Scholars Excursion Questions:

National Museum of Natural History. December 2, 2023:


1. They had geological exhibits showing the base materials used in cell phone design, large screens showing the history of cell phone usage, and informational posters about those who were instrumental in their design and creation.

2. There was an exhibit showing the various elements used in cell phone manufacturing. It said, “our technology is linked to the natural world, we can’t separate the two”. So much of the material used is finite.

3. The creation of cell phones incurred the installation of deep sea cables and above ground transmitters to carry signals across large distances. In Papua New Guinea, hand woven bags called Bilums were shaped and sized for cell phones when they were popularized in the country in the mid-2000s. Cell phones may stave off the extinction of over 2100 languages.

4. Creating a world of symbols: humans have given meaning to various symbols and artifacts (such as shell necklaces). We created spoken language and inscribed text into caves so we could record and discriminate information. Life and Death in a Changing World: over time, the Neanderthals that populated much of the world died off as they moved further into Europe to combat the changing climate. Conversely, modern human populations began to rise. Currently the fluctuation of earth’s changing climate is being sped up. Social Life: humanity began to connect the world through trade routes because of the evolutionary importance assigned to social structures

5. I definitely found some references to the changing tide of increased climate change but the exhibits that mentioned the topic were mainly sequestered to side portions instead of being littered throughout every topic. I did, however, enjoy the exhibits about rising CO2 levels and pandemic outbreaks.

6. Ghost ships of the Golden Gate: discussed spawning surveys to figure out how many horseshoe crabs live in the Delaware beach in order to properly take care of their ecosystem. They compile data from all along the coast. Fuel for the storm: discusses the formation of hurricanes - need warm water, moist air, and converging winds. Heat energy fuels the storm. They presented satellite data that showed that hurricanes leave behind trails of cool moisture in their wake.

7. They discussed the changing position of the earth’s land masses and the changing water levels across different areas. It also discussed the impact that moving tectonic plates have - causing earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis. Also discussed surface currents and the rising levels of CO2 in the ocean.

8. Grasslands far and wide: this reconstruction shows Nebraska 19 million years ago. The CO2 in the atmosphere is 50% higher than today, the temperature is 5-12 degrees Fahrenheit higher, the global sea level is about 330 feet higher. Lush Rainforest: shows Wyoming from 56 million years in the past. CO2 levels were 5 times higher than they are today, the average temperature was 14-25 degrees fahrenheit higher, and the global water level was about 720 feet higher

9. This exhibit goes all the way back to over 500 million years in the past up into the present. It shows how the average temperature of the earth has changed over this time. They also have fossils that demonstrate how life managed to survive in the time periods devoid of sunlight and how the future global temperature of earth will change in the coming years based off our attitude toward a clean, low emission future.