Science in Action & Object I.D. Day at the Sam Noble Museum

Visitors bring in objects for identification, family fun

NORMAN— Many people find and collect objects that they recognize, but can’t identify. Could it be a rock or a fossil? A piece of mammoth tusk or a mineral? An arrow point or a chunk of flint? All these questions and more can be answered from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 26 during Science in Action and Object I.D. Day at the Sam Noble Museum in Norman.

Bring in your natural history objects to be identified, or just come in to enjoy scientific discovery and fun. Science in Action and Object I.D. Day is a free, family-friendly, science-packed day featuring demonstrations and hands-on activities. Experts will converge to investigate objects of all kinds brought in from the private collections of people from across the state. Everything from bones and rocks to Native American objects and languages are brought in to the museum on this day for the experts to ponder over, identify and explain.

Museum staff from archaeology, ethnology, genomic resources, reptiles and amphibians, fishes, vertebrate and invertebrate paleontology, mammals, Native American languages, birds, paleobotany, and modern invertebrates such as insects will be available to make identifications and answer questions. Each department also will have a number of objects on view from their collection to serve as “show and tell” for visitors.

In addition to object identification and collection “show-and-tell,” Science In Action and Object I.D. Day will feature a variety of fun family activities and demonstrations. Enjoy shows in the Star Lab Dome with the Norman North High School Astronomy Club and craft activities with the museum education department. The OU department of Neuroscience also will be there with hands-on activities to help visitors learn more about the working of the brain and the Oklahoma Wind Power Initiative will demonstrate how a wind turbine works.

Representatives from the Oklahoma Geological Survey, the Oklahoma Botanical Society and many others will be present with objects to explore with experts available to answer questions about their organizations.

Recently, the Sam Noble Museum launched a new page to the www.snomnh.ou.edu website, devoted to common fossils of Oklahoma, www.CommonFossilsofOklahoma.snomnh.ou.edu. Equipped with images of living plants and animals and their respective fossils, this site details how paleontologists search for fossils, how to identify Oklahoma fossils and teaches about the communities Oklahoma plants and animals came from.

Fossils are found regularly throughout the state of Oklahoma. The Common Fossils of Oklahoma page allows visitors to submit images and information about fossils they have found and allow the experts at the museum to try and identify them.

To learn more about Science in Action and Object I.D. Day, call (405) 325-4712, or visit the museum’s Website at www.snomnh.ou.edu. The Sam Noble Museum is located at Timberdell Road and Chautauqua Avenue on the OU Norman campus. The Sam Noble Museum is located on the University of Oklahoma Norman campus at Timberdell Road and Chautauqua Avenue. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors 65 and up, and $3 for youth ages 6 to 17. Children ages 5 and under are free. Discounts are available for military personnel and their immediate families.

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