SCIENCE
From heavenly to prehistoric
— Preview of the Summer Skies
This class offered by the Adler Planetarium prepares you for viewing the season’s best and brightest celestial objects, whether with a telescope, binoculars or even the naked eye. Register at adlerplanetarium.org; June 14, $25, 1300 S. Lake Shore Drive, 312-922-STAR.
— Camp Sagawau
Every Saturday, programs presented by naturalists at the 17,000-acre Palos/Sag Preserves take visitors on a hike to explore the day’s feature, which can range from wildflower identification to local archaeology. Kids accompanied by adults are welcome on all hikes, including the fossil hunt, where a naturalist helps visitors identify ancient corals, trilobites and other local fossils. Then hikers are led to a nearby quarry to dig through the rubble and take home small fossils. Call ahead for each Saturday’s featured program. Registration required. Illinois Highway 83 east of Archer Avenue, Lemont, 630-257-2045.
— Late Great Nocturnal Night
If you think the only animals roaming around the city at night are rats, come to the North Park Village Nature Center’s Late Great Nocturnal Night from 4-8 p.m. June 29. As you walk along the trails you’ll see raccoons, opossums, skunks and flying squirrels. No registration required. 5801 North Pulaski Rd., 312-744-5472.
— “Right Bite” Dinner Series
Love seafood but still want to be kind to the environment? This Shedd Aquarium series about sustainable seafood delves into why some seafood choices are better than others because of how they are caught or farmed and how this helps to ensure the long-term survival of the ocean and its inhabitants. Shaw’s Crab House (21 E. Hubbard St.) hosts the July 9 event at 6 p.m. Reservations required. 312-692-3123. $75 per person.
— Dinosaurs in 3D
Navy Pier’s IMAX Theatre is the setting for “Dinosaurs 3D: Giants of the Patagonia,” which opens June 8 and offers an up-close, computer-generated look at the world’s largest-known dinosaurs, including the Argentinosaur and Giganotosaur, and a documentary-style exploration of great paleontological discoveries. $11 for adults, $9 for kids. 312-595-5MAX or imax.com/chicago.
MATH
Meet me in St. Louis
— Story problem: The Lewises and the Clarks are good friends and next-door neighbors in Rogers Park. The two families learn that, coincidentally, they’ll be in St. Louis over the same weekend in early August, and agree to meet up while they’re there.
The distance between Chicago and St. Louis is about 285 miles. Both families leave Chicago at 7 a.m. Friday, Aug. 10.
1. If the Lewises travel at an average speed of 65 m.p.h., why is it that they don’t arrive in St. Louis until Saturday morning?
2. If the Clarks travel at an average speed of 54 m.p.h., how did they make it to St. Louis on Friday afternoon without having to stop even once for gas?
Answers:
1.The Lewises, who drove, stopped in Springfield to attend the opening day of the Illinois State Fair. They stayed for the Freestyle Motocross Challenge on Friday night, gorged on corndogs and cotton candy, then stayed overnight in Springfield.
2.The Clarks took the train, riding on Amtrak’s Lincoln Service line. They got off at the Bloomington-Normal stop for a couple of hours to visit the Children’s Discovery Museum (the train stops in front of the building), then caught the next train to St. Louis and were there by 3 p.m. They spent the afternoon at the hotel pool (the Clarks like the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark), then walked over to Busch Stadium for the Cardinals-Dodgers game.
On Saturday, the Lewises and Clarks spent the morning at the eye-popping City Museum, and the afternoon at the Gateway Arch and Museum of Westward Expansion.
They satisfied their craving for a steak dinner at Hannegan’s Restaurant and Pub, then capped off the night back at the pool.
Heading home Sunday, the families concluded it was a weekend well-spent.
— Calculations:
Illinois State Fair: Aug. 10-19, agr.state.il.us/isf/
Amtrak: amtrak.com. Note: Kids between the ages of 2 and 15 ride for half price.
Children’s Discovery Museum (Bloomington-Normal): 309-433-3444. childrensdiscoverymuseum.net
Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark: 1. S. Broadway, 314-421 1776. Note: Museum and ballgame packages available.
St. Louis Cardinals: cardsclubhouse.com
City Museum: citymuseum.org
Gateway Arch: gatewayarch.com
Hannegan’s Restaurant and Pub: 719 N. 2nd St., St. Louis, 314-241-8877.
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SKY-HIGH SIGHTS
ARCHITECTURE CRITIC BLAIR KAMIN
THE NOTED 19TH CENTURY architect and engineer William Le Baron Jenney designed the now-demolished Home Insurance Building in Chicago, often called the first skyscraper, and worked with the great landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted to shape the suburb of Riverside, the nation’s first planned railroad suburb. For all that, Jenney remains relatively unknown.
This summer, you can get to know Jenney’s built legacy in tours offered by the Chicago Architecture Foundation. A downtown tour of Jenney’s innovative metal-frame architecture is being offered on June 23, June 30, July 21, Aug. 25 and Sept. 22. Each tour starts at 10:30 a.m. and costs $10; free for foundation members.
On Aug. 11, try the tour of Riverside, the “village in a park.” The tour runs from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and costs $45; $35 for members. 312-922-3432, ext. 224.
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PRIME TIME
RESTAURANT CRITIC PHIL VETTEL
WHEN THE WARM weather arrives, I begin my search for primes, jumbos and whales–which refer not to mortgages, but to softshell crabs, to me the definitive summer dish.
Softshells are blue crabs caught in the midst of growing new shells (having outgrown and shed their old ones). The cooked softshells can be eaten whole, the semi-solid shells adding a crunchy contrast to the soft flesh beneath.
Find them at any high-quality seafood restaurant, places such as Shaw’s Crab House, McCormick & Schmick’s and Catch 35.
Mario’s Gold Coast Ristorante is a simple neighborhood spot that serves its softshells sauteed and dressed with lemon butter. If you’re in the far northwest suburbs, don’t pass up the softshells in sweet and spicy chile sauce at Le Vichyssois in Lakemoor.
Hugo’s Frog Bar, either at its Gold Coast or Naperville location, brings in only whales, the largest size, and because availability is sparse, you need to call ahead to see if they’re on the menu that day.
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COMPILED BY CHRIS MCNAMARA, CHRISTINE BADOWSKI, KELLY AIGLON AND KRISTIN KLOBERDANZ.
