Event name: AMNH Trip

Event time and place: NYC - Nov 11 2023


Timeline of Dinosaurs
On the 11th of November, my fellow SGC scholars and I went on a single day trip to New York City where we visited the American Museum of Natural History. On this very well executed and exciting trip, we had the chance to explore all parts of the expansive museum. However, the two halls we focused heavily on were the Hall of Vertebrate Origins, with Merck, and the Dinosaurs, with Holtz.

During the tour of Vertebrate Origins by Merck, we were guided through the origin and evolution of vertebrates, beginning with the Ostracoderms. These extinct fish were jawless, covered in bony armor and scales, and most importantly known as the first vertebrates. After this, we expanded a bit more and learned about the two types of vertebrates that became of the Ostracoderms: the jawless fish(agnatha) and the jawed fish(gnathostomata). We followed Merck along the trail of evolution as he explained the ascent of sharks, then land vertebrates, and so on. In general, I would say that this exhibit was aimed more towards high school - college students but I’d also agree with anyone saying that someone, older or younger, could come to this hall and have a great experience. Since this hall didn’t include much interactive components, it felt much more focused on trying to expose the visitors to all sorts of new information rather than just giving them a thrill. I would say that the hall’s interactive components were not effective at converting info because of the simple fact that there weren’t any present. From memory and while reviewing my notes, I cannot recall any instance where Merck points out an outdated display or set of information.

On the second tour, Holtz led us through the Dinosaur wing on the fourth floor. First, Holtz established the fact that all dinosaurs possess a hole in the center of their hip sockets which allow for greater mobility and endurance. These dinosaurs also share a common ancestor which was the Archosaurs. Archosaurs had many openings and holes in its skull to provide support when biting down, preventing headaches and brain injuries. The only living representatives of Archosaurs are birds and crocodiles. We followed the trail which led us to more interesting creatures like the Velociraptor(tiny in stature and feathered all over) and the Pachycephalosaurus(had a large skull which was likely used for butting heads). I believe the Dinosaur exhibit isn’t particularly aimed at any age group since people of all ages may find these displays and infographics very interesting. The Dinosaur wing did include some interactive components such as a station where you tapped on a screen to find out more information about a specific dinosaur or time period. I found the interactive bits to be very effective at conveying information because it provides a person who was going on a self-guided tour the ability to learn without the need of a tour guide of some sort. At no point do I recall Holtz informing us about an outdated display.