Impact - The End of the Age of Dinosaurs:

AMNH 4th floor, temporary exhibit - 10:30am


For our first tour, we saw the temporary exhibit that covers the end of the age of dinosaurs. The exhibit is designed to allow you to walk through the timeline of the extinction of the dinosaurs. It starts off with many different dinosaur models and allows you to visually see what life on Earth at that time looked like. Then, you walked through a small theatre, where you could "watch" the extinction event. After that, you were able to explore the event itself, the life that went extinct, and how the dinosaurs' extinction facilitated the growth of the biosphere we know today. One of my favorite displays was an interactive screen that allowed you to answer questions and see what animal you would have been at the time (I got a toothed bird). While maybe not the most technical, displays like these are incredible for giving people a connection to the information they are learning about. Especially for kids, who might not understand the more scientific nature of the exhibit, these types of displays help them to learn about the event. There were multiple interactive displays throughout the exhibit that I feel did an incredible job at allowing a casual viewer to not only learn, but also actively participate in the exhibit. Another display I found to be very interesting was the one that detailed the actual asteroid impact. I'm an astronomy minor, and so I love anything space-related. This section of the exhibit was definitely a bit harder to understand for a "casual viewer" as it was much more technical, but the combination of text panels, visual representations of the impact, and small interactive sections (there was one where you could smell the fire of the impact!) made it very engaging. Overall, I think this exhibit did a wonderful job presenting information in a way that could be interpreted by a general audience through utilizing many different mediums and structuring the exhibits to be a walk-through that transitioned between each section smoothly. It also worked well by ending in a permanent dinosaur exhibit, allowing people to look more into the science of dinosaurs if they would like to.

Self-Guided Observations:

AMNH North American Mammals Exhibit - 12:30pm


For one of our tours, a few of my friends and I did several different self-guided tours through different exhibits in the museum. One of my favorites was the first one we did, which was through the North American Mammals section. Generally, the exhibit was organized by region, making it relatively easy to find different areas to look at. One thing I found really neat was how many large displays there were that were meant to replicate what these animals look like in the wild. Art, specifically painting, is one of my hobbies, and so it was really cool to see how certain artistic choices can make communicating science better. One such large display showed mountain lions resting on out outlook of a mountain range. This specific display did not have as much text as some of the others. One of the displays that really did a nice job combining both art and science was the River Otter and American Badger displays. While not as grand, the paintings combined with text display that not only detailed the otter, but also the flora of the region, where incredibly fascinating to me. Especially because I have visited the Pacific Northwest/Alaska and have gotten to see some of these animals in the wild (although this river otter was from Ontario; I haven't been yet). Lastly, throughout the exhibit, there were many different text panels that discussed both the mammals but also the local geology/environment that these mammals were living in. One such panel talked about the Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming, which I had not heard about before. Overall, this exhibit was incredibly informative, visually stunning, and one I would definitely recommend visiting.

Concerning the Fossil Halls - Guided Tours

Hall of Vertebrate Origins - 2pm

For my second guided tour, I attended Dr. Merck's tour of the hall of vertebrate origins. The main thing I found interesting was how it was laid out like a Cladogram. Especially since in my BSCI207 class, we essentially had to memorize the same tree that I was walking on at the exhibit. However, this does present an issue when new information is learned. The exhibit is slightly outdated in certain areas when it comes to where they fall on the cladogram (like the turtles). While having the cladogram be based in the floor is cool because you get to actually "walk through it," it does make it tricky to update. Using strings above the exhibits, or projections on the floor instead of tiles would make it easier to update. However, the integrity of the cladogram would likely be lost with these methods, especially if they were constantly being switched around. Additionally, while displays can be switched around, it would take a lot of time and delicate effort to ensure that nothing gets broken or destroyed. This is the unfortunate part of designing an exhibit like a cladogram. Cladograms are dynamic and debatable, and so often one from 10 years ago won't be consistent with the knowledge we have today. Still, the exhibit was quite enjoyable. I really like all the hanging fossils, especially the ones that lived in water. It was a much different perspective than I was used to, and it was really cool to see some of the features I had learned about in class on display in person.

Space Show

Encounters in the Milky Way - 3:30pm

This year's space show was titled Encounters in the Milky Way, and focused on the origin, development, and present-day encounters of the Milky Way. Voiced by Pedro Pascal, the show took us through our solar system out to the edges of the Milky Way, and even to encounters we may have with other galaxies. To me, the images seemed to be a mix of accurate scientific measurements and designed by special studio effects. The combination of these things was likely to ensure that the presentation was engaging while still being relatively accurate to science. Again, space is something I am really interested in, so I had a general background on a lot of the information that was being presented. Still, it was really cool to see it visually. It's hard to comprehend just how many stars and galaxies and planets are really out there just from reading textbooks and articles. Having it visualized on screen really just made me appreciate how vast the universe is, and how tiny we are in comparison. It's a hard thing to wrap your head around, but an important reminder nonetheless.

General Thoughts

Overall, I found the AMNH to be an incredibly well-thought-out, engaging museum that did an amazing job presenting information for a general audience to be able to understand. Additionally, I noticed a few different ways in which the AMNH could accommodate all learners. Many of the exhibits are very open, which makes wheelchair access easier. There are also many elevators and ramps throughout the museum, which would allow anyone who has a mobility aid to be able to better access the exhibits. Many of the exhibits had visual, auditory, and sensory elements that would allow people with visual/hearing impairments to still be able to learn and experience the exhibits. Several of the interactive portions of the exhibit had options for other languages, and many of the maps/pamphlets also had Spanish. These accomodations are important not just in museums, but in any space to ensure accessibility to all.

Overall, the excursion was incredibly enjoyable! Despite the early start, I had an amazing time visiting the museum as well as NYC. This was not only my first time at this museum, but my first time in Times Square, NYC. I'm incredibly grateful for this experience, and excited for the opportunities ahead!