There were plenty of people looking into the Junk Drawer this past Friday. This was the Junk Drawer display at “The Science of Obscurity,” a science fair presented by the Chicago Underground Library. There were actually two different drawers in the display. The top drawer contained several items from Junk Drawer zine #3, all very scientifically identified with numbers that matched up to those in the zine. The bottom drawer contained an assortment of random stuff, representing an unsorted junk drawer. There were more odds and ends on top of the desk, and people were invited guess what the objects were, and then lift up the question marks for the answers. It was pretty interactive, and that’s how a good junk drawer really is. It’s something you can dig through and then find interesting stuff. The rest of the science fair featured a variety of great displays, from a plan on how to defeat big corporations, to a taste test to determine the most tasty vegan chocolate chip cookie. Another one looked like it had junk drawer items, but they were actually things you could select to take with you if you were going on an expedition. There was also a book launch, whereby writers were able to literally “launch” their publications through the air on a trebuchant.
It was quite a science fair, and it was great to participate. Thanks to all who stopped by the junk drawers!
- Science fair goers
- This table I found at Junk Days, so it was quite a fitting display.
- Try to identify the odds and ends on the table.
- Is this junk science? Junk Drawer science, I think.
- Junk drawer items? Actually items to take on an expedition.
- A cookie experiment. Who could resist this, in the name of science?
- Outside the science fair
- No, the zine is not in 3-D. Those were the protective goggles.
- The launch. The Junk Drawer zine actually hit the target.
- Award Ceremony. Junk Drawer won for best use of found objects.









