Experimentarium: Construction Site

At the Construction Site, the youngest children and their parents can discover what it takes to make everything at a construction turn and move. It is all about one of the key branches of physics: Mechanics.

At Experimentarium’s Construction Site, children and the young at heart can embark on a journey of discovery by making the crane swing into action, pedalling the Hoist cycle, using the ball race run and trying out many other activities.

At the Construction Site, you can experience the mechanics with your own body as you turn, pull and lift the balls right up into the ball runs – and feel the force of gravity in your stomach, as you follow the descent of the balls before starting a new round of the mechanics game.

The Construction Site offers the following activities:

Grapple with gravity in the Crane

What causes what to move? In the Crane, you apply the principles of mechanics to overcome gravity and lift the ball. The force applied by a child starts a movement. Turning the handle, it is transmitted via the drum and the pulley and lifts and finally it lowers the ball.

Byggepladsens kran. Foto: David Trood.

Hoist cycle sends ball skywards

What causes what to move? On the Hoist cycle, you apply the principles of mechanics to overcome gravity and lift the ball. The force applied by a child starts a movement. By means of the chain, it is then transmitted via the cogs and the drum and finally it lifts the ball.

Racing balls

The balls all roll downwards along the four different runs because, like everything else on Earth, they are subject to the force of gravity.

However, they do not all cross the finishing line at the same time because the runs slope and twist in different ways. The flatter and twistier the run, the greater the resistance for the balls. This resistance is called friction.