The education team from the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, came to talk to our school about what they do.
They started by sharing some history about their facility. It used to be the Homestake Gold Mine, but now it is used for underground research. Most of their research focuses on bacteria, but they also study things like dark matter and neutrinos. They showed the students a map of the mines and also the new equipment they are building to help with their research.
At the end of the presentation, the presenters gave the students a group activity. Each group got a closed black box with a marble inside. We were not allowed to open the box. Instead, we had to figure out the shape inside by listening to how the marble moved. Then, they drew what they thought the shape looked like. There were four different boxes, so there were four different shapes. Each group compared their guesses.
This activity helped students understand that scientists cannot always see what they are studying. It also showed us that working together is important when making conclusions, especially when studying things that cannot be seen.