Seeing the invisible (5+ years)

Seeing the invisible

How can we make the invisible visible? Explore how balls interact with a hidden structure to come up with your best model of what the invisible structure is and learn more about the Nature of Science!

A lot of phenomena scientists at CERN investigate are invisible to our eyes! For example, particles cannot be seen with the naked eye, and properties such as their mass, energy and charge can only be determined indirectly. How do scientists design clever experiments to understand things that aren’t visible?

In this workshop, participants will conduct a series of experiments to detect hidden structures inside a box. They will explore our human senses as detectors and use a special ping-pong ball detector to make sense of the hidden structure. They will also use infrared cameras – another type of detector that makes another invisible property (temperature) visible.

Age
5+ (recommended age for school groups: 5-15 years)
Duration
45 minutes
Languages
Up to 30 languages for groups, depending on guide availability. English and French for families and individual visitors.
Participants
12 to 24
Accessibility
Pushchair and wheelchair accessible.