Tabetha Smith, 15, walks in the Wizards Chamber, trying to make the smoke swirl into a tornado, Saturday at the science exhibit at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds. (Photos by Todd Guild)

On Saturday, 15-year-old Tabetha Smith walked circles around the Wizard’s Chamber, trying to get a cloud of smoke swirling up from a grate in the floor to form into a tornado. Nearby, a beach ball hovered in midair, held aloft by a column of fast-moving air.

The two science exhibits are among dozens of others in Mr. Magorium’s Exploratorium, a hands-on science exhibition at the Santa Cruz County Fair, which opens today.

While such a science exhibit is no stranger to the fair, this year’s display is unique. The kids from the Santa Cruz County Junior Fair Board built every exhibit by hand — from planning to acquiring the building materials to construction and finishing, said Junior Fair Board adviser Russell Sanderson.

“The kids did it all; I’m just here to make sure they did it safely,” he said.

The Exploratorium had previously housed Brad’s World Reptiles, but the high price tag forced the fair to seek an alternate attraction for the building, fair marketing director Steve Stagnaro said.

Members of the Junior Fair Board had contemplated using the space in the past, particularly in years when the building sat vacant.

For the complete article see the 09-15-2009 issue.

Click here to purchase an electronic version of the 09-15-2009 paper.

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