Bakken Museum http://www.thebakken.org 3537 Zenith Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55416 612-926-3878 Hours: Tues–Sat 10am–5pm; Thurs 10am–8pm

Visit The Bakken Museum, a museum of electricity and magnetism in science and medicine located in a beautiful 1930s Tudor mansion on the west shore of Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis. Learn how electricity and magnetism have influenced history and benefit how we live today. Play a theremin (the first electronic musical instrument), generate a 60,000-volt spark, visit Frankenstein’s laboratory and much more. The museum was founded in 1975 by Earl E. Bakken, inventor of the first wearable, battery-powered, transistorized cardiac pacemaker.

Exclusive Museum Adventure Pass Offer 20% off one new membership on day of visit (not valid with any other promotions)

Passes are limited to general exhibit admission only. Passes may not be applied towards educational and group tours. Special exhibitions and other attractions may not be covered, and other restrictions may apply.

Please visit http://www.thebakken.org for specific exhibition information.

Learn more about it at your metro public library

All Ages

history of the term mesmerize

PBS website link to a page describing the history of the term mesmerize, popularized by Fraz Anton Mesmer, featured at the museum

Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Knopf, 1818, includes bibliographic references

Electric Universe: The Shocking True Story of Electricity

David Bodanis, Crown Publishing, 2005, includes bibliographic references

Nebula Awards Showcase 2005: The Year's Best SF And Fantasy

selected by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Harcourt, 2000

Homemade Lightning: Creative Experiments in Electricity

R.A. Ford, McGraw-Hill, 2002

Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World

Jill Jonnes, Random House, 2003

The Northern Lights: The True Story of the Man Who Unlocked the Secrets of the Aurora Borealis Northern Lights

Lucy Jago, Knopf, 2001

Teach Yourself Electricity and Electronics

Stan Gibilisco, McGraw-Hill, 2002

Edison, the Man (VHS)

Turner Home Entertainment, 1990

Stealing God's Thunder: Benjamin Franklin's Lightning Rod and the Invention of America

Philip Dray, Random House, c2005

The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern World

Randall E. Stross, Crown Publishers, c2007

Kids

Experiments with Electricity

Salvatore Tocci, Children's Press, 2001 yes

Electric Mischief

Alan Bartholomew, Kids Can Press, 2002

Experiments with Magnets

Salvatore Tocci, Children's Press, 2001 yes

All About Magnets (VHS and DVD)

Schlessinger Media, 2000 (VHS), 2004 (DVD).

Snacks About Magnets from the Exploratorium Web Site:

website: http://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/iconmagnetism.html

Electricity Online Web Site

website: http://library.thinkquest.org/28032

Reaching for the Moon

Buzz Aldrin, Harper Collins, 2005

My Light

Molly Bang, Blue Sky Press, 2004, picture book

The Sky's The Limit: Stories of Discovery by Women and Girls

Catherine Thimmesch, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: The Graphic Novel

Gary Reed, Puffin, 2005

Fully Charged: Electricity

Steve Parker, Heinemann Library, c2005

The Science of Electricity and Magnetism: Projects and Experiments with Electrons and Magnets

Steve Parker, Heinemann Library, c2005

Thomas Edison for Kids: His Life and Ideas: 21 Activities

Laurie M. Carlson, Chicago Review Press, c2006

In the Footsteps of Frankenstein

Steve Parker, Copper Beech Books, 1995

Tell Us About Your Adventure

If you visited Bakken Museum, we'd love to hear about your experience.

Tell Us About Your Adventure!

Oct 20

The kids loved the Bakken Museum! Their favorite part was hearing about Ben Franklin's parties with "punch", and making their hair stand straight up during the hands-on activities.

Oct 5

This was really fun, really interesting, and was a cool place to go. I would really recommend this place to anyone who wants to go.

Oct 5

I really enjoyed going and would recommend anyone else to go, too.

Sep 25

Today my family visited the Bakken Museum around 2 p.m. It was pretty quiet at that time. My four children accompanied me to the Museum. My children's comments: Age 11 - "I really loved the electrostatic devices. I was able to make confetti which was placed on the table to come up to my hand by making static from one of their machines." Age 11 - "The electrostatic machine was really fun! I was able to make the bell ring by using static electricity." Age 9 - "When you come into the entrance of the Bakken Museum there is a machine which you can use. If you do what it says, then it will give you a shock! I liked this machine!" Age 5 - "I liked to turn up the machine. You know the one that when you look up to the top of it, then it goes 'zzzzzzz'" (This was the Wimshurst electrostatic influence generator.) We would recommend going to the Bakken Museum. We also learned who Earl Bakken is - inventor of the first artificial pacemaker and a co-founder of Medtronics.