Visitors are invited in to the exhibit. They see backlit pictures of soil & soil related objects. Objects include: close-ups of a soil mite, soil nematodes, clay globules, sand, silt & clay particles and the entryway recognition sign. Also found in this entry-way will be the soil triangle, Winogradsky columns (self-contained environments of soil bacteria that display different colors) and simulated core samples. Possesses two areas for large literature to be displayed (such as newsletters) and two areas for tri-folds to be displayed. No interactive components. The entry kiosks are designed to support the entry sign. Electricity is suggested.

Suggested set-up: Consists of the following nine modules. Each module bolts together to surround Separation Station, and contain the sand. Two mats lie underneath the whole set of Laboratories. The bottom mat is solid and serves to protect any rug underneath so that sand won't get on any rugs. The bottom mat also serves as a safety mat to prevent any possible water leakage from getting through to any rug or flooring underneath. The top mat is Dri-Dek.

Sedimentation Station

Visitors shake tubes filled with soil particles and watch how different size particles settle out. Tubes are tethered to the station using brass chain and acrylic hasps. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Magnification Station I. No electricity needed.

Percolation Station

Visitors Hand pump water into chambers filled with four different soil particle sizes (fine sand, coarse sand, gravel, pebbles), to see the rate that water travels through the different soil particle sizes. Water is recycled and closed off from direct contact with the visitor. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Magnification Station I and magnification station II. No electricity needed. .

Touch Station

Visitors reach into dark boxes and squeeze to feel different soil particles (coarse sand, fine sand, silt, clay, wet clay, gravel) contained in rubber bags. The visitor can guess which soil particles they are feeling and flip up a panel to see if they are correct. Each particle can be viewed in acrylic tubes on the top of the station. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Magnification Station II. No electricity needed.

Strata Station

Visitors match acrylic specimen boxes with soil & soil related items in it to the correct spots. Objects to match are: Top Layer - Organic Matter, Second layer: Top Soil, Third Layer: Subsoil, Fourth layer: Saprolite, Fifth Layer: Bedrock. Once an objects is matched correctly to the position it occupies in the soil, a light goes on. When all of the items are in the correct position a sound recording congratulates the user. Acrylic boxes can be opened by museum staff to fill with local samples as well. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Filtration Station. Utilizes 10 magnetic switches, 10 relays, two solid state recording & playback devices, and a twelve volt power supply. Requires electicity.

Filtration Station

Vistors can pump one of four hand pumps . The pumps circulate clean water through the toilet graphic into the plexi Septic Tank (where more dirty water is). The dirty water then drains through each of the four soil filters that clean it. Each filter has different soil layering to clean the water at different rates. Water is recycled and closed off from direct contact with the visitor. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Strata Station and Erosion Station. Requires no electricity.

Erosion Station

People pump water that travels down 3 paths all at an incline: One path is dirt on bedrock, one path is grass, one path is terraced. At the end, water & eroded soil goes into a containing chamber that you can see into. Water is recycled and closed off from direct contact with the visitor. Best if utilizing one optional fan to prevent any condensation. Otherwise, condensation can occasionally occur. Resides on lockable casters. Designed to be bolted to Filtration Station. Suggested electricity use..

Magnification Station I & II

People are invited to get a close-up view of slides of soils and creatures that live in soil. Four Brock microscopes are used - two per Station. Magnification station II utilizes two Brock microscopes with polarizing filters so that people can see the different minerals in soil samples. Museums have the options of utilizing ambient light via the light gathering optic, or utilizing lights situated within the case (the standard method) to light up the samples. Both stations reside on lockable casters. Magnification Station I is designed to be bolted to Percolation Station and Sedimentation Station. Magnification Station II is designed to be bolted to Percolation Station and Touch Station. Suggested electricity use.

Separation Station

Separation Station Visitors are invited to take part in two main activities. Utilizing sieves visitors can separate sand into three different sizes. Then they can move onto the second activity that has them use graduated cylinders to see that the sand/gravel mixture takes up much more space after its sorted! Kids often spend a lot of time just separating sand particles into different sizes, and recombining it. Resides on lockable casters, has optional kid-steps that can be bolted to it. No electricity needed.

A living dirt ecosystem (aquarium tank style). Here you will see an actual mini-compost heap that materials will decompose in. Creatures inside the environment help it compost, or prey upon the composters. Animals & plants are obtained from Carolina Biological & include millipedes, snails and worms. On one side there is a video magnification system set to look at the ecosystem. This allows for control of where the camera looks, and the ability to zoom in on a selected subject. The camera motion is controlled by one joystick while the zoom and focus abilities are controlled by another joystick. This is displayed on a large television screen. Resides on lockable casters. Separates into up to five pieces for shipping. One piece is the acrylic camera box with the camera inside that gets crated. Another piece is the internal acrylic tray. A third piece is the top wooden and acrylic structure. The final two pieces are the bottom pieces that unbolt so that they can be moved through narrow passageways. Electrical items include: television, camera, video booster, controller, and pan & tilt mechanism. Electricity is required.

Computer kiosk operated by trackball & button combination. Guests can explore two soil related programs. One is an adapted web-site centered around Wendell the Worm!. It explores worms and their importance to soil. The second program utilizes a simplified format of ArcView GIS "!, and allows people to see soil maps of a county. This program can be adapted to run most host site's county soil maps. Uses a Windows 95/98 platform. Requires electricity.

Visitors are invited to crawl through this giant "mole hole". Mole hole consists of Large polyethylene playground crawl tubes imbedded foam, wood and fiberglass. Fake roots hang from the ceiling at entrance. The environment is relatively dark inside. A mole's den lights up as you go by it. Cool air is blown in on the bottom level to help simulate subterranean conditions. Hidden along the outside of the tunnel are a few artifacts such as bones and an arrowhead. Signage on the outside describes the classification of each soil seen using terms a soil scientist would use. Utilizes a solid state thermoelectric cooling device powered by a twelve volt power supply, as well as an IR motion detector and a light bulb. Separates into four large pieces with three cover pieces to cover the joints. Electricity is required.

On the top, visitors can view a US Map with soil samples representative of all states. Each of the two supporting sides has various multiple choice soil related questions with push buttons that congratulate the user when they answer correctly. One side has "soil trivia"; questions. Another side allows the user to use a Munsell chart to identify soil colors. Each side utilizes simple pushbuttons connected to a solid state recording and playback device that is powered by a twelve volt power supply. Separates into three pieces for transport. Two pieces (the side supports) reside on lockable casters. Electricity is required.

Display of backlit pictures which uses a slide mechanism to show how pH of soil affects a Hydrangea. Users slide the large knob from acid to neutral and alkaline to see how it changes a Hydrangeas colors. Resides on lockable casters. Electricity is required.

Thin "ant-farm" style acrylic box. Visitors are invited to look for earthworms, redworms and other creatures inside. You can see where the earthworms have moved by viewing the mixed soil tracks or "worm tracks". Worms & cans of worm food are available from Carolina Biological. Two optional but suggested adjustable lamps on goosenecks (from McMaster Carr) help people to find the worms. Six magnifying glasses adorn the sides for use by the visitor. Resides on lockable casters. Electricity is suggested.

Visitors are invited to pump water across this open bed of sand & to create damns and gullies. They can reshape the sand and see how it erodes from the water. The water is cleaned using ultraviolet & mechanical filters (hidden underneath). Has two mats underneath it (similar to Dirt Laboratories) to prevent damage to the floor in case people splash water or sand over the sides. Water is open to use by visitors. Water is treated and recycled. Splits into two main sections. Walls are removable. Requires electricity to treat the water (electricity is not required to pump the water, so electricity can be connected during off hours if desired).