Science Museum of Minnesota
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The Science Museum of Minnesota is an institution which focuses on topics in technology and natural history education. The 501(c)(3) non-profit organization is governed by a board of trustees, staffed by over 500 employees and over 1,600 volunteers, and located in the state's capital city of Saint Paul. The museum's mission statement, "To invite learners of all ages to experience their changing world through science" [link], reflects its intention to provide exhibits and education programs that bring science and technology to the general public.
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A New Location
Until 1999, the museum was located on Wabasha street in downtown Saint Paul, but in that year the museum moved to a new complex on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. The new building is larger and better equipped to handle the demands of large group visits and includes bigger facilities for the education division and exhibit galleries.Permanent Exhibits
A number of permanent exhibits entertain and education thousands of people each year in the museum. Among them are:
- The [Dinosaurs and Fossils Gallery] showcases several real and replicated dinosaur skeletons, as well as many complete and preserved animals from the museum's collection.
- The [Human Body Gallery] shows visitors the various tissues, organs, and systems (such as blood or digestion) that make up the human body. Visitors can extract DNA and perform other science experiments in the Cell Lab.
- The [Experiment Gallery] allows visitors to explore concepts in physics, math, and earth science hands-on with interactive displays.
- The [Collections Gallery] gives visitors a glimpse of what's stored in the museum's Collections Vault. It includes many preserved specimens and cultural artifacts, as well as the Collectors' Corner. Here, traders (primarily children) bring in natural artifacts they have found to trade them for points or another artifact. (More information is in the [Collectors' Corner] section of the museum's website.) The Collections Gallery is also the new home of the Museum of Questionable Medical Devices, which the museum acquired in 2002 when its original owner Bob McCoy died.
- The [Mississippi River Gallery] takes advantage of the Museum's proximity to the river to educate visitors about its natural resources. Visitors can learn about the environment and animals of the river.
- The [Big Back Yard] is an outdoor exhibit that contains information and interactive displays on earth science. A mini golf course lets visitors explore erosion, pollution, and water movement up close. The Science House is a zero emission building aimed at educating visitors about renewable energy and energy conservation.
- [Science Buzz] is an exhibit where you can dig deeper into science headlines. It is constantly changing and has a presence in each gallery of the museum.
The Omnitheater
The new building has a dual-screen IMAX/Omnimax theater, with both a wall screen for IMAX films and other flat presentations, and a rotatable dome for viewing Omnifilms, the first such convertible theater in the Northern Hemisphere. The domed screen can be rotated around the theater to reveal the IMAX screen. The counterweights for the system were so massive that they had to be put in place before the rest of the building. The theaters boasts "the largest permanently installed electronic cinema projector in the world," an advanced computer system to coordinate the theater's facilities, and a complex sound system to accommodate both viewing formats, according to the [website].The museum has been a leading producer of Omnifilms, with ten to its credit so far:
- Genesis (1978)
- Living Planet (1979)
- The Great Barrier Reef (1981)
- Darwin on the Galapagos (1983)
- Seasons (1987)
- Ring of Fire (1991)
- Tropical Rainforest (1992)
- Search for the Great Sharks (1995)
- The Greatest Places (1998)
- Jane Goodall's Wild Chimpanzees (2002)
Other Facilities
The Collections Vault
The museum houses a collection of over 1.7 million artifacts and objects in its vault, ranging from dinosaur and other animal remains and fossils, preseved animals and plants, and cultural artifacts from extinct and extant civilizations. The collections division maintains a staff of scientists and researchers including paleontologists, archaeologists, ecologists, biologists, ethnologists, and archivists. Students and researchers regularly visit the vault to take advantage of the unique collection, but it is not open to regular museum visitors.Education
The museum also has an extensive education division. In addition to many on-site youth and family classes and day camps, museum programs are also hosted at various schools throughout the region. Day classes often involve science, technology, nature, and art themes. Overnight camp-ins let large groups sleep on the exhibit floor and have time to explore the galleries and view an Omnifilm as a group. The museum is also one of the leading professional development resources for teachers in the state.Restaurants
Three locations in the museum offer visitors food. A Caribou Coffee shop (the OmniStop) is located outside the Omnitheater's entrance in the museum lobby. The Elements Cafe offers a full menu, including grill and deli options, pizza, and specialty foods. Finally, Chomp, located outside the Dinosaurs and Fossils gallery, serves many cafeteria-style foods. The Elements Cafe and the OmniStop are both open to the public without purchasing museum admission.3D Cinema
In addition to the Omnitheater, the museum has a cinema for showing 3D films.Lee and Rose Warner Nature Center
The musuem is associated with the Lee and Rose Warner Nature Center which is located approximately 30 miles offsite in Washington County. The center provides natural history education opportunities for all ages on over 600 acres of lakes, bogs, woodlands and grasslands.External links
- [The Science Museum of Minnesota's official website]
- [A history of the museum and its collections]
- [Website for Bob McCoy, Museum of Questionable Medical Devices founder]
- [The Lee and Rose Warner Nature Center]
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