Ontario Science Centre Access Guide

For Visually Impaired Persons

Produced by the Marketing and Visitor Services Branch of the Ontario Science Centre.

April 2010 Edition

Special Tips

For Blind and Visually Impaired Visitors

This guide helps you and your escorts locate exhibits that are both accessible and fun to operate. Try these tips to help you have a great visit,

• Not all of our exhibits are listed. We list those that may be best experienced through at least one of the senses of: touch, taste, hearing, or smell

• It's best to plan your visit with this guide before you come to the Science Centre.

• It's not possible to experience all exhibit halls in one day. Try to concentrate on those of greatest interest.

• Some assistance from a sighted person is required to locate and enjoy the exhibits, even if just to describe the subject or purpose.

• Some exhibits include an audio description, although most information is in written form.

• You might prefer to visit the Centre when it is not so busy. Our quietest season is from September to October. The busiest times are the Christmas holiday period and the March school break. On any school-day, the class groups leave about 2:30 p.m.

• To help you find your way around you can download and print the Science Centre's Guide Map off our website.

How We Describe the Exhibits,

Each exhibit is described as having one or more of the following characteristics,

Sense of smell,

Sense of taste,

Sense of touch,

Sense of hearing,

Audio description,

And whether the exhibit requires assistance and some reading by a sighted person.

How We Rate the Exhibits,

Each Exhibit is rated using a three star scale,

Three Star rating means that the exhibit is enhanced by visual impairment.

Two Star rating means that the exhibit experience is comparable to that of a sighted person.

One Star rating means part of the exhibit experience will not be conveyed without sight.

Main Entrance

Teluscape & Unilever Science Plaza

Check out these outdoor experience areas as you arrive at the Science Centre.

Wayfinding Instructions, As you approach the building from the main parking lot, Teluscape is on the left and the Unilever Science Plaza is on the right.

FUNtain,

• This fountain in Teluscape lets you create music. Use your fingers to stop the streams of water and generate tones from the large "organ" pipes (seasonal, weather permitting, your shoes and clothing might get a bit wet as you play this instrument) Sense of hearing and touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Big Blue Tube,

• Crawl through the tube in the Unilever Science Plaza and hear the deep sounds or silence at various locations. Sense of hearing and touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Admissions Building

Level 2, Ground Floor

After you enter via the Main Entrance, obtain your tickets at one of the counters. Remember that escorts for disabled visitors are always admitted free. Proceed down the corridor with windows facing the forest.

Can You Walk for 4.6 Billion Years?

• Feel the rocks, minerals and fossils stretching down the length of the corridor.
  Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Wayfinding Instructions, After the end of the glass-walled corridor you enter a large open area, the P&G Great Hall. To the far left are the elevators and escalators to Levels 4, 5, and 6.

Level 4

To go to Level 4, go down one flight on the escalator from P&G Great Hall.

Amateur Radio Station

Call other "hams" around the world with our volunteers in this area next to the escalators.

Kid Spark

This experience area helps children from toddlers to 8 years old learn key concepts in a variety of areas such as construction of towers and geometry, social interaction with others, sound and sound manipulation, water movements and air flow.

Wayfinding Instructions, To go to Kid Spark, take the corridor on the left as you face the escalators going up to Level 2. Kid Spark experiences are in the two halls behind the low wooden partitions, one on your left and one on your right. We'll start with the hall on the right.

At the Kid Spark Entrance, you will find,
Kid Spark Workshops,

• Every week young children enjoy hands-on workshops with our staff. The activities range from clay sculpting to toy building to story telling. Check the schedule at the KidSpark entrance for availability. Sense of touch and hearing, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

In The Front Part of Kid Spark Hall on Right,
Music Makers,

• Create music by banging, scraping and sending air through a variety of different instruments and household objects. Sense of touch and hearing, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Use the console's microphones to change the sound of your voice. Sense of hearing. Rated two stars.

• Spin yourself on a platform and discover what happens when you add more people. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

• Listen to your heart and animal heartbeats on a speaker. Sense of hearing and touch. Rated two stars.

• Compare your hands with a gorilla's. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated one star.

• Position the gears, move energy up a wall and listen for the woodpecker. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• This area is loaded with hands-on toys for kids 3 and under. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

In the Rear Part of Kid Spark Hall on the Right,
Build An Arch,

• Feel how the parts come together to support it. Sense of touch, and may require assistance by sighted person. Rated two stars.

In the Front Part of Kid Spark Hall on the Left,
Kid Spark Cave,

• Feel the walls and creatures. Sense of touch. Rated three stars.

• Feel your bones. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Piece together your internal organs inside a mannequin. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Listen and feel how water flows across the table and learn how movable walls can change the water's direction and speed. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Put together an assortment of pipes to move a stream of water up to a basin. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Push the pins and feel the animal tracks on the other side of the wall. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

The Rear Part of Kid Spark Hall on the Left,
The Pin Wall,

• Press different shapes against the pins and they will appear on the other side. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Push down on the outer ring and make a cloud of mist. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

Outside Entrance of Kid Spark,
Rhoads Sculpture,

• Release a ball and listen as it creates a chain reaction as it makes its way around the sculpture to return to the beginning. Sense of touch and hearing. Rated one star.

Space Hall

Want to touch a meteorite? Think you can pilot a rocket chair? Interested in taking a tour of the solar system with Canadian astronaut Julie Payette? Then come see the Space Hall where space travel is possible.

Wayfinding Instructions,
To go to the Space Hall, take the corridor on the left as you face the escalators going up to Level 2. Take the first entrance on the left to enter the Space Hall.

To The Right of the Entrance, try,
Rocket Chair,

• Steer the rocket chair towards the flashing light. Try to move the front circular pad of the chair over the orange target on the floor. Reach as many targets as you can before your time runs out. You'll have two minutes. Good Luck! Sense of touch and hearing. May require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Level 6

In the Reason For Hope Garden,
You can touch and smell many trees and plants typical of the Carolinian forest that surrounds our site.

Wayfinding Instructions,
To enter the Garden, exit the building through the doors to your left at the bottom of the escalators. Take the stairway up to the gazebo. The Garden is to the left of the Gazebo.

In the Weston Family Innovation Centre, you can create, innovate and explore what's hot in science and technology in this new area of the Science Centre.

Wayfinding Instructions,
The Weston Family Innovation Centre is the first large open area you encounter after leaving the escalator or elevator on Level 6. The Information Desk is on the right with Science Hosts to help you find your way. To the left of the Science Hot Spot presentation stage is a large portal to the exhibit area.

In the Middle of the Open Area, you will find,
Science Hot Spot,

• Plug into current science at these live presentations by our science hosts that are followed by Q & A sessions. Check schedule for availability at Admissions Desk, Level 4 Escalator and Information Desk on Level 6. Audio description available. Sense of hearing, and may require some reading by sighted person. Rated three stars.

In the Front Part of the Exhibit Area, you will find,
Sniff and Tell, located at the left side of the hall.

• Push the buttons, sniff the scents and mark which one most reminds you of a friend. Sense of smell, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated one star.

String Orchestra, located at the left side of the hall.

• Adjust the notes by tightening the strings made of various materials. Sense of hearing, and touch. Rated two stars.

Materials Orchestra, located at the left side of the hall.

• Hear the different sounds by playing discs made of different materials on our "record player". Sense of hearing, and touch. Rated two stars.

• Open different compartments and take a sniff. Can you identify the scent, real or artificial? Sense of smell, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

In the Rear Part of the Exhibit Hall, you will find,
Sound Panels, located at the left side of the hall

• Create your own music with different beats and sounds by pressing different spots on the walls of the chamber around you. Sense of hearing and touch. Rated three stars.

Make Your Own Moving Sculpture, located at the left side of the hall

• Add items like popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners to the arms and then hook it up to make it dance. Sense of hearing and touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated one star.

• Slide the "iron" down various surfaces from Teflon to carpet. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Exercise your ingenuity in this new workshop that is up the stairs at the far end of the hall. Work with others in a group to make a prototype to solve a real-world problem, like affordable housing. This one hour workshop is for people 14 years and older. Check schedule for availability on the sign at the entrance to the Challenge Zone area. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Some audio description available. Rated two stars.

On request, we can accommodate visually impaired individuals or groups. Please call ahead to confirm availability for any special needs.

Mindworks and Question of Truth Exhibit Hall,
This hall examines the science of human nature, from memory and intelligence to our willingness to submit to authority.

Wayfinding Instructions,
Enter through the portal on the right side of the Science Hot Spot presentation stage in the Weston Family Innovation Centre.

Mindworks Exhibition

In the Front of the Hall, On the Right,
Pattern Talk,

• Feel the cutout shapes and then try to describe them to your partner. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

Mind Over Matter,

• Please keep your hands on the bar! Sense of touch and may require some reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

In the Front of the Hall, On the Left,
Performance,

• How does feedback improve the number of times you can depress a lever? Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

MindBody: Stress Detector,

• Put your finger on the stress detector and find out how stressed you are. Sense of touch. Audio description available, and may require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated one star.

In the Back of the Hall, On the Right,
Papermaking Demo,

• Using familiar household items such as plant fibres and a blender, a demonstrator reveals centuries-old tricks of paper making. Free daily science demonstration by Science Centre hosts, visit Information Kiosks for schedule. Sense of touch. Rated one star.

The Rock shop,

• Our volunteers will help you feel the differences between many rocks and minerals. Open on Thursdays and Saturdays. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

A Question of Truth Exhibition

Bias. Racism. Sexism. How have they affected scientific practice through history? A Question of Truth comes to grips with that question while exploring the science and technology of many cultures. This exhibition helps visitors discover the validity of different points of view in science.

Wayfinding Instructions, Walk through the black curtains located at far corner of the Communication Hall.

On Your Right, you will find these exhibits,
Build A Civilization,

• Put together puzzles that compare hierarchical and cooperative systems. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Scientists Speak Up,

• Hear twenty-five scientists from diverse backgrounds talk about science. Sense of hearing. Audio description available. Rated two stars.

On Your Left, you'll find these exhibits,
Confinement Chamber,

• Confinement - this will be disturbing... Sense of touch, and hearing. Audio description available. Rated three stars.

• Why is prejudice a part of human life everywhere? Sense of hearing, audio description available. Rated one star.

• Make a rubbing and explore the Mayan alphabet, which was carved into stone. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

The Living Earth Exhibit Hall (A)

Dramatic living environments are the highlights of this hall, which looks at the delicately balanced, ever changing nature of our planet.

Wayfinding Instructions,
As you enter The Weston Family Innovation Centre go to your right to enter the Cafeteria. Go through it to the corridor and take a left before the ramp and go down five steps to the Living Earth Hall.

In the Front of the Exhibit, you will find these exhibits,
Are the Frogs Croaking?

• Can you recognize these frog calls? Sense of hearing, and may require some reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Located at the right of the stairs. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated one star.

• Taste drinking waters A, B, and C. Do they taste different? Which do you prefer? Sense of taste, and may require some reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Make your way to the Back of the Hall, and you will find these exhibits,
Animal Sounds

• Listen to recorded sounds of various animals, located to the right of the entrance to the Rainforest. Sense of hearing, and may require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Telus Rain Forest

Wayfinding Instructions,
Enter through doors next to railing.

• Feel the hot, humid atmosphere of a tropical rain forest.
• Touch the leaves of plants, the spiky bark of the kapok tree.
• Listen to a waterfall and hear birdcalls recorded in an actual rain forest!
• Features an uneven footpath in some parts that simulates the hazards of stones and tree roots, as well as a narrow foot-bridge (2 m long) with a rope and net railing that runs over the stream.
  Sense of hearing, touch, and smell. May require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

The Living Earth Exhibit Hall (B)

Continue to explore the wonders of our planet.

Wayfinding Instructions,
At the exit of the Rain Forest.

On the Right, you will find,
Cutting Round A Log,

• Feel the cuts made to get many planks from a single log. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Around The Cave, you will find,
The Cave,

• Walk through a dark, wet and narrow cave, and listen to your voice bounce off the walls. Sense of touch and hearing, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Listen to ocean waves in this small theatre, and discover the ecosystems of a coral reef and maritime coast. Sense of hearing. Audio description available. Rated one star.

• Touch the dimples formed by flowing water on limestone. Sense of touch, and some reading required by sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Touch a piece of limestone pitted by the acid formed when ground water combined with carbon dioxide in the air. Sense of touch, and may require some reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• Touch Ontario fossilized coral from pre-historic times. Sense of touch, and may require some reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

• The sound of bats, frequency slowed down so humans can perceive it. Sense of hearing, and may require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Science Arcade

The clanking, whirling, flashing exhibits of the Arcade form a playground for the mind and senses, exploring phenomena from gravity to synthesized music.

Wayfinding Instructions,
As you enter The Weston Family Innovation Centre go to your right to enter the Cafeteria. Go through it into the corridor and down the ramp. At the end of the ramp is the beginning of the Science Arcade.

On the left of the Front Hallway,
Strength Is Not Always The Answer,

• Lift 6 kilos with the help of 3 different pulley arrangements. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

On the Right of the Front Hallway,
Fulcrum And Leverage,

• How can the same weight seem different? Check the leverage. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

How Long is 15 Seconds?

• Test your concept of time. May require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Garden Gate,

• This is a puzzle: figure out how to open the gate. Sense of touch. Rated two stars.

At the Front Part of Hall, on the Right,
Electricity Demonstration,

• Feel a 500,000 volt Van de Graaff generator spark a hair raising experience. Daily science demonstration by Science Centre hosts, visit information desks for schedule. Sense of hearing and touch. Rated two stars.

Lead is the Heaviest Metal, Right?

• Lift each brick to find out! Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

What Makes The Sound? Located at far wall.

• Hear about the physics of sound. Sense of touch and hearing. Audio description available. Rated two stars.

At the Front Part of the Hall, on the Left, is,
Come Inside And Listen,

• Walk through a sound-proofed tunnel. Sense of hearing. Rated three stars.

Pedal Power, located at far corner on the left side.

• Pedal the stationary bicycle to power the radio or the light. Sense of touch. Rated one star.

Steel Drums,

• Make the music of the West Indies. Sense of touch, and hearing. Rated two stars.

What's in a Spin?

• Discover what makes you turn faster or slower. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance and reading from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Audio Delay,

• Speak or sing into the microphone and hear the results. Sense of hearing. May require some assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Cold + Warm = Hot?!

• Place your hands on a grill. How do they feel? Sense of touch. May require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Cold Hands, Warm Heart,

• Two temperature phenomena explored by touch. Sense of touch. May require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Bernoulli Blower,

• Push a foot pedal and feel the flow of air blowing up to support an inflated ball. Sense of hearing and touch. May require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated one star.

Musical Metal,

• Play a percussion sculpture. Sense of hearing and touch. Rated two stars.

Level 5

Human Body Exhibit Hall

Visitors can hear a heart murmur and test their balance in this hall, which also features exhibits on reproduction, contraception and immunology.

Wayfinding Instructions,
After you enter Weston Family Innovation Centre go through the doors to the right and up the stairs. Human Body exhibits are on your right at the top of the stairs.

On The Right of the Path is,
Growing Pains,

• Feel the difference between a woman’s internal organs before and during pregnancy with these 3D models. Sense of touch, and may require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Balancing Act,

• Where is your centre of gravity? Sense of touch, and may require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

On The Left of Path Is,
Stretch,

• Test your flexibility. Sense of touch, and may require some reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Defense,

• Open the door and discover the sneeze. Sense of touch and hearing, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

What Makes A Rigid Guy Like Me Loose Enough To Pedal A Bike?

• Learn about different joints that allow various kinds of motion. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

Search And Destroy,

• Locate the ‘virus’ that doesn’t belong by touch. Sense of touch, and may require assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

Doom The Invader,

• Fit Y-shaped antibodies into the proper grooves on the invader. Sense of touch, and may require some assistance from sighted person. Rated three stars.

A Powerful Pump,

• Listen to three different heartbeats. Sense of hearing and touch, and may require reading and assistance from sighted person. Rated two stars.

The Access Guide has been prepared to assist visually impaired people plan visits to the Ontario Science Centre. We welcome your comments on this publication and other ways that the Centre can improve accessibility for visually impaired people.

This is the text only version of this publication for people who use screen reading devices. There is another edition with graphics for use by sighted people who will escort blind people to the Science Centre.

Please note that the information in this Guide was correct at time of publication, but exhibits and programs often change.

Ontario Science Centre
770 Don Mills Road,
Toronto, ON
M3C 1T3
Attn: Visitor Services
Visitor Services