On the Shoulders of Giants

How is it that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree? Who invented electricity? Join us as we get to know the great minds behind modern science.

Truth be told, we borrowed the name of this class from English polymath Sir Isaac Newton, who in 1675 said, "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants". Now you also have a chance to get to know the giants of the science world, whose discoveries changed ours!

This class explores the evolution of the world of science from the time of the first scientific discoveries until today. We will learn about scientists from the past, the experiments they performed, and the right and wrong conclusions to which they came.

To understand these scientific developments throughout the centuries, we will recreate the experiments that resulted in scientific breakthroughs, as well as those that have turned science on its head. We will even recreate experiments that impeded scientific progress.

In addition, we will explore how scholars and researchers calculated the surface of Earth 2,000 years ago, and how they devised methods to prevent food from spoiling. We will follow in the footsteps of famous scientists and inventors like Galileo Galilei and Newton, who discovered the laws of motion and the law of action-reaction; trace the steps of Louis Pasteur, who discovered the medicine that has prolonged our lives; become familiar with Joule, Volta, and Calvin, who managed to turn electricity into a useful phenomenon; and we will get to know other great scientists – some more known than others – as well.

Come discover them in a class that takes you back and forth in time.

 

Audience:

5th and 6th-graders

Time:

20 weekly sessions, on Thursdays, between 16:15-17:45. 

Place:

Davidson Institute of Science Education at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot.

 

Price:

1,600 NIS (up to six, interest-free installments).  Students (including siblings) who enroll in more than one class will be granted a 10% discount.

Please note: multiple discounts do not apply.

 

How:

Simply click on the registration link on the Hebrew site and follow the instructions on the online form. Hurry – the number of students per class is limited!