This article discusses the preliminary resistance to labels and then the eventual inclusion of labeling in the "Ice Age Exhibit" at the Cincinnati Museum Center's Museum of Natural HIstory & Science. It includes findings from visitor studies that evaluated the effectiveness of the new labeling strategies incorporated into the immersive exhibit.
The National Center for Earth-surface Dynamics (NCED) is a Science and Technology Center focused on understanding the processes that shape the Earth's surface, and on communicating that understanding with a broad range of stakeholders. NCED's work will support a larger, community-based effort to develop a suite of quantitative models of the Earth's surface: a Community Sediment Model (CSM). Results of the NCED-CSM collaboration will be used for both short-term prediction of surface response to natural and anthropogenic change and long-term interpretation of how past conditions are recorded in landscapes and sedimentary strata. This will in turn help solve pressing societal problems such as estimation and mitigation of landscape-related risk; responsible management of landscape resources including forests, agricultural, and recreational areas; forecasting landscape response to possible climatic and other changes; and wise development of resources like groundwater and hydrocarbons that are hosted in buried sediments. NCED education and knowledge transfer programs include exhibits and educational programs at the Science Museum of Minnesota, internships and programs for students from tribal colleges and other underrepresented populations, and research opportunities for participants from outside core NCED institutions. The Earth's surface is the dynamic interface among the lithosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and atmosphere. It is intimately interwoven with the life that inhabits it. Surface processes span environments ranging from high mountains to the deep ocean and time scales from fractions of a second to millions of years. Because of this range in forms, processes, and scales, the study of surface dynamics has involved many disciplines and approaches. A major goal of NCED is to foster the development of a unified, quantitative science of Earth-surface dynamics that combines efforts in geomorphology, civil engineering, biology, sedimentary geology, oceanography, and geophysics. Our research program has four major themes: (1) landscape evolution, (2) basin evolution, (3) biological sediment dynamics, and (4) integration of morphodynamic processes across environments and scales. Each theme area provides opportunities for exchange of information and ideas with a wide range of stakeholders, including teachers and learners at all levels; researchers, managers, and policy makers in both the commercial and public sectors; and the general public.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Efi Foufoula-GeorgiouChristopher PaolaGary Parker
Underground Adventure opened at The Field Museum in March 1999. Covering 15,000 square feet, it continues to be a major draw in the museum. Determining the extent to which the exhibition is achieving its original goals and assessing the nature of its visitor experience will help us plan for future modifications. The Field Museum asked Selinda Research Associates (SRA) to plan, set up, and conduct such a final summative/remedial evaluation. We collected data from November 1999 through June 2000 using a naturalistic methodology and qualitative methods. A qualitative approach to visitor research
The Hudson River Museum (HRM) will develop Hudson Riverama: An Interactive, Long-term Exhibition for Families and School Children. This will be a 2000 sq. ft. exhibit and will take the form of a trip along the Hudson River. Part I, "The Journey," will introduce seven distinct river environments from Lake Tear in the Clouds to the New York Harbor. Part II, "River People," will present human occupations and activities that are related to the river such as a shad fisherman, a municipal planner, a sewage treatment worker, and an environmental educator. The exhibit will present four fundamental, interrelated environmental concepts: ecosystems, habitats, adaptation, and human impact on the environment. Learners will immerse themselves in a habitat by "becoming" Hudson River animals and by role playing field guides, urban planners, etc. National science standards will provide a framework for the exhibit and complementary educational activities. The complementary materials will include pre- and post-visit materials for use by teachers and their students. These will include visual, auditory, tactile and kinesthetic activities that will connect the science education requirements with the exhibit. Information about the exhibit will be broadly disseminated and it is expected that other similar museums will emulate this approach. The exhibit is scheduled to open in January, 2001.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Philip VerreCatherine Shiga-Gattullo
The Science Museum of Minnesota will develop "After the Dinosaurs", an exhibit that will feature a detailed reconstruction of the ecology of a Paleocene subtropical environment that existed in the North Plains of North America (58 million years ago). Information presented in the exhibit will come from a 25 year research project carried out by SMM curator Bruce R. Erickson and his colleagues at Wannagan Creek Quarry in northwestern North Dakota. This research has yielded one of the most complete assemblages of Paleocene megafossils in North America. Both the increased knowledge gained from this research and process of the research will be highlighted in this exhibit. Visitors will learn that the world's landscape has changed considerably over time, the analysis of fossils helps scientists reconstruct the past, knowledge of former ecosystems help us to understand current ecosystems, and everyone can be a scientific investigator when we attempt to understand our environment in a systematic way. Two versions of the exhibit will be prepared: a 4000 sq. ft. permanent version that will be installed in the new SMM river front building and will open in late 2000. There will also be a 2500 sq. ft. traveling version that will begin its national tour in 2002. Complementary programming will include an on-line interactive teacher guide and student project curriculum, a teachers' institute, and a variety of youth programming including specially developed interpreter training materials. The exhibit will be accessible to people with disabilities.
This is a planning grant to Independent Broadcasting Associates, Inc. to enable them to obtain and evaluate scientific data about the ecological condition of the Ganges river in South Asia in preparation for a series of documentaries for National Public Radio. The series would combine both science and humanities to consider the meaning of the river in terms of the broad continuum of the Ganges ecosystem. During the planning stage, the PI will: review published literature and determine whether relevant unpublished information is obtainable; screen the obtainable information on the ecological condition of the Ganges/Padma river and identify major causes of the degradation of the river; contact relevant government related bodies within India in order to locate suitable experts and written reports; establish relationships with and conduct interviews amongst relevant non-governmental parties including scientists, industrialists and agriculturalists in order to facilitate future interactions for the purpose of producing the series ; and assess the suggestion that one of the problems with initiatives such as the Ganga Action Plan has been its reliance upon Western models -- both technological and conceptual -- which are often inappropriate to local conditions and realities.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Julian Crandall HollickEmma TomlinTriyugi PrasadGraham ChapmanRoberta Farrell
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Bay Area Discovery Museum will expand their "My Place by the Bay" theme with new programmatic elements that "reinforce the theme that people, plants and animals live together and depend upon each other to survive." Three new activity areas will be developed that focus on science learning: A) an outdoor "Tot Lot" for early science learners; B) an outdoor "Discovery Cove" focusing on place-specific elements of their bayshore site; and C) an indoor recreated "Research Vessel" outfitted with a simulated navigaion station and marine biology laboratory. The learning goals for these three areas are: 1) "The Bay environment is home to many living things"; and 2) "I can do science to explore and learn about my world". The "Tot Lot," built into a hill, will be a one-half acre, multi-sensory, outdoor, prepared environment for children under five to learn about animals living in three distinct Bay habitats: woodland, stream and meadow. The "Discovery Cove" will be a two-acre area prepared environment for children up to age eight. Learners will be encouraged to see the bay as an integrated system that includes animal adaptations, ecological relationships and human activity. The "Research Vessel" is inspired by the R/V Questuary and is the place where visitors will use authentic tools to do science. Other features of this project include an integrated system of Parenting Messages that includes special signage for parents and a Families Ask Guide for families with children ages seven and under that is a joint effort of DABM, Golden Gate National Recreation Area and the Golden Gate National Parks Association. They will also develop a series of teacher workshops that will link this informal learning space with the needs of formal education. One specific school group with whom they will work is the Junipero Serra, an NSF Urban Systemic Intiative site.
This project will provide for a national tour of a 5,000 square-foot exhibit about the great Inca archaeological site of Machu Picchu, and will give a national public audience the opportunity to view one-of-a-kind and seldom exhibited Inca artifacts, while also learning about archaeological science through engaging interactive exhibits and displays. The exhibit demonstrates how understanding the past through science has made it possible to determine the purpose, activities and the nature of daily life on a royal Inca estate. Laboratory research is at the core of the visitor experience, which will include osteology, paleopathology, astronomy, stable carbon isotope analysis, faunal analysis of animal bones, compositional and structural analysis of metals and ecological analysis of the flora and fauna of the Machu Picchu National Researve in Peru. Project funding will also create a Website including a virtual exhibit tour, a self-guided tour of Machu Picchu and web-based archaeological science curriculum for classroom use. The larger project also includes an international scholarly symposium entitled "The Archaeology of Inca Cuzco." The exhibit will open at the Yale Peabody Museum in January, 2003, and after six months, will travel to Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Denver, Washington, DC and Chicago, before it returns to New Haven for long-term installation at the Peabody. The project will reach an audience estimated at well over 2,000,000 visitors, school children, and Website users.
The Garden Mosaics program will develop and test a model in which youth conduct research on community and home gardens in urban settings. Youth ages 11-18 will be recruited to participate in gardening activities in conjunction with elders from their communities. Students learn the science content associated with organismal biology, community ecology, ecosystems and the physical environment, as well as culturally-related food growing practices. Participants then take part in guided research; using methods such as transect walks, mapping, ecosystem models and soil tests, to document food-growing practices of immigrant minority and traditional gardeners. Expanded research investigations will be open to students who want to continue their explorations using the Internet and other resources. Students contribute to new and existing databases of ethnic and heritage gardening practices in the United States. Materials to be developed include an Educator's Manual, a Youth Handbook and a Garden Mosaics website. During the pilot phase a national leadership team will be established to test the program and materials at 10 sites in different cities across the U.S. including San Antonio, Baltimore, Boston, Sacramento, New York, Brooklyn and Philadelphia. It is anticipated that the dissemination of this model will reach more than 750 educators and 13,000 youth.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Marianne KrasnyAlan BerkowitzGretchen Ferenz
The University of California, Berkeley is developing "Windows on Research," a two-year experimental exhibit project at the Lawrence Hall of Science focused on engaging and informing the public about current scientific research. The project will develop and evaluate different media to translate the leading edge of nanotechnology research for the science center audience by featuring live demonstrations and presentations, physical- and technology-based exhibits, and Internet-based exhibits. Formative evaluation of all products, including ongoing public focus groups and surveys, will be used to establish which of the several media, alone or combined, work best to communicate research content. The project team also is developing new assessment tools to test usability and effectiveness of the artificial intelligence and technology-based components in conveying content. The results of this prototype effort to present ongoing research in a museum setting will be disseminated to the informal science education field. The PI, Marco Molinaro, and the team from the Lawrence Hall of Science will work closely with scientists representing research in a number of nanotechnology fields. These scientists bring expertise in the areas of materials science, chemistry, education, bioengineering, mechanical engineering, molecular and cell biology, geochronology and isotope geochemistry, and psychology.
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Marco MolinaroUniversity of California-BerkeleyDarrell Porcello
The Informal Science Education Program has been supporting the radio series "Living on Earth" for several years. The World Media Foundation is now adding environmental science and technology features to "Living on Earth" and is developing and testing an outreach component that will involve youth as researchers and radio producers. The science and technology features, ranging in length from four to twenty-four minutes, will depart from the usual news-driven reports on the programs. Many of the segments will illustrate basic building blocks of environmental science, technology and related mathematics. Others will profile diverse pioneers in these disciplines. The radio programs will be the framework for an interdisciplinary exploration program for youth. Working with a team of educators from the Antioch University Graduate Program in Environmental Education, the project staff will develop a program in which secondary school aged youth cooperate with peers to produce professional, concise reporting on local environmental issues. Living on Earth will feature the best of the student work on National Public Radio and highlight these pieces as an expanded feature on its website.
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History is developing a large format film on the Pantanal in Brazil, the world's largest wetland. The film will focus on the Hyacinth Macaw, an indicator species whose health reflects the health of the entire ecosystem, and will explore the relationship between the climate, geology, hydrology and ecology of the region. It also will examine three threats to the region: a large scale river channeling project which would drain 50% of the marsh, gold mining activities that dump millions of tons of sediment into streams, and large-scale corporate farming which pollutes the region with pesticide and fertilizer run-off. Science content for the series will be under the direction of Dr. Richard Smartt, former Director of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. The series will be co-produced by Timothy Aydelott, from the museum, and Constance Bennecke, an independent producer in Brazil. Barrie Howells will be executive producer and Rodney Taylor will be director of photography. Both Mr. Howells and Mr. Taylor have extensive large format film experience. Ralph Adler of RMC Research will conduct audience research during the planning phase The major activities during the planning stage include: Conducting audience research to determine the familiarity of the public with the ecosystem and with the concepts to be presented in the film. In addition to topic testing, the research will assess the audience's current knowledge or misconceptions about wetland ecosystems and the Pantanal; Convening the project advisors to develop the science content, finalize content goals, and to suggest ideas and strategies for presenting the science; Attending a regional planning conference in the Pantanal to establish working relationships with scientists in the field; Developing a script treatment for the film.