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Mickey Mouse and molecular science

By Claire Carlson '12
June 21, 2011

This spring St. Olaf Professor of Chemistry Robert Hanson packed his bags for a trip to Disney World. But he didn't head to Florida for the typical fun-and-sun vacation — he went to check out the interactive science exhibit that he created for Disney called "Touch a Molecule."

Hanson's display is part of a larger exhibit named "Take a Nanooze Break" that is housed in the Innoventions building of the Epcot Center. There, each display relates to some aspect of nanoscience. Hanson's Touch a Molecule exhibit allows users to investigate and manipulate different types of molecules. He hopes that this interaction will encourage "a fascination with the varied structures of molecules."

Learning by doing
Hanson's exhibit is completely interactive, composed of two screens in a kiosk and a running video on top. Guests can touch, swipe, and scroll on the screen of the display, rotating and zooming in on molecules of water, silicon crystal, hemoglobin, and viruses. Meanwhile, text on the side of the screen explains what they are seeing and manipulating.

The "Touch a Molecule" interactive exhibit in its place at the Epcot Center, where in the past year it has been used by more than 150,000 people.

Each molecule is portrayed with eye-catching graphics that highlight its unique features.The water molecules move frenetically across the screen, showcasing randomness and speed. The silicon molecule is portrayed as an infinite crystal lattice, one that looks like a treacherous maze. The virus is a colorful woven blob, and the hemoglobin animation focuses on the immense lever effect of oxygen on the entire structure. These characteristics are accessible to an audience unversed in molecular science, thereby making the tiny structures tangible and interesting.

Hanson was thrilled to observe park-goers interact with his Touch a Molecule kiosk for the first time. "It was fabulous," he says. "I had the most wonderful day of my life sitting and watching, and seeing how people were interacting."

Hanson sees this type of exhibit as an excellent tool for teaching about complex scientific subjects in a fun and innovative way. "For a long time I've wished that we could get this kind of technology in museums," he says. "Disney World is not exactly a museum, but in some ways it's better. The number of people who go through Epcot Center probably beats just about any museum."

When Hanson pulled data from the exhibit in March, his belief was confirmed. He learned that in one year the machine had received 1.6 million touches, and from that knowledge he could estimate that 150,000–200,000 people had interacted with his creation.

This image replicates one of the interactive features in the kiosk that Professor of Chemistry Bob Hanson designed for an exhibit at Epcot Center. Use your cursor to stop and manipulate the molecules in the image.

The road to Disney
Hanson was invited to participate in the project by a professor at Cornell University named Carl Batt, the lead researcher for the Take a Nanooze Break exhibit. Batt had already developed two of the exhibits, and contacted Hanson to complete a third. Hanson accepted, and created Touch a Molecule during January of 2010.The project drew from many areas of Hanson's knowledge, and he enjoyed the multifaceted nature of the project. He hopes to do more of this type of work in the future, and is already planning an interactive display for St. Olaf.

"It's been a very good mix of my interest in math and computers, and my knowledge of chemistry," he says. "It's fun."

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.