hit, and I think both adults and kids will enjoy our electricity and light demonstrations. Older children, age 10 and up, will have a chance to go with their parents on tours of some of our research facilities.”
About a dozen scientists will be on hand to answer questions in the exhibit area on the 15th floor of Wilson Hall where visitors can get a bird’s eye view of the Fermilab site and the surrounding towns.
The Family Open House is free of charge and made possible by an anonymous donor to Fermilab Friends for Science Education. Tours are restricted to ages 10 and up. For more information, visit http://ed.fnal.gov/ffse/openhouse/. The event is offered in connection with Science Chicago, a year-long celebration of science and discovery in the Chicago area: http://sciencechicago.com/
Fermilab is a Department of Energy national laboratory operated under contract by the Fermi Research Alliance, LLC. The DOE Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the nation and helps ensure U.S. world leadership across a broad range of scientific disciplines.
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