Explorit Science Center

What draws us to rhythms of music and verse? Is it because our lives, our bodies, are so inextricably intertwined with rhythms such as the beating of our hearts? Humankind has always had a fascination with rhythms. Rhythms are truly part of every culture and our everyday lives.

During this exhibit, we will explore many different types of rhythms. We will delve into how some of them are made, why they are there, and what they affect. Come prepared to encounter rhythms from all walks of life. By the time you leave, you will be enthralled with Rhythmics.

You and your students will:
* explore the universality, diversity and influence of rhythm.
* discover techniques used to transcribe rhythms.
* investigate the making of rhythms and experiment with making rhythms.
* explore the interdisciplinary nature of rhythms.

* Why are people and animals so attracted to rhythm?
* How many rhythms can you think of that you encounter in one day?
* What function does rhythm serve in music? In biology? In physics? In math?
* Can you think of anything that is not somehow connected with/influenced by rhythms?

We commonly think of music when we think of rhythm, but rhythm surrounds us in everyday life. One of Webster's definitions of rhythm describes it as, "a movement or fluctuation marked by the regular recurrence or natural flow of related elements." That's a very general definition, and all sorts of things would fall within its scope. But that is exactly what is so amazing about rhythm. It is incredibly diverse! There are three very basic types of rhythms related to science: mathematical rhythms, physical rhythms and biological rhythms.

There are many different types of rhythms in mathematics, patterns that reoccur over and over again. Rhythm can also be used to teach mathematics. For instance, some educators use rhythms to teach multiplication to children. If a class counts to 100 using a waltz beat, the multiples of three are emphasized. Teachers can use other rhythms to highlight the multiples of 4 or 5 or 6. Numbers much larger than this get more difficult to work with using this technique.

The world of physical rhythms contains some of the most familiar rhythms, such as music, waves, structural resonance (bridges in the wind), sound, planetary motion, etc. The interesting thing about physical rhythms, like other rhythms, is that often it is easy to identify more than one type of rhythm during an occurrence of rhythm (systems and interactions). For example, the rhythm produced by a drum head is heard through sound waves, but sound waves themselves are merely rhythms of compressions in air molecules (scale and structure).

A brief list of biological rhythms would include seasonal cycles, life cycles, molting, fur changing its color or density according to the seasons, menstrual cycle, hormonal cycle, nutrient cycles, migration, population cycles, etc. Let's look at one particular biological rhythm, the circadian rhythm.

A circadian rhythm is a rhythm that occurs in approximately 24 hour periods or cycles (scale and structure). The main environmental factor that is correlated with circadian rhythms is light, but internal factors may also affect the rhythm. Our lives follow a circadian rhythm. It may seem as though a 24-hour day is merely a convention that we have all tacitly agreed to, but experiments have shown that even when researchers live in caves, completely cut off from the world above, their bodies still following roughly a 24-hour cycle. (Interestingly, it actually varies from a 22-hour to 26-hour cycle.)

Humans are not alone in following circadian rhythms. An interesting example is the malaria parasite and its insect vector, the mosquito. The vector mosquito is most active in the evening, and some research suggests that some phases of the parasite may be most prevalent in the blood of the host animal, humans, in the evening as well. The circadian rhythm of the parasite may be synchronous with the mosquito in order to maximize the possibility of the parasites' transmission (systems and interactions, scale and structure, patterns of change).

Even plants follow circadian rhythms. The most obvious example is the sunflower which tracks the sun throughout the day in order to maximize its exposure to the sun's energy. Other plants are strictly diurnal. In other words, the flowers are open during the day and closed at night. Other flowers, particularly desert flowers such as the sacred datura, open only at night to avoid the harsh rays of the sun and to capitalize on nectar feeding bats' nocturnal behavior.

Lead a brainstorming session on rhythms. Encourage your class to think of as many rhythms as they can. Completely fill the board or use more than one piece of paper if necessary. Encourage the children to explain why they consider their contribution to be a rhythm. If desired, expand this activity to include sorting all the suggestions into types of rhythms.

This is truly a wild and crazy activity! Take time to collect a variety of everyday objects that could be made into or used as rhythm instruments. The students could restrict their search to their desks, or they could bring items from home. Group the students into approximately 3-5 groups. Give each group a simple rhythm to play together, or have them develop it on their own. Let them have some time to practice their rhythms as a group. Once everyone is well rehearsed, try to play all together.

Take some time to discuss the rhythms of the body (see list under biological rhythms in the Background Section). Encourage the students to think of body rhythms. Then encourage students to think of as many ways as they can to make rhythms with their body. For example, they can click their tongue, snap their fingers, clap their hands, stomp their feet, etc. (Encourage decency and creativity!) If desired, follow the directions in the activity above to form music with your rhythms.

This activity could be done in the classroom with a classroom pet or as a homework project. Have the children observe the breathing of an animal. Teach the children how to calculate how many times the animal breathes per minute (e.g. count for 15 seconds and then multiply times 4). Then, plan as a class to record the breathing of the animal three times per day. If this is a homework project, the selected times could be at dinnertime, at bedtime and upon awakening in the morning. If desired, have the children graph the breathing over several days and/or over the course of a single day.

* What happens to the rhythms over the course of a day? What causes the changes in rhythms?
* If you do the activity more than once, what happens to the rhythms over the course of a week or two? Are they stable or do they fluctuate? What causes any changes that you see?

Expand your student's understanding of rhythms to explore rhythms in art and literature. Rhymes, which are so prevalent in children's books, are an excellent place to find rhythms. Read over some rhyming or rhythmic poetry. Encourage your children to write something rhythmic. Emphasize that rhymes are not the only types of rhythms in language. We also can generate rhythms by the way the word is stressed or spoken. Try encouraging your class to draw a rhythmic picture.

1. Rhythm - a movement or fluctuation marked by the regular recurrence or natural flow of related elements.
2. Circadian Rhythms - a rhythm that occurs in approximately 24 hour periods or cycles
3. Pattern - a natural or chance configuration. Another definition is a reliable sample of traits, tendencies, acts, or other observable characteristics of a person, thing, group or institution.
4. Transcribe -to transfer information from one recording and storing system to another. (For example, translating English to Spanish is transcribing.)
5. Cycle - a time interval in which an event occurs repeatedly.
6. Period - an interval of time.
7. Frequency - the number of times a given event occurs within a given time period.
8. Beat - a musical term referring to a rhythmic stress.
9. Meter - the measured rhythm of verse or music.
10. Wavelength - the distance in a periodic wave between 2 points, such as from crest to crest or trough to trough.
11. Rhythmics - the study of rhythms.

Hart, Mickey and Lieberman, Frederic. (1991) Planet Drum: A Celebration of Percussion and Rhythm. San Francisco: Harper San Francisco. (This is a super book by the drummer for the Grateful Dead. Topics include: rhythms of work, war and play, rhythms of life and death, sound, drumming, etc.)
Special Note: Because Rhythmics is such an all-encompassing topic, we could not find any resources to recommend that relate only to rhythms. We suggest that you look for books in a specific subject area that might include information about a specific type of rhythm. For example, consult a simple music theory textbook for information about musical rhythms or a biology textbook for information about circadian rhythms or life cycles. Some topics to look for include: Physiology, Music, Physics, Biology, Ecology, Migration, Interior Design, Literature, Poetry, etc.

Hann, J. (1991) How Science Works. Pleasantville, NY: Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (A great resource for all science topics. Good illustrations and photography.)
Strongin, H. (1991) Science on a Shoestring. Menlo Pk., CA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. (Another good general science book.)
DeVito, A. (1989) Creative Wellsprings for Science Teaching. W. Lafayette, IN: Creative Ventures, Inc. (Good general science book.)
Science For Children: Resources for Teachers. (1988) National Science Resources Center. Washington, D.C: National Academy Press. (Fantastic sourcebook for teachers containing curriculum, book and location resource references.)
Druger, M. (1988) Science for the Fun of It. (A great book on informal science education. Marvin Druger has also worked with "NOVA" and "3-2-1 Contact.")
Science Activity Book (1987) Smithsonian Institution.
More Science Activities (1988) Smithsonian Institution.
Still More Science Activities (1989) Smithsonian Institution.
A series from one of the best museums in the world. Full of fun, science activities on a variety of topics.

RHYTHMICS