On Friday, I got the chance to visit the Museum of Natural History for the first time and I can honestly say that it was worth the wait. As soon as I saw the dinosaur skeleton in the entrance, I knew that this was going to be a great trip. I soon became lost looking for the Hall of Biodiversity but I didn’t mind. In fact, I wandered around the museum aimlessly, gazing at the sights in wonder. Continue reading AMNH Trip →

On the trip to the American Museum of Natural History, I realized that not everyone takes advantage of the plethora of knowledge that awaits for them.

As a visual learner myself, I immediately gravitated towards the video that was playing and sat on one of the three (unoccupied) benches provided. The video being displayed was part of the Bio Bulletin, which “covers stories about ongoing research related to biology and conservation” and had a duration of 12 mins. I found the video very interesting and informative, and it covered 2 topics. I watched a clip of researchers in Madagascar taking samples of the native creatures (mainly reptiles) in order to find out why speciation has been occurring so much in the area. The other clip was a map of the world which then zoomed on the U.S. and demonstrated how fire season is now starting earlier, lasting longer, and causing more destruction. Despite this video being engrossing and very easy to understand, not a single person passed by to watch the video.

I then moved to the Resource Center, which included interactive and non-interactive videos. This section was in the rear of the Hall of Biodiversity, so I decided to stay a little longer in this section to observe who walked by. In a span of about 25-30 mins, only a small family came into the area. There were 3 children about ages 6-8, and their father. The video being played was on overharvesting of oceans. The children gazed in awe of the images of the hundreds of dead fish, and the dolphins and birds that get caught in the enormous nets. The father explained to them that “they aren’t using the right methods to fish and are overfishing”.  The children watched the video and were able to observe this themselves. “They’re killing the dolphins! They’re fishing, but the dolphins are getting killed!” one of the boys said. The children seemed excited to watch more of the video, but unfortunately the dad said they were “taking too long” and they moved to another display. The total time they had spent there was approximately 4 mins. Given its location further back in the Hall of Biodiversity, the Resource Center was not as popular as I thought it would be.

I then decided to visit the “Rainforest room”. It was a beautifully decorated room and there were quite a few people coming into this area. First saw a teacher and 6 students of hers. They were fascinated by how the room was decorated and spent a few minutes, maybe 5 or 6. There were flip books that classified different species, but I think the kids enjoyed the motion of flipping through it as opposed t o actually reading what was on the pages. Two of the children stopped for a moment to look at one of the videos that was being displayed on a small screen. The teacher began guiding them out of the room and said “they aren’t really reading it”. After the small class leaves, 8 couples varying in age came into the rainforest room, but only one couple actually took their time to observe and read the information that was being relayed in the Ecotourism video.

Overall, videos seemed the best way to make the information more accessible to patrons, because very few people stopped to actually read any text that was provided. Also, the lighting in the Resource Center and Rainforest room was quite dim and even I had a hard time reading some of the text, so that may have contributed to my findings. The message of conservation was definitely there – even the child watching the fishing video noticed it. All in all, if one takes the time to look at everything provided in the Hall of Biodiverity, they would see that it is quite effective in educating patrons about biodiversity and conservation.

The American Museum of Natural History has been one of my favorite places in the New York City since I was a little kid. Every time I go, I discover and learn something new–whether it’s something new about our solar system, about dinosaurs, or about the environment of the world we live in, there is always new information to absorb. What’s so great about the museum is also that it’s never boring; they really know how to engage children and adults alike in getting excited about learning, through their short films and interactive exhibits and well-thought-out displays. Some of them attract more people, and some attract less.

One of the exhibits in the Hall of Biodiversity that I was attracted to was a short wall of panels in which each panel was dedicated to a different type of environment on Earth, such as savannas, deserts, tropical forests, tundra, etc. I liked this because it gave very basic information, such as what percentage of the earth that particular environment took up, what the basic features were, and a good map that showed where exactly on earth one could find these spots. I enjoyed the simplicity of it and how it was rather hidden. I decided to observe how people interacted with it, and what I found didn’t surprise me. Of the handful of people that stopped to look at it, only about two or three of them actually read each panel and spent more than just a second looking over them. Most of the time people walked right past them, the panels going unnoticed. One little girl decided to start playing on top of them while I was reading them. However I think I can understand why these were overlooked in the great Hall of Biodiversity, as the rest of the hall is filled with interactive exhibits that are way more engaging and fun than this one. Maybe if it had some sort of touch screen people would be a little more attracted to it!

The second exhibit that I chose to observe was the series of little plastic binders of information and the short films that played in the rainforest section, in which viewers have the opportunity to kind of play “I spy” and find the animals from the books located throughout the forest. Growing up this was always one of my favorite things to do at the museum so I figured I would see lots of little kids having fun with this one. I was not surprised to find a sizable group of schoolchildren trying to beat each other at finding all kinds of lizards, birds, and other types of interesting animals. I was pleased to see the older kids and adults flipping casually through the binders, albeit not spending much time reading each page. Kids were watching the films and pushing buttons and having a good time learning about the diversity of the rainforest. I think the museum has always done an excellent job with that section, and observing other people’s reactions to it just proved it.

I really enjoyed visiting the museum again, as I haven’t been there in a couple of years. It’s always such a pleasure wandering through the halls and ending up somewhere that you had forgotten about. Of course, I had to go to the planetarium, because Neil DeGrasse Tyson’s “Dark Matter” film was playing. It was great, naturally. I certainly learned a thing or two during last week’s visit and I hope that all the little kids and adults alike who visited that day did too.

I chose to examine “Diving for Pearls” and “Dolphin and Tuna.” “Diving for Pearls” was trying to give people a general overview of reef ecosystems and how people rely on the ocean for resource and luxury goods like pearls. Twenty-eight people visited the exhibit during the fifteen minutes I was there. Most of the patrons walk by with blank looks on their faces and spent less then 30 seconds looking at the exhibit, those people also avoided looking at the reading material at all costs. The only people who stopped to read the exhibit for more than a minute where men age 40+. Patrons rarely discuss the exhibits but many mothers will try to get their children interested by saying “Look the boys are diving for pearls” or pointing out other details. I personally found the information in the exhibit very interesting, and was disappointed that so many people just walked by without learning anything. Pearl Diving is a large industry in the Indian Ocean and often employs children to work in hazardous conditions as deep-sea free divers, based on that alone the exhibit deserved more attention. The exhibit was well designed but during the 15 minutes I was standing there it occurred to me that most people don’t want to read especially during their leisure time. A possible way of getting their attention is by installing headphone jacks, most people have headphones and listening is a more passive process.

“Dolphins and Tuna” educates people on how dolphins and tuna interact in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Both species hunt together, which puts dolphins at risk of being killed by tuna fishermen. 23 people visited the exhibit, and patrons reacted in more or less the same way. People occasionally took pictures of the exhibit, the reading seldom received attention, a child touched a dolphin skeleton hand although I doubt she knew that it was to illustrate that dolphins evolved form land mammals and nobody was there to tell her. This exhibit can also be improved by installing headphone jacks and audio recordings.

I felt that both exhibits placed the right amount of focus on conservation and biodiversity. Each exhibit educated patrons about various aspects of its environment and then briefly described the ways humans threaten it. If more focus were placed on conservation it would take away from the learning experience. The hall of biodiversity is well designed and engaging, maybe even a little too engaging; in the hall of ocean life I heard one mother say to another “Bobby (a little boy) is scared by the noises and darkness, lets go upstairs.” Overall I had a great time at the museum and wish I’d arrived earlier, it was a nice to break out of my routine and observing people was an interesting experience.

Location1: The Wall of Fungi, Crustaceans, Mammals, and all sorts of aspects of kingdoms from Domain Eukarya.

Location2: The Dzanga-Sangha Rainforest Exhibit

This ceiling-to-floor exhibit celebrated various kingdoms such as plants, fungi, and animals by designating specific columns of the wall to specific phylum or kingdom such as fungi or fish, crustaceans, birds, and all sorts of animals. There were multiple TV screens high up on the wall that would continuously play scenes from underwater documentaries surrounded by a multitude of recreations of various species from that particular category. At your hand’s disposal, there were touch-screens that would enable you to virtually flip through different phylums and gave pictures and short descriptions of specific species from those phylums. You could select from the huge spectrum of color-coded categories on these screens, giving the individual full reign of which species they wanted to study. What was interesting was that the screens matched up to the species on the wall–so that it was actually giving a virtual tour of the daunting and vast collection of creatures in this exhibit.

The use of media, pictures, and recreation of animals is what attracts people and makes biodiversity so relatable to an audience of a wide age range. There’s sounds from the various TV screens, plenty of things to touch, a sense of independence and options in terms of what you want to learn about. Whether you’re a kindergartner or a 30-year old, everyone can learn from flipping through the touch screen. It’s colors and wealth of knowledge attracts all audiences, making it accessible as well. In design, I felt that this exhibit was wonderful.

There was a sharp contrast in the use of media and interaction between patrons when comparing this exhibit and the Dzanga-Sangha Rainforest Exhibit. In the exhibit of multiple creatures, at least 40 patrons could easily be touching screens, peering at the animals exhibited, standing back to look at the large collection/exhibit as a whole, or reading the descriptions of fungi and plants. There was screaming and shouting courtesy of the visiting kindergarteners, and just a freedom to roam around, be loud, and hands-on. There would always be duos or triplets of children hovered around the screens saying “Ooo look at that!” “What’s that?” or “I KNOW WHAT THAT IS!, MS. CHER!” Teens and adults could stand aside from the children and enjoy the exhibit at their leisure as well and many were challenging themselves to name the species on the wall.

The Dzanga-Sangha Rainforest exhibit, I believe did a fantastic job at also promoting how exciting biodiversity and conservation is in a completely different manner. Although placed right in the middle of the Hall of Biodiversity, it is completely sectioned off so that upon entering, you feel the change in mood and seriousness. The exhibit serves to promote conservation of the Dzanga-Sangha Rainforest-located in southern/central Africa- admitting that there is a clash between human needs and the need for biodiversity. Natives use the rainforest for basic supplies and medicinal supplies and corporation use it for timber and diamonds. However, by extracting so many resources, the animals living in the rainforest are stripped of their homes- threatening the survival of elephants, gorillas, and all sorts of animals that have made this Central African rainforest home.

The exhibit is a rainforest itself, modeled after the Dzanga-Sangha with even life-size recreations of animals from that rainforest. Flute-like sounds were playing in the background and the benches and paneling is all made to look like wood. Lighting is minimal, and shines specifically on the rainforest and the waist-high panels that describe the problems going on. Patrons are easily attracted to the books that are part of these panels that a person can physically flip through and the tv screens that teach people about the natives in this rainforest.

Generally, people did not talk so much in this exhibit. Besides the usual “oh look here” and “wow, its a gorilla”, people were mostly silent when reading the text or watching the video. When children would peer into the exhibit they would walk quickly through but not say much at all. At least 5 children came through, went straight to the flip books, flipped, and then left. A total 12 Adults and teens tended to walk along the entire exhibit, skimming or reading. Although there are no bright colors, bright lighting, a wide collection of species models, multiple tv screens and touch screens, this exhibit truly served its purpose –but mostly to an older audience.

Both exhibits make biodiversity an understandable and fun concept and by extension spark interest in the idea of conservation and demonstrate its importance. Coming to this conclusion, the Hall of Biodiversity combines, sound, video, images, and sense of touch and sight to make education a fun experience and gives the public something to remember when they leave the museum.

While at the American Museum of Natural History I chose to observe The Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest and the Lives in Balance: Endangered Species exhibits. The first exhibit was a small replica of the rainforest consisting of various kinds of wildlife such as birds, mammals, insects, and trees. We were even told by the security guard that the rain forest had a secret gorilla that you could only see with a flashlight, but sadly I was not able to find it. The second exhibit showcased several endangered species such as the Siberian tiger, a panda, and some marine animals within a glass box.

While observing the Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest exhibit for fifteen minutes I tallied about 32 people most of whom were young elementary school students and high school students who were on field trips. Many of the young children seemed extremely excited and enthusiastic about this display because it was so realistic looking, and every time you looked at it you could find something different that you didn’t see before. The children seemed to have made it a game to see who could spot the most animals in the rainforest. One part of the rainforest that I observed was the area, which contained information about poaching. I was hoping to listen in on conversations of people talking about this topic but most just read the information on the display and moved on. I actually noticed that the children in the museum were much more interactive than the adults were.

While observing the Lives in Blalance: Endangered Species exhibit I tallied about 29 people observing the display. Once again most of the patrons were young elementary school children, but I didn’t mind because I found their conversations to be much more interesting and amusing than the adults who were observing the display. Many of the children were amazed that the animals were actually life size. Most of the children were especially interested in the Siberian tiger and would put their faces up against the glass wall and make animals noises. One of the comments a child made was how he wished the animals weren’t behind the glass box so he could pet them. I actually think having this display inside a glass box helps to reinforce the message that these species are endangered by showing how these animals are slowly becoming out of our reach and we’re losing them or it could just be used to prevent people from touching the animals in the display.

I think the main message both of these displays were trying to relay is about the conservation of biodiversity. I think both of these displays do an excellent job in reinforcing this message. These two displays tended to grab the attention of most of the people that walked into the Hall of Biodiversity. The Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest display does a great job in showing how diverse and rich the rainforest is and the gives great information for people to understand the problems that are arising due various threats many of which are caused by humans. The information on the displays helps to educate the visitor about the importance of conserving the rainforest and the steps that need to be taken. The Endangered Species display also gives great information about each of the animals that were in the display and the threats that they are facing.

On Monday afternoon, I strolled from the subway station at the 81^st Street stop filled with intrigue as my eyes glanced at the enormous, intricately designed building that lay ahead of me. Since the last time I had visited the American Museum of Natural History was when I was four, I was excited to finally be able to walk through the halls of this famed museum. As I passed through security, I was awed to realize that my “Night at the Museum” impression of the museum was just a silly understatement of the true grandeur of the AMNH.

After twirling around in 360°s for five minutes and allowing my shock to subside, I slowly made my way down to the Hall of Biodiversity, which displayed the richness of life on planet earth and the dangers that are a menace to it. The displayed that I chose to closely watch were the Dzanga Sangha Rain Forest exhibit and the Solutions Wall.

The Dzanga Sangh Rain Forest exhibit delineates the various species that reside in this Central African rainforest, including gorillas and elephants, along with other species of birds, mammals, and so on. This diorama gives the viewer a glimpse of how the forest itself looks and sounds like. It also raises awareness of the issues that threaten the forest, such as deforestation and trade.

Before entering the Dzanga Sangha Rain Forest exhibit, I noticed a class of fourth graders sitting on benches as their teacher explainedthe importance of an introductory video about conservation. I became aware of the divergences in attention span within one age group; as some kids paid attention and took notes, others simply looked around, unaware of the significance of the message. This class of 23 fourth graders also visited the rainforest exhibit first, and their teacher gave them the assignment of recording down four things that they’ve learned from each exhibition. Only 13 kids were somewhat attentive. While most of the girls were interested in learning about organisms of the Dzanga Sangha Rain Forest, many boys simply refused to get off the benches till their teacher prodded them. The teacher was rather tolerant and seemed genuinely concerned about the education of her kids as she pointed out to interesting videos and flip books that contained enlightening information about the species within this forest. Still, many boys were only interested in competing to find a certain organisms such as the tree pangolin and the great blue turaco, while many girls took their time looking through informational videos and captions.

(Tree Pangolin)

I noticed that partners tended to seek knowledge of these creatures in an efficient manner, whereas larger groups that contained three or more members acted childishly and chaotically. Older kids who worked alone were relatively efficient as well because they were more capable of narrowing the abundance of information that was given to a few important, overarching bullet points. Along with these school children, a family of three, including a six-year-old daughter, wandered through this exhibit. However after a minute the family sat down on the bench and began creating small talk, ignoring the videos and flipbooks provided. The parents, unlike the teacher, did not pressure their daughter as much to actively learn something from this exhibit. It was interesting to see this trend that visiting the AMNH and learning is fostered more in a classroom situation that in a family vacation situation. Lastly, I observed a tour with three adults who sat on the benches across the diorama as the tour guide gave brief overview of how the museum attempted to create a room that simulates the Central African rainforest. In this overview, the tour guide mentioned many fun facts such as how the museum created around 411,000 leaves for this display. However, the adults themselves did not bother to stand up and look around themselves at the display descriptions and interactive videos, unfortunately.

Even though there was a wide range of responses to this rainforest display, I felt as if the simulation appealed to many sensory perceptions through its 3D structures and the sounds of rainforest creatures. It allowed its visitors to actively look for creatures that were hidden in this display, and it provided enough information through its videos/flipbooks without being overbearing.

The Solutions Wall focused on the human effects on the environment and how the visitors themselves can contribute in the conservation of nature. To educate the visitors on how they can make a difference in their daily lives, this wall displays many case studies that give examples of various ways to propagate conservation. This section of the hall also provided many desks where the visitors could sit and watch interactive videos that brought up various topics such as climate change, the importance of dungeon beetles, and so on.

At the Protection and Restoration section the Solutions Wall, 5-6 children crowded around a screen that discussed about how dungeon beetles mediate methane. While the girls were more silent and attentive to how dung from livestock attract beetles, many boys complained how the girls were taking too long in writing down information. In the Reposting on Biodiversity section, the “crazy ant invasion” captured four boys attention, but some fooling around and bullying ensued unfortunately. While boys tended to randomly push buttons and move on, girls show more of an outward desire to learn.

I really loved the Solutions Wall because it had a lot more interactive components and that intrigued the children who stopped by. The video’s pause button allowed the kids to watch the videos at their own pace. The set up, in which the wall was split into many sections with their own desks, was ingenious because it prevented children from overcrowding stations the way that they did in the rainforest display. Nevertheless, like the rainforest display, competition was the motivation to learn for some of the children who stopped by.

Overall, the Hall of Biodiversity was a very education experience that had just the right amount of information in correlation to its visual and interactive components. Through its elaborate displays, it increased the awe factor, thereby increasing it the attention drawn to the issues they were conveying. I, myself, had a wonderful experience at AMNH, and I hope to stop by with some friends soon!

The two exhibits that I chose to observe were the Rainforest Diorama and the Solutions Wall. The Rainforest Diorama showed a depiction of the Dzanga Ndoki Rainforest that can be found in the Central African Republic. According to the American Museum of Natural History website, there are over 160 flora and fauna species found in this rainforest. At the exhibit, there were tall trees with monkeys sitting on the top. There were videos of elephants walking in the background of the rainforest. There was also a long ledge extending through the exhibit that had different texts as well as little books and screens attached to it for people to interact with the exhibit and learn new things. The text addressed how the rainforest is under various threats such as logging and poaching.

This exhibit does a good job of allowing people to interact with it, especially children. 115 people passed through this diorama during the 15 minutes that I observed it. The first group of 35 children stood by the exhibit with their teacher for a few minutes and answered questions on the worksheet they had. Many of them showed a lot of enthusiasm by pointing to the monkeys in the tree and crouching down to get a better look at the ground of the rainforest. Another teacher with her group of students asked them to find any animals. Most of the people viewing the exhibit spent a lot of their time looking at the rainforest diorama itself rather than the writing on the ledge.

The other exhibit that I observed was the Solutions Wall. The Solutions Wall teaches the public about ways to reduce the threats that are made on biodiversity. I focused on the section entitled Laws and Regulations. These laws and regulations are for the conservation of biodiversity. In total, 96 people passed by this exhibit, and most of them did not stop to read the wall of the Laws and Regulations. There were a couple of computers in each area that allowed people to watch videos, but I did not see anyone watch them. The seats were used for sitting and resting rather than watching the videos. The wall on the opposite side had many television screens with videos that some people did stop to watch. This was actually a different exhibit called Transformation of the Biosphere Wall.

When comparing both exhibits, the Rainforest Diorama definitely attracted more visitors and had them interact more with the display. The different components of the rainforest and the darkness in that area made it a more exciting experience. The dark lighting could have been the reason why there was less people reading the descriptions on the ledge. There was some writing on the clear wall but it was difficult to read. The benches that were in front of the exhibit were also beneficial and allowed people to sit and stare at the rainforest for as long as they wanted. Overall, I think the Hall of Biodiversity was successful in providing ways to educate the public about biodiversity, the threats that are put on biodiversity around the world, and what can be done to conserve biodiversity. The only problem was getting the visitors interested in learning about these things which can be solved by providing better ways for people to interact with the exhibit rather than just reading what is on the walls. The multitude of species that hung from the ceiling on strings was really amazing and made the walk through the hall much more fun.