Franklin Institute: Flights of Inspiration

A look back in time at weather instruments used in previous centuries. Includes pictures and descriptions of instruments from Franklin Institute's historical collection.

See a picture of the lightning rod Benjamin Franklin used in 1746 and learn about his discovery of electricity.

Wireless communication was around in the 1800's. Learn about Guglielmo Marconi, his discovery of wireless communication and his rewards.

Part of a larger site on the armonica, an instrument created by Ben Franklin. Introduce yourself to the human ear. This section looks at how sound is collected and transmitted and provides diagrams of the parts of the auditory pathway...

Look back in time at some of the people who invented the first technologies for communicating across time and distance that form the foundations of today's information society.

An early history and biographies of the most prominent scientists involved in developing the main sources of energy used in the twentieth century.

A resource provided to Grade 8 teachers to address the School District of Philadelphia's Core Curriculum on the topic of Matter. It covers properties and states of matter, elements, compounds, mixtures, atoms, and the periodic table....

Take a look at this sight and all of the activities it has to offer. Has great activities to use in the classroom as well as world wide web links.

This site from the Franklin Institute Online provides a somewhat simplistic but interesting tale of Ben's electrical activities. Fine link to "electricity bells", in Franklin's own words. Some other links to projects, maybe not so...

High schoolers engage in the study of flight with the help of a computer flight simulation. They take part in a variety of activities that imitate the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Students work as teams like the astronauts would to complete...