Who Am I?
My name is Chris Ramsell. I received my Ph.D. in Physics from Michigan State University in 1999.
When I was a graduate student at Michigan State, I was the physics director for two years at a student group called Science Theatre. Our mission was to perform entertaining science demonstrations for children and for the general public in order to show people that science is really fascinating. Today I work in the semiconductor industry, but I always wanted to return to doing entertaining science demonstrations for children.
What I Do
I recreated many of the science demos that Science Theatre at MSU uses; then I improved some of the shows and created some new shows. Now I usually perform four shows each year at Carden Cascade Academy, a private elementary school here in Hillsboro, Oregon. Each science show covers a particular topic, and tries to explain two or three specific physical principles. For example, the show named "How Things Fly" covers Newton's Third Law of Motion Action and Reaction as well as Drag, Thrust, and Bernoulli's Principle. Each show is designed to be a balance between learning something and having fun. But my main goal is to present scientific ideas in a way that is simple and easy to understand.
Why This is Important to Me
My goal is to show the children that science really makes a lot of sense. I hope to make a connection with that intuitive sense within them so they will feel that what I am showing them is really true. Then, once they have seen these simple explanations and start to think about things in the correct way, I believe they will start to see these physical principles acting in the world around us everyday, the same way that I do.
After they understand science on this intuitive level, I hope they will go home and explain to their parents how an airplane flies or what the difference is between a solid, a liquid and a gas. This will build their confidence, so they will feel that science is something they can really understand and be good at.
