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INVENTours

INVENTours are demonstrations and hands-on activities that take place from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Energy Systems and Nuclear Science Research Centre (ERC), Atrium and the Business and Information Technology Building, Atrium and cafeteria (main floors). 

  • Note: Some events may have a limited number of participants. Children must be accompanied by an adult at all INVENTour events.

 

Activities


Beau Bot

A pumping trainer that is used as a teaching tool will be active and on display.


Biodiesel Production

Learn how to make diesel fuel using vegetable oil.


Biodiversity Gallery

Come explore the Biodiversity Gallery where you will find everything from bugs to bones! Find out what biodiversity is all about, use a microscope to see what things really look like, play biodiversity bingo, test your skills with an animal skull match game, and much more!

Animal Skull Match Game

Examine a variety of animal skulls and teeth. Can you match the skull to the animal?

Animal Track and Scat Challenge

Junior Science Rendezvous Scientist Sean Forrester will help you use your powers of observation to identify different animal tracks and scat, yes scat... otheriwse known as poop. Don't worry it's not fresh!

Biodiversity Bingo

Explore the amazing diversity of insects in the world around you by playing a game of bingo! 

Fossil Frenzy

Get in touch with your inner paleontologist! Hunt for fossils and make your very own dinosaur hat.

Microworld Explorations 

Use different types of microscopes to see things you never imagined.

Pollinator Pals

Learn all about pollinators, and how to plant a wildflower garden and make a bee habitat to encourage bees to visit your garden! Wildflower seeds will be available for free while quantities last.

Whoooo Did I Eat?

Are you ready to be an owl detective? Examine an owl pellet and see if you can figure out what an owl ate for lunch! Learn about the special adaptions owls have for hunting,


Biofilm and Microorganisms

Learn how to grow your own biofilm and discover what lives within it.


Birds do it, Bees do it, even small freshwater fish do it!

Did you know that most fish lay eggs? Just like other egg-laying animals, fish have complex mating behaviours that often resemble a dance. In this activity you will learn about the lifecycle and courtship rituals of small egg-laying freshwater fish. You can sign up to take a tour of Ontario Tech University's famous Aquatic Lab Facility and get up close and personal with baby fish embryos.


Bone Zone

Discover how your skeletal system provides protection, support and movement through challenges, demonstration and role-playing activities. Make a model hand and test it for strength and stability.


Bottle Rockets!

Launch pop bottle rockets using only water and air. Compete for the longest distance!


Breathe In, Breathe Out

Learn about lung capacity and help inflate a real pig's lung!


Bristle Bots

Join the university's Engineering Outreach to create your own bristle bot. Using your knowledge of circuts and a creative mindset, you will assemble your bristle bot that will shake and vibrate about!


Candy Bombs

Use Mentos to blow up some cola and find out why it happens in this sticky and explosive activity! 


Chemistry Extravaganza!

A cavalcade of amazing chemistry demos including flamming gummy bears and elephant toothpaste! Join us at 10:45 a.m., 11:45 a.m., 1 p.m. and 1:45 p.m. for a cornucopia of chemistry fun!


Colourful Chemistry

Learn how to make an indicator out of red cabbage.


DaVinci’s Den

Leonardo DaVinci wasn’t only an artist; he was a visionary, inventor, anatomist and a scientist too. Be inspired by art and science in one of our keystone ‘STEAM’ events this year.

Body Building 101

DaVinci was well known for his detailed anatomical drawings based on his own dissections of the human body. How well do you know your body? How quickly can you put it back together? 

Crazy Catapult Challenge

See models of DaVincin’s catapult and give it a try. Compare different catapults and launch your way into learning the science of catapults by participating in some cool catapult challenges.

DaVinci Bridge

Build a bridge without using any nails. Try it small scale and then build it big and test it out!

You Gotta Have Heart 

Have a look at a dissected sheep's heart, listen to your own heartbeat and learn how your blood circulates through your heart.


Dry Ice Rainbow

Watch how dry ice changes into a rainbow of colours.


Euler's Disk

Spin the disc and predict how long it will spin before it stops. You will be amazed at the magic of angular momentum!


Explore the Science of Astronomy with the Durham Regional Astronomical Association

Make your own planisphere to track the nightly and seasonal movement of constellations.  If the weather cooperates, view sunspots and solar flares through a solar-filtered telescope.


Forensic Fun Zone:

Hunter the Ridgeback had a party at his house to celebrate the university’s exciting new logo change! At 4:00 pm, Hunter went to the kitchen to get a special OntarioTech University cake for all of the guests, but it was missing! On the kitchen counter beside some knocked over grape Kool-Aid powder, Hunter found a note that said “HA HA HA! You will never find me and your cake!” When Hunter looked at the floor, he noticed someone had stepped in the knocked over grape Kool-Aid. From the inside, Hunter saw that the kitchen window was broken open. Upon closer inspection, he found a piece of ripped clothing on one of the pieces sharp glass. When Hunter went outside to take a closer look at the damage to his window, he saw some tool mark impressions on the window sill.

When police arrived at the scene, they collected the ransom note, the pieces of broken glass from the window, the Kool-Aid powder from the floor, a tool-mark impression from the damage on the window sill, and the piece of fabric from the broken glass.

After obtaining a search warrant, a handwriting sample, clothing sample, fingerprints, and a sample of powder from each suspect’s shoe were collected as evidence. All of the collected evidence was sent to the Forensic Fun Zone lab for comparison to the evidence at the crime scene! We need your help to find who stole Hunter’s cake!

Magnetic Fingerprints

Fingerprints are unique to each person even if you’re an identical twin! Using magnetic powder, take a look at your own fingerprints and see what unique patterns that make you one of kind!


Faraday's Laws and the Electric Guitar

Explore magnetism and electricity and learn how Faraday's law explains the physics behind the electric guitar


Flextagles

A flextagle is an amazing folded paper toy with changing patterns that never end. It’s mesmerizing. Learn how to make your own!


Genetics with a Smile

In this hands-on demonstration, participants will use coin tosses to generate genotype and phenotype of 12 different facial characteristics. From this simple exercise, more than 4,000 combinations are possible. People have many more characteristics than the 12 in this demonstration. That is why we are all unique!


Hovercraft Races

Make a mini-hovercraft and race it on different surfaces to explore friction.


Habitats

WHat is a habitat? What does a bird need in its habitat? You will see a real birds nest and role-play birds collecting supplies to build their own! You will act out different habitats and draw your own habitat.


Hydrophobic Sand

Sand + water = mud, right? Nope, this amazing sand never gets wet!


Hydraulic Grabber

Ever wonder how those big construction vehicles work? Come see if you can control a hydraulic grabber just like the pros!


I Spy

Want to send a secret message to your friend? Come learn how you can used geometry and a Caesar cipher to encrypt your message.


Krazy for Kaleidoscopes

Have you ever wondered how you get all those wonderful colours and patterns in a kaleidoscope? Now you can find out and even make your own!


Kids Say (and Think) the Darndest Things

Curious about the psychology of kids? How do kids view the world and make decisions? Stop by this development science booth to peek into the mind of a child.


Lava Lamps

See how to make your very own lava lamp from common household materials while learning about the mixing of solutions and simple chemical reactions. 


Let's Talk Science - Hands-on / Minds-on Activities

Fun activities from some of our most popular Let's Talk Science Workshops, including: "matter matters", "Science Safari", and "Transportation and the Environment". These activities are suited to youth from grade 1 to 9 and will give students and parents an idea of the kind of hands-on / minds-on activities LTS volunteers provide for schools and community groups. 


Levitating Orb

Come learn how to make an orb float in the air – really! It’s science (even though it looks like magic).


Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream and Shaky Ice Cream

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! There is more than one way to make ice cream. Watch our scientists malke icecream using liquid nitrogen and have a sample. Make your own ice cream with a bit of salt, water, cream and a few shakes all while learning about freezing point depression - educational, fun and tasty!


Moving Water

Harnessing water energy for boat races


Optical Illusion Art

Try some amazing optical illusion art but watch out for the dragon.. he's got his eye on you!


Origami DNA Challenge

Help us achieve a special Science Rendezvous goal of making a five-metre-long (or more) origami DNA molecule!


Plasma Globe

Make amazing light patterns using your fingers! Light up a light bulb without plugging it in and learn the physics behind how this happens!


Playful Machines

Investigate simple machines by using levers, wheels and axels, and inclined planes to create a model playground.


'Power Down!' - Kid-Friendly Escape Room (Sign up at the welcome desk)

You and your team of explorers have followed a distress signal from the previous set of explorers, and it's coming from inside an old alien spaceship! Just as you find where the signal was coming from, the space ship loses power, closing the doors to get out! With only 20 minutes of air left to breathe, find a way to power on the ship and escape!

Parents: Work with the young explorers to help (and explain the concepts!) of these simple, yet tricky science puzzles! We're close by with hints to guide the party along!


Pop, Fizz!

Using commercial ingredients and an acid/base reaction, learn how bath bombs can be made right in your own home.


Position Matters

Learn how to position support for bridges and what types of support are best


Programming Fun

Play games and learn about the programming challenges required to create immersive entertainment.


Rainbow Discs

See a rainbow and learn about prisms, refraction and light.


Robotics

Come explore LEGOTM robotics with software programming and designing with NXT robotics. Create programs and test your robot with exciting hands on challenges! 


Sandbox Watersheds

Learn about how water behaves in watersheds using this cool augmented reality sandbox.


Science Rendezvous Graffiti Wall

Having a great time at Science Rendezvous? Tell us how much by posing for a photo in front of our Science Rendezvous Graffiti Wall painted by the university's own Forensic Science student and graffiti artist Julia Ivancic! Or, take a pic with Ontario Tech University mascot Hunter the Ridgeback or Durham College mascot Lord Durham. Share your photo on Twitter using #OnatrioTech, @DurhamCollege, #SciRen, #OdySci, #STEAMbig


Sneaky Skittles

There is something sneaky going on with your skittles, and M&M's and all you need is warm water to discover the secret. Discover what happens when skittles and M&M's are placed in water, and why


Soap Bubbles in Dry Ice

Bubbles + dry ice = too much fun!


Grow Your Own Flowers

With the warm summer just around the corner, come learn how to grow some popular flowers for your garden.


Sunshine Masterpieces

Use a variety of natural objects and the power of the sun to make your very own nature artwork. The secret is in the paper. Discover the science behind the art.


Uber Ooblek

Come out and have some fun with our Mad Slimologists. You can heighten your sense of touch while you learn about a unique polymer that's also a non-Newtonian fluid. Make your very own slime (a.k.a. ooblek) and even watch it dance—seriously, ooblek has the right moves!


Ultraviolet Beads

Learn about the power of the sun and ultraviolet (UV) light using cool UV colour-changing beads. Experiment with sunscreen and sunglasses and see how effective UV protection really is. You also get to make a cool bracelet to keep!


Uncrushable Eggs? Bendable Bones?

Come See how you can make eggs uncrushable and tie bones!


Ontario Tech University Motorsports - Electrifying Engineering!

Meet the Ontario Tech University Motorsports team, a group of university students from various departments in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science who have collaborated to create an electric F1-style race car!


Visualizing the Invisible: Simulations of Biology at the Nanoscale and 3D Molecules

Meet Dr. Hendrick DeHaan’s graduate students who will be showcasing innovative research spanning biology, physics and computer technology. Watch simulation movies that display the dynamics of proteins, DNA and nanoparticles at the nanoscale and use Autodesk viewers to interactively view biomolecules in 3D.


Vortex Cannon

See kinetic energy in action!


Water Filtration System

How do we get that clean water we love so much? Our scientists will show you one way to clean your water!