Emperor Nero’s Science Project

Do you think revolving restaurants are clever? Have you ever been to one? Just imagine you sit down to your meal facing one direction and by the time its over you are facing a different one. Considering that most of them are constructed at a certain height and have glass windows all around the experience can be fun. They too can be inspiration for a science project.

Guess what that’s got to do with Emperor Nero? Yes the Roman Emperor most famous for fiddling while Rome burnt. Recently archeological evidence has turned up at a dig on top of Palatine Hill that might suggest that Emperor Nero was the founder of the revolving restaurant. The dig at his banquest hall has thrown up the foundation room, and the mechanism for rotating the area, besides parts of the royal kitchen.

The rotating space built to impress the Emperor’s guests was to imitate the Earth’s movement. It is believed to have rotated constantly, night and day. That has to be the best science project that the Emperor Nero undertook. Naturally he had the resources and help to make it possible at that large a scale.

Even if you can’t make a science experiment that makes your room rotate, there are others that you can do using the same principle. If you are stuck for ideas feel free to check out some here. I’m sure you’ll find something to your liking. Even if it isn’t quite as grand as the science project that Emperor Nero constructed!