Published: Aug 27, 2017

Updated: Oct 11, 2024

The more we grow as adults, the more we are expected to take ourselves seriously. This is an inevitable fact of life. In fact, it is implied in the very definition of “adultness” ( I don’t know if this is a real world, and I choose not to look it up to find out).  People seldom believe me when I tell them how serious and stuck up I was until this amazing thing happened to me.

But anyways.. when I went to the St Louis Science Center, I totally felt out of place by how “overage” I seemed to be for all the attractions. And though there were adults there, those were parents who had come to bring their kids their kids to that intellectually stimulating place, and nothing more. So, they had a reason to be there and it seemed like I didn’t. So whilst the “adult” in me contemplated leaving this “happy-kids” place, I thought about the philosophy I’ve been trying to live by: “Carpe Diem” (which means “seize the day”), and I said “Effe That. I’m going to be a kid for the day!”

So I decided to….

1. Dress the Part

The best way to “be” a character is to “embody” that character (ask anyone who did acting or art, they’ll tell y’all). But think about it: being in character makes you less inhibited to do the things that your character does. Plus, I got so many great reviews from this face painting that I kept it for the entire day. You can see me wearing it again at my Escape to the Saint Louis Contemporary Art Museum.

2. Now… Play the Part

Welcome to the Energizer Machine! Running forward on the treadmill creates a momentum that propels a tennis-size ball upwards in the system, and the ball in turns moves all other components of the system without you even realizing it.

Clearly, as you can see, I was the most entertaining kid there:)

3. Be Open Minded

It’s always great to know how many little random things you can learn from places like these. For instance, though I knew that there are different types of energy, I didn’t really know how much energy a joule was, practically speaking. I also finally found out little random interesting things such as how light goes from a power plant to your house, or how rollercoasters use energy. Now I can brag about knowing the latter random fact.

4. Discover: Science is for Everyone 

This goes hand in hand with being open minded. Unless you get into a mindset that is conducive to learning and open to new experiences, you won’t learn and you won’t grow!! Regarding this random fact on farming, I thought female labor was difficult – but then I felt “oh, poor chicken”.

5. Jump in for the Live Demos!

A great way to enhance your experience at the St Louis Science Center is to participate in a live demo. Luckily I was able to catch one before making my exit. Call me uninformed, but I did not know that water could boil when exposed to HOT as well as COLD temperatures.

Being so involved in medicine has sheltered me to some interesting aspects of science.

Every age is a good age to learn, and the more open-minded you are, the more you get to discover things. So don’t be stuck up when you travel! Dress the part, play the part and enjoy the experience!

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”
― Augustine of Hippo