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Design, Build, Test

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Choose your exhibit experience:

Design, Build, and Test

Explore the science of engineering and solve real-world challenges. Engage your creative brain.

Design, Build, and Test

Design Quest

Opening June 1, 2013, our Design Quest exhibit inspires kids to come up with their own ideas, build prototypes, and test their designs to see if they can rise to the challenge.

Building Blocks

Build your own large-scale creation using our collection of more than 20,000 blocks.

Gravity Wall

Use gravity to move a ball through a track you design.

Energy Tracks

Explore what it takes to get a roller coaster over a hill or through a loop.

Bernoulli Blower

Make balls hover in midair using the power of air pressure.

Ingenuity Lab

On weekends, visit the Ingenuity Lab and team up with a Cal Engineering student to solve a design challenge. You’ll exercise your creativity and have some fun.

Get Inspired

More than 20,000 building blocks, an 8-foot long building wall, and a 10-foot wind tunnel become you personal workshop for tinkering and exploring.

Be an Engineer

Find the optimum combination of wheel size and tread to power a car up a ramp. Build a bridge that can withstand the weight of a scale model car. Design and refine a flying machine to hover halfway up a vertical wind tunnel. Create the tallest building you can with the fewest number of blocks. Engage in the engineering design process independently or work together as a team.

Build a Better World

We live in a designed world. Cell phones put you in touch with people wherever they are. Bridges get you from one side of the Bay to the other. Designing, building, and testing lead to innovation and creative solutions to the challenges of modern living.