snowdeal.org > ex machina: the eric update - day 197: the littlest scientist.

ex machina

the eric update - day 197: the littlest scientist.

little odin is becoming quite the scientific investigator lately as he investigates his hypothesis about the nature of cause and effect. like any good scientist, after he formulates his theory he designes an experiment to test the hypothesis.

today while he was sitting in his bouncy seat, i noticed that he was very meticulously studying the the effects of his actions when he knocked on the stuffed animals that were hanging above him. over and over and over he'd repeat the behavior you see in this series, almost without variation.

first, he'd reach up and grab at them and then he'd patiently watch for the effect of his action.

as you can see, he's discovered that sometimes if you stick out your tongue it helps to focus your mind when you're in deep concentration.

as the swinging animals slowed, he'd start to get very excited as if the maginificent implications of his new discovery were slowly beginning to dawn on him. at other moments, he'd go back to intently watching them slowly stop swinging.

finally, more often than not, the study would end with a very happy smile. as if he were quite proud at his accomplishment. and then the process would start all over again. of course, he's been batting and grabbing at objects for quite some time, but this type of careful observation of the effects of a repeated action is quite new and i suspect that the littlest scientist is discovering that he can cause things to move!

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1/17/2005 10:32:00 PM 6 comments

6 Comments:

I don't think they ever outgrow the cause/effect experiments - especially boys. Thoughts of "lets see what happens if I _______" will continue at least through college. :-D

By Candy, at 7:53 AM

The unfortunate part is that as they get older 'What happens when I bat a the stuffed toys?' some how morphs into 'What happens if I put toothpaste on the Kitty's bum?'. The answer is 'NOTHING GOOD!'

By pumpkinhead, at 9:46 AM

LOL. Or "What will happen if I unroll this whole roll of toilet paper and put it in the toilet and flush?" ;-D

By Candy, at 10:46 AM

"The unfortunate part is that as they get older 'What happens when I bat a the stuffed toys?' some how morphs into 'What happens if I put toothpaste on the Kitty's bum?'." |

ha! if he's anything like his father, we're destined for a lifetime of investigations, such as "what happens when i light a lighter and spray this aerosol can?" or "what happens when i pile a bunch of fireworks in the middle of the street, douse them with gasoline and light it on fire?"

By e3, at 10:26 PM

Oh, see, you are sooooooooooooooooo screwed. But in a good way :).

By pumpkinhead, at 8:33 AM

Oh, see, you are sooooooooooooooooo screwed. But in a good way :). |

yeah. if he's his father's son ( or his mother's son for that matter ) we're definately screwed. hopefully in a good way :-)

By e3, at 10:47 PM

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“"it is hard to be brave," said piglet, sniffing slightly, "when you're only a Very Small Animal." rabbit, who had begun to write very busily, looked up and said: "it is because you are a very small animal that you will be Useful in the adventure before us."”

the complete tales & poems of winnie the pooh

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this site chronicles the continuing adventures of my son, odin, who was unexpectedly born on the fourth of july at 25 weeks gestation, weighing 1 pound 7 ounces.

he's quite a fighter and you can always send him a postcard to the most current address listed here if you're inspired by his adventures. see the postcard project/google maps mashup to see a map of the postcards.

if you're new, you can browse the archives to catch up. and don't forget to watch a few movies that i made while we were in the neonatal intensive care unit. or if you want the abridged version and you can find a copy, you can read about his adventures in the november 2005 issue of parents magazine.

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