Newsletter 372 BIG Little Science Centre March 2020

EDITOR's E-Mail: gordongore0@gmail.com

ISSN 1920-9932 BIG Science (Print) ISSN 1920-9940 BIG Science (Online)

Connor shows us the shape of the magnetic field around this magnetic sweeper. Connor Tremblay: From Camper to Colleague. See pages 2 to 3.

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Connor Tremblay: From Camper to Colleague

August 2 2011: Connor at a BIG Little Science Centre science camp. (He was in Grade 6 then.)

August 22 2019: Connor as a summer employee at the BIG Little Science Centre

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Looking for the Queen Bee

Looking for a Butterfly?

Connor Tremblay is a familiar face to regular visitors to the BIG Little Science Centre. He has been volunteering on a regular basis for Gord Stewart and now frequently works for the Centre on Saturdays and in summer.

Connor was a student at Aberdeen Elementary School when he first came for a visit. He attended South Kamloops Secondary School and is now in his second year at Thompson Rivers University. He has a strong interest in physics. We all appreciate the contributions of volunteers (and employees) like Connor.

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Tickets available at 250 554 2572

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Things are looking UP…and Forward!

As many of you know, we are in the process of building a new centre at 458 Seymour Street, downtown next to the Kamloops Art Gallery and TNRD Library. We will be re-opening soon, hopefully, in April. As well as doing programs in the schools and the community of Kamloops right now, we are planning some super activities for our new centre. March 29: We are holding a Duffy’s Pub Fundraising Dinner for $22 a person. The proceeds will support our

move! There will be a 50:50 draw for the adventurous. Your meal selection includes steak, pasta, or chicken. You know that the food is always great at Duffy’s. For more information or to purchase tickets, give us a call at 250-554-2572. A poster is attached.

April 21 to 24: StarLab is returning to BIG Little Science Centre. Kevin from the Okanagan Science Centre is world renowned for his tales and expertise inside his ‘planetarium in a dome’. Teachers may bring their classes April 21 to 24. April 23-June 11: Our Robotics Club will start Thursday April 23 and run for 8 Thursdays to June 11. This is a great opportunity for robotics keeners to learn more about the Lego NXT Robotics systems. People 9 and older will design, build, and program their own robots. Any level can be involved; we provide expert training. This is a fantastic way to get started, or to become a pro! Call or email if you wish more information. Saturday April 25: The public is invited to explore the constellations. Free for members, included with standard entry fee for non-members.

Summer Camps:

A wide variety of summer camps are planned for this year! More detail about dates, camp descriptions, and costs will be revealed in future issues of this newsletter.

Robotics camps STEM camp Film-Making Camp Outdoor Nature Camp WOW Camps

Keep an eye on our Website Calendar for all the latest activity listings.

See you soon at YOUR science centre. Thank you for sharing with everyone! Sincerely, Susan Hammond. Operator @ BIG Little Science Centre250-554-257 susan@blscs.org

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Thank You To Our Community Supporters

Building Our New Home!

Carpentry & Electrical

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Mailing Address Box 882 Station Main Kamloops BC V2C 5M8 Location: 458 Seymour Street Kamloops BC V2C 2G7 Website http://blscs.org Executive Director/Principal Operator: Gord Stewart Phone (250) 554 2572 or (250) 554 BLSC E-Mail: gord@blscs.org Assistant Executive Director/Operator: Jennifer Davis Phone (250) 554-2572 or (250) 554 BLSC E-mail: jennifer@blscs.org Operator: Susan Hammond Phone (250) 554 2572 or (250) 554 BLSC E-Mail: susan@blscs.org This Newsletter is a publication of BIG Little Science Centre Society. Newsletter Editor: Dr. Gordon R. Gore F-411, 3255 Overlander Drive, Kamloops BC V2B 0A5 Home phone 778 472 2014 Editor’s E-Mail: gordongore0@gmail.com

Back issues of BIGScience can be viewed at <https://blscs.org/newsletters/>.

A family membership is $70.00/year. An individual membership is $45.00/year. A family membership consists of five directly related people. (This includes any combination of grandparents, parents and children).

The Main Benefits of Membership: Member ID cards for all members Free entry to our Exploration Room, events, shows and activities FREE or DISCOUNTED admission to MOST Canadian science centres, including Science World and the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre in Vancouver Discounts for Science and Robotics Camps/Clubs in Kamloops Voting privileges at the BIG Little Science Centre’s Annual General Meeting Visit our website <blscs.org> for more details on the benefits of membership.

The New Science Centre

Work is still progressing on construction of the new centre on Seymour Street. Heating and cooling systems are currently being installed. Plumbing, washrooms, electrical, alarm and fire suppression systems are being installed. The new main entry door should be in place this week. We are all looking forward to seeing the new centre for the first time. In the meantime, the editor is running a lot of ‘archival’ stories to remind people of what our unique Kamloops centre provides the citizens of this city and surrounding communities. Science teachers can access a treasure trove of science teaching ideas from past issues of BIGScience. Visit the BIG Little Science Centre website http://blscs.org for access.

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Youth Summit 2020 The Invasive Species Council of BC is excited to announce the 2020 Youth Summit at UBC Vancouver from March 13th to 15th. We invite you to join over 100 youth from across BC as we connect, learn from each other, and celebrate our successes! The 2020 Youth Summit is open to any youth (15 to 30 years old) and partner organizations from across BC. Please share this invitation with your network and help us create an unforgettable experience for these youth leaders! The 2020 Youth Summit is an exciting, active and progressive event that will help young people engage with a culture of service, learn from local change-makers, and amplify their voices. Our storyteller line-up includes folk musician Luke Wallace, Patti Beer, an Ocean Wise biologist and Justin Perry, a local Indigenous youth leader. We will also hear from volunteers based in Williams Lake, Kamloops, and Vancouver. An evening reception at the Beatty Biodiversity Museum (in the shadow of a 26-meter-long blue whale skeleton!) will give us an opportunity to recognize the volunteers who have gone above and beyond in their service. Finally, we will wrap up the weekend with a communications workshop where participants will learn to use traditional and social media to be heard and inspire others to action.

More than anything, we are excited to enrich this event with a diversity of youth voices. We want to make it as easy as possible for young people to take part. We have made travel bursaries and discounted admission prices available to active youth volunteers. To find out how you or someone you know can join us for this amazing weekend for only $20, please click here.

Many thanks,

Katelyn Bissat, RFW Technician | Youth Facilitator | facilitatorkam@bcinvasives.ca | (250) 819-1055 | Workdays: Tues – Sat 8:30am-430pm bcinvasives.ca | 1–888–933–3722 | Donate - Charity Registration #: 856131578RR0001

Register today for INVASIVES 2020 – ISCBC’s 15th Anniversary Forum & AGM with keynote speakers Brian Minter and Dr. Daniel Simberloff! Join us February 11 – 13, 2020 in Richmond BC.

Looking for a way to build community, support healthy habitats and connect with like-minded young adults? Volunteer with us! bcinvasives.ca/volunteer

Are you an invasive species practitioner or researcher? Join the Invasive Species Research Hub for the Pacific Northwest!

Announcing the Ryan Bracewell Memorial Robotics Bursary

Ryan Bracewell was passionately devoted to science and robots; he was driven by curiosity and developed a highly specialized skill set in the CNC industrial robotics industry. Ryan also taught a few of the robotics classes in Kamloops, including some at the BIG little Science Centre (BLSC). Ryan died in a car accident on Feb 25, 2017 at the age of 35. This bursary has been created in his name to help low income children discover the same love for robotics. The Ryan Bracewell Memorial Robotics Bursary is available at the BLSC, for the after-school Robotics Club, to any low income child that expresses an interest in robotics, female or male. There will be one bursary available for each Robotics Club session. Applications to receive the bursary are available from the BLSC.”

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Science World Donates Displays

All three displays will be available when the new science centre opens in April. Thanks, Science World!

Compost: The compost exhibit consists of a flat display representing a landfill with twelve insets containing food items, metal tongs, and a compost bin. The objective is to move the food items from the landfill to the compost bin using the tongs without touching the rim of the insets, this triggers the buzzer! Putting food in the compost instead of the landfill creates less methane gas and creates useable topsoil for future plant growth.

Tower of Power: A ring of buttons and small screens surrounds a central tower. Each screen represents a different appliance using electricity in your household. The objective of the game is to turn off as many appliances as you can, without turning off the fridge or the water heater, to make the energy last 60 seconds.

Hydro: Demonstrating the power of water to generate electricity, this exhibit invites visitors to turn a hand crank to pump water up to an overhead reservoir. When enough water has been pumped, it will come back down the second tube, spin the yellow turbine, and generate electrical energy. Visitors can try to create enough electrical energy to power a smartphone!

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Comical Critters Collection

Gordon Gore

"You can't be afraid of heights, Olivia. You are a BIRD!"