Cellphones: Unseen Connections (2nd floor)
1) The exhibit displayed numerous presentation techniques, including interactive games and display cases. Upon walking in, they have interactive screens where you can see yourself on a video with emojis. This interactive medium helps captivate exhibit viewers so they stay in tune with the exhibit and continue walking through. However, I don’t necessarily believe this was effective. It doesn’t teach exhibit viewers too much about the evolution of cell phones and is merely a fun and visually appealing display to get the attention of exhibit viewers. If this was the intention then it worked, but it was not necessarily effective for education purposes.
The exhibit also had display cases showing the raw materials that go into making cell phones. I thought this was a very interesting display as it not only showed the actual material in its raw form, such as silicon and gold, but it also gave examples of where these materials are used in our everyday lives. For instance, these materials are used in microchips and chargers. This gives exhibit viewers a sense of their impact on the global economy as well as environment, helping one recognize the impact of their everyday objects. Overall, I thought this display was very effective because it made exhibit viewers think more deeply about their everyday decisions and objects.
Lastly, they showed the evolution of cell phones with a display case that showed everything from the oldest landlines to the newest iPhone side by side. This gave exhibit viewers a sense of how far we’ve come with technology in the last few decades and how this has changed our everyday lives. For instance, landlines were strictly used for occasional calls and were not necessarily an integral part of an individual's everyday life. However, mobile phones now are almost a necessity for most individuals, as many individuals have some level of addiction towards their devices and can’t leave their house without their phone. I think this exhibit was effective as it helped exhibit viewers appreciate the sheer evolution of technology.
2) Concerning the tools that are used to make cell phone technology, the exhibit says that we unfairly exploit these finite materials, such as silicon, which puts a greater strain on the environment. As cell phone use continues to increase around the world, more and more materials are being used for their production. For instance, the exhibit discusses how every phone has around 166 mg of silicon in them, which is around the size and weight of a postage stamp. Furthermore, when disposing of cell phones, their materials are not recycled and are placed in landfills. Therefore, we are continually exploiting finite resources without any efforts towards greater sustainability. The exhibit demonstrates these stories by showing the raw materials and including statistics below the display cases to show to better tell this story.
3) Cell phones have allowed for a greater access to an abundance of information. Previously, many individuals relied on books and papers to access technical information. We have now seen a shift towards using computers and cell phones to access information in one place. This is further demonstrated by the manner in which the exhibit shows the evolution of the cell phone to be an object of great versatility when compared to older phones. On the other hand, this has increased individual’s dependence on phones and changed the way we socialize with one another. Many daily social interactions are done via texting rather than face to face communication. This is demonstrated by the interactive displays, such as the screen that shows yourself with emojis popping up constantly. For instance, we now have the option to rely on emojis to communicate emotions rather than facial expressions.
SGC has not necessarily brought me in contact with individuals and concepts that have challenged my beliefs, but it has made me think about my past actions impacting the climate that I haven’t recognized before. For instance, I haven’t really thought about my heating unit or car usage to be too big of an issue, especially since there are so many large companies that have a much greater carbon footprint than I do. However, after the course, I have realized that every little thing counts, and my actions have a great impact on the environment. This recognition has definitely evolved over the course of the semester. For instance, in the first semester of SGC, I recognized the impact of my actions on the environment.
Climate Change in David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins (1st Floor)
4) One topic was animal domestication. Humans have domesticated animals for production which has led to the mass production of farm animals, such as cattle or pigs, for our benefit. Furthermore, within the sector of agriculture, humans have grown more of certain crops. This ranges from rice to barley to feed our population, which has resulted in certain crops being grown more frequently than others and monoculture. Lastly, humans have grown the global population exponentially. This has created a greater reliance on finite resources. The museum demonstrates these topics by showing figurines to represent each. For instance, for population growth, they show a large number of stick figures, and for animal production, animal figurines to show the diversity of animals we have domesticated and the sheer number of animals we have in production.
5) I do agree with the critics stating the exhibit de-emphasizes the human impact on the environment because they only have one section that relates this topic in the exhibit. Furthermore, the in-depth explanation as to how humans impact the environment is only around a sentence or two within this section of the exhibit.
Climate Change and Human Impact In the Sant Ocean Hall (1st Floor)
6) The first video was titled “Deep Diver Discoveries.” This video didn’t present too much numerical data but it did discuss the numerous species that were found while diving in Hawaii. For instance, they found a very large sponge that there only exists six of. Furthermore, they found the biggest caulophacus seen by oceanographers. They also found species that one normally wouldn’t see in Hawaii, such as Poly Chelidae. I do believe this is understandable to the public since they are merely introducing species and not discussing in-depth and complex data.
The second video was titled “Deep Dives Greatest Hits.” This video discussed the ecological cycling of nutrients and how nothing is wasted. For instance, when a shark dies, they show how crabs and eels will feed off of it. Furthermore, they discussed seeing organisms that they don’t see too frequently. For instance, there were certain coral reefs often seen in Florida which were new and much more extensive than they originally thought. This video also did not include much numerical data and was easily understandable by the public because they were merely cataloging their findings rather than discussing in-depth processes and data.
7) The video on the globe discusses many weather events that are consistent with climate change. For instance, they discuss Hurricane Katrina and Typhoon Nabi and how certain parts of the world were affected more severely by these events. They also discuss how certain processes work, such as La Niña and how these events tend to bring droughts towards certain parts of the world. They also emphasize how because we are an ocean plant, interactions between air and water are natural, but climate change can lead to trends in these interactions that humans are not prepared for. The spherical video uses visual appeal to better portray these events. This keeps the audience engaged while explaining these concepts at a basic level to explain how climate change fuels these events.
Climate Change In David H. Koch Hall of Fossils - Deep Time
8) One pylon represented the world 299 million to 270 million years ago in Arroyo Formation, Texas. The atmospheric CO2 fluctuated to being three times higher relative to today’s condition. The average global temperature was 8 degrees Fahrenheit (4.6 degrees celsius) higher than today. The global sea level was 130 to 20 feet (40-80 M) higher than today. The second pylon represented the world 157 to 145 million years ago in Morrison Formation, Colorado. The atmospheric carbon dioxide was four times higher than today. The average global temperature was 15-17 degrees Fahrenheit (8.4 -9.4 degrees Celsius) higher than today. Global sea levels were about 330 feet (100 M) higher than today. This was an effective model, especially since it also showed the layers of sediments below ground, which were equally important in learning about the composition of our environment back then. It also gave insight into the wildlife present at the time.
9) This exhibit discussed earth around 2.6 million years ago. They used fossils, vegetation, and the sediment layers to figure out the conditions of the past climate. I do believe these exhibits effectively explain how fossils and geological information can inform us about our current and future climate change. It demonstrates how past changes have caused destruction to certain species, exemplifying how the current changes in our environment can and perhaps will have the same effect.