SUMMARY: In this workshop, students will observe and participate in scientific experiments to determine why we taste things the way we do. Hands-on activities and demonstrations will provide insight into what is perhaps our most enjoyable of the five senses.
A BRIEF SYNOPSIS: After discussing why and how we taste, students will have the opportunity to explore their own tongues and determine if there indeed exists a 'taste map'. Students will also participate in an experiment that tests whether certain foods can inhibit or change our ability to taste. We will shatter any illusion that the tongue is the only taste organ when students take the smell test. Students will then observe how their favorite soft drinks are made, and will take home an activity that will challenge their ability to sort items based on their knowledge of smell and taste.
EDUCATIONAL VALUE: This workshop is an excellent introduction to one of the 5 senses: the sense of taste. It explores the concepts of how taste and smell are intrinsically linked, how your taste buds work and how the tongue has regions that are sensitive to different types of tastes. Students will get a hands-on, up close look at this amazing sense and will get the opportunity to learn more about how their senses work together.
NOTE: Mad Science Programs are fun explorations into science and technology, and they encourage informal learning through hands-on experience. All Mad Science workshops include a lot of fascinating equipment, supplies, and take-home materials which the children build themselves. The Mad Science mission is to spark the imagination and curiosity of children everywhere by providing them with fun, entertaining, and educational activities which instill a clear understanding of what science really is, and how it affects the world around them.
