Community Outreach: Sharing Chemistry with the Community

Dr. Kenneth Lyle has developed a program of community chemistry education that fires the scientific imagination in students of all ages. His educational demonstrations are visually exciting and informative, explaining complex chemical reactions and effects in terms anyone can grasp, from an excited primary watching the Elephant Toothpaste demo create fantastic shapes out of seemigly nothing to students at Meredith College cheering as they light hydrogen bubble on fire. Dr. Lyle's prgram has become increasingly popular over the last 3 years, resulting in requests from dozens of schools from elementary to colleges and even the formation of his own course on how to share the excitement of chemistry exploration and discovery with Duke's neighboring communities: Chemistry 109.

Demo Photos

Elephant Toothpaste              Carbon dioxide bubbles    Dr. Lyle is a colorful character

For more exciting demonstrations, click here!

 

Outreach Events for Academic Year 2009-2010:

The Chemistry of Fire
Fifth Annual Evening of Chemistry Demonstration Program
Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009
7:15-8:30pm, Front lawn of the French Family Science Center, 124 Science Dr.

Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009
Chemistry of Combustion
7:30-8:30pm, North Caroline Museum of Life and Science

Monday, Oct. 15-25, 2009
North Carolina State Fair, Green NC Tent
The NC chapter of the American Chemical Society has a both and stage show, all day every day of the fair.

Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009
Museum of Natural Science, Raleigh, National Chemistry Week, 10 AM – 4 PM.
“Chemistry - It’s Elemental.”

Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009
NC Museum of Life & Science, Durham,
“Saturdays at the Museum” program, 1:30 – 3:30 PM. 

Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009
National Chemistry Week
All day at the NC Museum of Natural Science

Oct, 28-29, 2009
Chem-Mystery of Halloween III
North Carolina Museum of Life and Science

Monday, Nov. 2, 2009
Hock Plaza Building, Durham, 10am-12:15pm
Sponsored by the Duke Area Health Education Centers 

Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009
E.K. Powe Elementary School, 1:30-2:15pm
Sponsored by GlaxoSmith Kline.

Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009
Club Elementary School, 10am-12:30pm. 
"Science Day" focus will be on a comparison of ice to dry ice, and water to liquid nitrogen.

Friday, Nov. 6, 2009
Central Park Charter School, 724 Foster Street, Durham. 

Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009
North Carolina Museum of Life and Science
"Saturdays at the Museum."Experiments will focus on density.

Novermber 14 & 21, 2009
North Carolina Museum of Life and Science .
"Saturdays at the Museum." Experiements will focus on forensics.

For information on previous outreach events, please click here.