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As an adult, I don’t have to go
to school, but I can take many of the adult- ed
classes offered. I recently enrolled in the
study of Ben Franklin and am finding him to be
such an amazing person. Of course his study of
electricity and the use of kites had something
to do with my decision to take the class. Ben’s
birthday is Jan. 17; regardless of the weather,
a lot can be done to celebrate.
Kites…on a Roll®
News
A wonderful site,
www.surfnetkids.com/ben_franklins_kite_experiment.htm,
has various excerpts and links discussing this
experiment conducted in
June 1752.
The book, Benjamin Franklin:
an American Life by Walter Isaacson, 2003,
pages 140-142, gives a description of the
experiment within the framework of his life and
interest in scientific happenings.
For older kids, check out
http://www.codecheck.com/cc/BenAndTheKite.html.
This site discusses building and electrical
codes, but B. Franklin is included because of
his contributions.
Kit prices will be going up
in January. Take advantage of the pricing now
before it changes.
Two new links are added to our
Links page:
www.kitehistory.com/index.htm. By clicking
on any of the historic individuals or kites, you
will get quite a nice summary on the selected
topic and
www.scienceweekly.com/interactive/kites_Answers.pdf,
presenting a brief discussion of kite history,
kite parts and kite physics.
Hints for an Easier Activity
Duck® brand duct
tape recently introduced new designs, prints and
colors. Animals, the 60’s, hot rods and others
are added to the familiar silver. Visit
www.duckbrand.com/products/duck-tape.aspx
and click on the color or pattern of interest.
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