Mr. Bond the Science Guy can literally make your hair stand on end.
This silly but serious scientist loves to invite little ones to help him make bubbling potions and yucky slime and to help cause chemical reactions that spew and smoke and bubble over to the audience's delight.
Mr. Bond can make a potato explode right before your eyes, and he can do things with dry ice that you wouldn't believe.
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You can see all of these experiments in free 'edutainment' programs all over Middle Tennessee this summer.
'The goal is to let kids know, especially at an early age, that science is fun and that it is easy,' said Mr. Bond, a Londoner-turned-Nashvillian whose real name is Keith Trehy and whose background is as a working chemist. 'Our mission is to teach children that science is cool. We want them to want to be scientists.'
Last week's back-to-back appearances in Springfield delighted more than a hundred children, who were clearly wowed by Mr. Bond's fun presentation and interactive experiments.
Many free shows
'They were leaving saying, 'Wow! That was really cool,' ' said Rose Wooten, who coordinates children's programs for the Gorham MacBane Public Library there.
When I saw Mr. Bond's summer schedule, my first thought was this is one hard-working science guy. There are multiple free performances day after day all through the summer at Middle Tennessee libraries and other locations.
I had to wonder how one guy could possibly perform at ALL of these places. Yesterday, for example, the calendar showed Mr. Bond being at libraries all over Tennessee - Gibson and Maury counties and Milan, Greenfield, Jackson, Mt. Pleasant and Baxter, Tenn.
Yikes, that would take some serious scientific powers for Mr. Bond to be in all of those places at once.
'I have managed to clone myself three or four times,' laughed Mr. Bond, explaining in his friendly British accent that as demand for his programs has increased, he has trained other performing scientists to do programs.
For example, Professor Greybeard (John Wicks) does shows yearround, and six other 'science guys' are helping out this summer.
Push for science
The 'Mr. Bond' name refers to chemical bonds, and the other 'guys' have, for the most part, chosen science-type names, too, including his college-age daughter Siena, who performs as 'Bionic Bond' and Matt Sims, who performs as 'Haz-Matt.'
Trehy has been doing his wonderfully engaging kid-centric science shows for more than 15 years in Middle Tennessee and five other states.
And this year, his Mr. Bond programs, including 'Geo Blast!' at Green Hills, 'Silly Science' at Richland Park and the 'hair raising' teen program at the North branch library, are a wonderful fit with a national library reading program with a science-centric push. 'Fizz Pop Boom' is the theme, and the programs include tornado simulations, sound effects and optical illusions.
That's definitely right up Mr. Bond's alley.
Mr. Bond is rightly proud of the positive reaction and eager interaction he gets from his audiences. You can't miss that the kids love his antics, his engaging hands-on approach and the 'wow' factor of his loud, visual and touchy/feely brand of science.
But, he says, 'The grown-ups who come to the shows have just as much fun as the kids.'
I know I did. It is very entertaining and you can learn a lot. Plus, I always love to see someone who really loves his work like Mr. Bond does.
'It beats growing up,' he told me after a lively preschool performance last week. 'I get to dissect frogs and make slime and build electric cars and launch rockets. I do love it,' he said.
There are plenty of free Mr. Bond performances to choose from this summer all over Middle Tennessee. And who knows - his version of 'fizz pop boom' might just be the spark that fires up your child's interest in science.
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About Mr. Bond and the Science Guys
Reach Ms. Cheap at 615-259-8282, on Facebook at Facebook.com/mscheap and on Twitter at Ms_Cheap. Catch her every Thursday at 11 a.m. on WTVF-Channel 5's 'Talk of the Town.'
Mr. Bond is London-born Keith Trehy, who came to the United States on a soccer scholarship at American University in Washington. He earned his degree in chemistry and settled in Nashville with a 'Mad Science' franchise. In 2007, he founded his Mr. Bond company, which now includes as many as seven 'edutainers' who work in the science camps and go out into the community to libraries and other venues to offer fun, interactive science programs.
Where you can see the Science Guys
In addition to the free performances at libraries, schools and other spots, the Mr. Bond scientists will do birthday parties and other private programs, with prices starting at $175.
Thursday: 4:30 p.m., Edmondson Pike Branch Library, 5501 Edmondson Pike
Friday: 10:30 a.m., Gallatin Public Library, 123 E. Main St. Gallatin
Saturday: 12:30 p.m., Gallatin Public Library
June 20: 10 a.m., Williamson County Library, 1314 Columbia Ave., Franklin
June 21: 2 p.m., Inglewood Library, 4312 Gallatin Pike, Nashville
July 2: 10:30 a.m., Green Hills Branch Library, 3701 Benham Ave. (preschool program)
July 3: 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., Spring Hill Public Library, 144 Kedron Parkway, Spring Hills
July 12: 10 a.m., Old Hickory Branch Library, 1010 Jones St., Old Hickory
July 16: 2 p.m., Southeast Branch Library, 2325 Hickory Highlands Drive, Antioch
July 17:
4 p.m., Green Hills Branch, 3701 Benham Ave. (Geo Blast!)
July 19: 1 p.m., Hendersonville Public Library, 140 Saundersville Road, Hendersonville
July 21: 10:30 a.m., Richland Park Library, 4711 Charlotte Ave. (preschool program)
July 22: 2 p.m., Goodlettesville Branch, 106 Old Brick Church Pike, Goodlettsville
July 23: 10 a.m., Smyrna Public Library, 400 Enon Springs Road West, Smyrna
July 23: 1 p.m., Linebaugh Public Library, 105 W. Vine St. Murfreesboro
July 23: 3 p.m., Bellevue Branch Library, 650 Colice Jeanne Road, Nashville
July 24: 10:30 a.m., Nashville Public Library, 615 Church St., Nashville.
For more options, see the calendar at http://ift.tt/1xNXwFP.
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