Working individually or in groups, students explore the concept of stress (compression) through physical experience and math. They discover why it hurts more to poke themselves with mechanical pencil lead than with an eraser. Then they prove why this is so by using the basic equation for stress and applying the concepts to real engineering problems.

Learn about lead toxicity and its effect on wildlife. Lead toxicity is a significant problem for Bald Eagles, vultures, and other birds of prey; more than two-thirds of eagles admitted to the Wildlife Center of Virginia have measurable levels of lead in their blood. Join the Wildlife Center staff and other experts to learn why lead poisoning occurs in wildlife, how it’s treated, and how we can work together to solve this preventable problem.