What’s that sound? It’s the sound of visitors enjoying Sound Around!, the newest collection of ExploraZone exhibits from the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History!

The innovative exhibition features 12 hands-on displays designed to let you see and feel sound while you explore frequency, resonance and vibration. It will be on display May 16 - June 3, 2009, on the first floor of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the Museum of Science and History’s temporary exhibits home during construction.

Sound Around! presents sound in a thought-provoking and fun way. You’ll find out how the speed of sound affects hearing, how sound triggers memory, and how you might even learn to be a better singer!

A few of the components featured in Sound Around! include:

• Pipes of Pan – This exhibit demonstrates how tubes of varying length act to select and amplify sound waves of different frequencies. Ten glass tubes of different lengths filter out specific tones from the ambient noise in a room. Each pipe is resonant at a certain frequency, determined by its length. By listening to each pipe from longer to shorter, a strange progression of low- to high-pitched tones are audible.
• Jukebox Memories – Here you can test your memory of different songs and melodies. The songs range from modern to ‘50s music.
• Delayed Speech – At this component, your speech is delayed a fraction of a second. This delay makes it almost impossible to speak intelligibly since the normal mouth-to-ear feedback mechanism has been tampered with.
• Big Tuning Fork – Find the elusive sound hidden in the tuning fork’s hum. Hit the fork with a mallet and put your head between the two prongs. Try to distinguish between the clang tone and the fundamental tone.

These and eight additional sound-based components come from San Francisco’s Exploratorium. Seeking engaging and educational exhibits, the Museum of Science and History entered into a partnership with the Exploratorium in 1999, resulting in its popular ExploraZone gallery. At that time, the Museum became the first U.S. site outside of San Francisco and the second museum worldwide to collaborate with the Exploratorium.

Admission to Sound Around! is included with regular exhibit admission -- $8 for adults, $7 for children (3-12) and seniors (60+) -- and also includes the Cowgirl experience upstairs. Children under 3 are free. Exhibit hours are Mon. – Fri. 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday Noon to 5 p.m.