www.ted.com In a zippy demo at TED U, AnnMarie Thomas shows how two different flavors of homemade play dough can be used to demonstrate electrical properties — by lighting up LEDs, spinning motors, and turning little kids into circuit designers.
AnnMarie Thomas: Hands-on science with squishy circuits
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thanx, from a nerdy parent with young kids.
I’m a Chef, an artist and a database administrator…and i think I just got a semi.
@fuunguus Just try. That’s the whole point. At worst, you’ll get a tingling sensation if you’re using a 9V battery.
pussification.
@merlin2600
I remember it like it was yesterday when I licked a 9V battery as a little kid, haha, worst day in my life. I guess I was quite a pussy back then, cause now it just feels weird and is not at all scary.
nifty
@AndreLeCoz connard
That is a positively brilliant idea. We need more science and engineering being introduced at young ages. This is one of those small ideas with huge potential impact.
@AndreLeCoz what a waste of FIRST space… and can’t even spell waste…
Honestly, this is a brilliant idea. The reason the new generation (20 +/- 20 years) of functioning people seem to have technology in built into their nervous systems is because technology boomed when they were little. (think the days of Microsoft 95 and yeah, you know it
)
Back in the early 1900, genetics weren’t taught at school. Now its basic curricula.
What if electronics were taught to kids. Amazing
This is genius!!!! What an great way to introduce such a complicated idea of kids! I’m going to be doing this with my niece next time I see her.
BEST EVER!!
Wow. I taught circuit building to elementary age kids for 4 years and could have really used this knowledge. It’s definitely hard to use circuit boards, but I built giant sized ones with foam core, heavy wire and big light bulbs. This is brilliant.
The brilliance of this is the awesomely huge hack value this has. Totally unexpected teaching tool. Teachers around the world should wonder – why couldnt we think of this?
What a pristinely brilliant hack!
@gabydewilde Yup! you’re getting the amazing implications of this idea. Just imagine – kids can make chips with dough instead of silicon. So you got a replacement for some parts of Lego as well. This idea is awesome on so many levels.
You can teach kids PCB design !!!!! Dough, ruler, butter knife, geometry, LEDs – you can make flipflops, muxers, memory, switchboards, cool stuff. Kids can learn binary computing before school is over.
rethipedh
It was fast and kinda ‘unrehearsed’, but it was a great. Thanks TedTalk.
I was going to write some witty reply…but excuse me, I must be going…need play-dough.
Cute and Win.
wow very smart
This is how the love for Science and Electronic starts!
I love ideas like these !
That is ingenious! My daughter loves playing with dough. I, myself, am an artist; my father is an electrician. Put the two together, and the wonders she can make are limitless!
If someone saw me doing this…they would call the Department of Homeland Security.
she looks like that girl from madtv! XD
@CoinDl what a waste of fuckn time….