Maryland Science Center: Newsroom: Press Kit

The Maryland Academy of Sciences, the parent organization of the Maryland Science Center, is Maryland's oldest scientific institution and one of the oldest such institutions in the entire nation.

The Academy was founded in 1797 as an amateur scientific society; members met to discuss papers on astronomy, botany, zoology, and other subjects then known as the "natural sciences". Rembrandt and Raphael Peale, sons of painter and scientist Charles Wilson Peale, were among the distinguished early members. The Academy also operated the Museum of Natural History, where for the admission price of 25 cents, visitors could examine a live rattlesnake, stuffed birds, wax figures of famous people and an assortment of sea life like coral and seahorses. A tragic fire in the late 19th Century destroyed much of the library, collections, and records from that period.

Members of the Academy in the 19th Century included members of some of the most distinguished families of Baltimore: Gilmor, Howard, Hayden, Maulsby, Ellicott, Poultney, Pattison, Fisher, Donaldson, Tyson, and Pennington. In notes taken from old records are the names of Declaration of Independence signer Charles Carroll of Carrollton ("Our honored member and advisor") and J.H.B. Latrobe, son of the famous architect.

The early years of the 20th century saw an unprecedented expansion in scientific and technical knowledge; the Academy responded to this by adopting the role of interpreter of science and technology to the public. Less emphasis was placed on static collections; instead, working exhibits were designed to illustrate fundamental scientific principles or industrial processes. An observatory and a weekly lecture series were added, and membership substantially expanded. The Academy moved first to Franklin Street and later to North Charles Street.

Near the end of World War II, the Academy relocated to the third floor of the Enoch Pratt Library; but space limitations were severe. The long-time dream of the Board of Trustees and staff was realized with the June 1976 opening of the Maryland Science Center on the south shore of Baltimore's Inner Harbor. The new museum, designed by internationally-known architect Edward Durrell Stone was the first attraction built as part of Baltimore’s famed renaissance. The new museum, a windowless structure with the main entrance facing Key Highway, featured interactive exhibits and the state-of-the-art Davis Planetarium.

A decade later, the Maryland Science Center reoriented its visitor profile with the addition of a new atrium lobby in 1986. The 400-seat IMAX Theater opened in 1987.

Construction for the Maryland Science Center’s 40,000 square foot, $35 million expansion began in 2002.

Maryland Science Center Mission:
The Mission of the Maryland Science Center is to create awareness in everyone of the importance of science to our everyday lives by engaging them with exciting educational experiences. It is also to motivate our youth to pursue careers in science and technology through community collaboration with academia, government and industry.

Maryland Science Center Vision:
The vision of the Maryland Science Center is to create interest in young people in science by engaging and entertaining them. As one of the most unique and important educational institutions in the region, the Science Center makes science fun; entertainment is the means and education is the end. And because of its well-earned reputation for exhibition excellence and innovative programming, the Maryland Science Center is a national model for “turning on” children to science.

Location: Level One and Level Two Balcony
Earth Science and Dinosaur Hall

Area: 15,000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: Dinosaur Mysteries engages visitors in the process of scientific discovery in an exploration of the forces that have shaped our planet. The fascination with dinosaurs is the focal point for understanding topics such as evolution, anatomy, and climate change. By attempting to answer a series of questions – mysteries – about how dinosaurs lived and died, visitors will appreciate the processes common to all scientific discoveries.

Because interest in dinosaurs is universal, Dinosaur Mysteries captivates all visitors and reinforces the message that science is interesting, engaging, thought-provoking, challenging, and fun.

Exhibit Description: Unlike most museum dinosaur displays, Dinosaurs Mysteries is almost entirely hands-on. Visitors are able to touch full-size dinosaurs, pick up artifacts and fossils, and simulate the sounds that dinosaurs may have made.

Dinosaur Mysteries includes 13 full-scale dinosaurs made from fossils and casts of actual specimens recovered in the field. The largest display is a 45 foot long, 15 foot tall articulation of one of the largest known dinosaurs, a giganotosaurus. This skeletal model is mounted on a platform so that visitors can walk underneath, inspecting the feet and belly of the prehistoric creature.

Visitors participate in more than two-dozen interactive activities that simulate a paleontological dig and the discovery process. These activities are placed under tent-like structures to create the feel of working “in the field.”

A 24 foot (in diameter) translucent globe in the center of the Hall is a dynamic graphic showing layers of life and change on the planet.

The “mysteries” in the exhibit were carefully selected after extensive front-end evaluation and a thorough review of existing earth science/dinosaur exhibits in science centers and natural history museums throughout the world. The questions posed in Dinosaur Mysteries reflect the concerns of both scientists and visitors – what they want to know about.

The core experiences in the Dinosaur Mysteries Exhibit include:

A 40 foot long Tyrannosaurus Rex is suspended in the museum’s front window. This model is the first in the country to feature the lower rib cage.
A dramatic setting depicts the Maryland state dinosaur, astrodon johnstoni, being attacked by a smaller acrocanthosaurus. This 67 foot long and 29 foot tall recreation of these two dinosaurs is based on fossil evidence found in southern Texas and Maryland.
Visitors can touch a 100 million year-old cryolophosaurus skull found in Antarctica, as well as actual dinosaur bones and teeth.
A 100 million year old dinosaur egg will be on view; the egg was excavated in China.
In the field lab area, interactive activities in the exhibit include assembling bones and skeletons and uncovering artifacts using airscribe tools.
Children can sit inside a 7 foot, re-created dinosaur nest.
A recreated rock wall with sediment layers is imbedded with family-oriented activities; visitors can observe ammonite patterns, measure the size of dinosaur bones, and see teeth under a magnifying glass
Large monitors depict Pangea and continental drift over time, and eight computer stations enable visitors to create and color their own dinosaurs, and hear dinosaur sounds
Tanks filled with live lizards, salamanders, and frogs introduce visitors to how prehistoric dinosaurs evolved into current creatures
A display on the exhibit’s second floor balcony shows the evolution from dinosaurs to birds, and features emu and other bird skeletons, as well as feathered dinosaurs.

Location: Level One
Earth Science and Dinosaur Hall

Area: 2,000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: TerraLink is a high tech, high touch, multi-dimensional environment where visitors learn how diverse systems – the environment, sea, land – work together to affect change throughout the Earth.

Exhibit Description: Constantly changing to highlight the latest news, TerraLink is staffed at all times by museum education professionals and provides relevant and current Earth system science interpretation. Content advisors and contributors from NASA, NOAA, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and other scientific institutions provide assurance that the information presented is relevant, current and accurate.

The core experiences in the TerraLink Exhibit include:

Dramatic sculptures by Macarthur fellow Ned Kahn simulate Earth events including volcanic eruptions, and aeolian winds that shape sand dunes; visitors can walk through a six-foot piece simulating a tornado.
Display screens depict the interaction of the global systems and their impact on each other.
At interactive stations, visitors can locate their houses by zooming in from space using satellite imagery and global positioning tools.
The path of a hurricane is tracked using real time data downloaded to a 16 inch globe.

Location: Level Two

Area: 7,000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: In every ordinary day, extraordinary things happen inside the human body. In Your Body: The Inside Story, visitors will journey through a typical day and explore how many different organs and systems work together in ordinary activities. The exhibit focuses on disease prevention and the promotion of healthy lifestyles, and explores the process of renewal and change that our bodies experience over time.

Exhibit Description: Visitors can explore how different organs and systems work together – and how the brain controls everything –in the human body to perform such ordinary activities as waking up, exercising, eating, and reacting to stressful situations. By exploring their own working bodies, seeing extraordinary footage taken inside the human body, and learning about nutrition and germs, visitors are able to connect their daily activities to healthy habits.

The core experiences in Your Body: The Inside Story include:

A 30 foot long tunnel is filled with dreamlike sounds, dramatic images and vivid smells recreating the experience of your senses moving from sleep to waking.
Visitors are surrounded by the sounds and vivid imagery of blood flowing through a beating heart, and vibrations in the Heart and Lung room.
A cacophony of talking, coughing and sneezing in the walk-in bus stop introduces the micro-invaders that face us each day and what we can do to protect ourselves.
Senses are tested as visitors lie on a bed with thousands of nails without experiencing pain, and compare cool and warm touches.
By squeezing objects through a tube, hearing the sounds the body makes and guessing the disgusting digestive noise, the digestive system is made easy to understand.
Visitors explore the nature of being visually jolted from an otherwise peaceful environment and ways to handle each situation.
The unique aspects of each person’s body are evident as visitors take their own fingerprints, examine their skin, and answer questions that predict their body’s age according to their health habits.

Location: Your Body: The Inside Story exhibition
Level Two

Area: 2,000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: BodyLink, the health sciences update center, makes medical and health news clear and relevant , demonstrating to visitors how advances in medical science impact their daily lives. The exhibit focus is on health, genetics and biotechnology

Exhibit Description: Like the other “link” centers at the Maryland Science Center, BodyLink provides the latest updates and developments on the world of medicine and medical technology. Visitors can discover and appreciate the wonders of cutting-edge medical research through interactive activities, stunning imagery, and facilitated demonstrations.

The core experiences in the BodyLink Exhibit include:

In the WetLab, visitors don lab coats and goggles as they perform science experiments about bacteria.
Information on medical research for the treatment of diseases, and new technology like silicon wafers that detect the presence of bacteria, and tiny “pill cameras” that explore inside the human body.
Stations for learning about genetic research
Displays that showcase the negative effects of cholesterol on the blood vessels.

Location: Level One

Area: 2000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: The best way to learn is by doing; in Newton’s Alley dozens of new, hands-on activities allows visitors to probe sight, sound, magnetism, light and mechanics.

Exhibit Description: Working alone or in small groups, visitors turn, move, crank and pull stand-alone, self directed components that replicate the phenomena behind basic cause and effect activities.

Core experiences in Newton’s Alley include:

Adjust the direction and angles of balls to demonstrate motion and the predictable nature of applied force.
Manipulate knobs and levers to send balls down a whimsical device with bells, drums and chimes -- showing basic laws of physics and kinetic energy.
Run hands through a large pool of slowly undulating fog to alter the currents, evocative of clouds on Jupiter and Venus, and fog on Mars.
Play the computer driven laser beams replacing the strings of a harp and change sounds at the push of a button.
Drop coins in the Gravity Well orbit and see how they change speeds, just as planets orbit and change speed in relation to their distance from the sun.

Location: Level Three

Area: 2,000 square feet

Exhibit Goal: Follow the Blue Crab introduces children to the diverse ecosystem of the Chesapeake Bay. Using the life span of the Maryland Blue Crab as a time line, Follow the Blue Crab explores the many different habitats and dangers crabs face in the Chesapeake Bay.

Exhibit Description: Designed for the Maryland Science Center younger visitors, this exhibit incorporates many questions and opportunities for discovery.

Content partners for this exhibit include the Smithsonian Environmental Research Coalition, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and the Center of Marine Biotechnology.

Core experiences in Follow the Blue Crab include:

A 20’ x 20’ aerial photograph placed on the floor lets children explore the geography of the Chesapeake Bay and its wetlands by walking on it.
The educational game, “Perils of the Crab Survivor,” challenges visitors to help a young crab escape from predators and survive to adulthood.
Aquariums are stocked with inhabitants of the Bay, including live turtles, fish, crabs, and seahores.
The Maryland Science Center’s famous mechanical crab returns – in an environmentally appropriate setting.

Davis Planetarium: With hundreds of special effects and a Minolta MS-15 Star Projector capable of showing 8,500 stars, the world-famous Davis Planetarium showcases 20 minute, original presentations of 300-500 images. The theater accommodates 144 visitors.

IMAX Theater: This revolutionary motion picture system projects spectacular images with great clarity and impact. The slightly concave screen is five stories tall and is suited for 3D and classic large-format films. The theater opened in 1987 and can accommodate 400 visitors. The theater has a 38 speakers, six channel sound system with 11,000 watts of sound, and a 15,000 watt projector lamp.

OuterSpacePlace: This exhibit, developed in 2000, is the official Hubble Space Telescope National Visitors Center. Through the latest images from Hubble, visitors can witness the birth and death of stars, explore distant galaxies as they form, and see planets of the solar system up close.

SpaceLink: Within OuterSpacePlace, the state of the art update center utilizes live “links” to space and major space-related institutions to inform visitors of the latest in space science development.

Kids Room: This 5,000 square foot area was specifically designed for newborns through
children up to age eight to explore their world through hands on activities and personal interaction with their accompanying adults. Dozens of components include: a water table in which children manipulate the flow of water, a “kids harbor” with a
fishing pier, and a dedicated infant/toddler room.

Learning Lab and Resource Center: This unique Center, located in the Kids Room, offers both directed programs and drop in browsing for parents and educators. They have access to research and information on child development, and parenting and teaching techniques; Science Center staff provide support and effective strategies for promoting lifelong learning

Beyond Numbers: The Science Center’s award-winning exhibit, which has toured to 36 cities nationwide, will be permanently housed on Level Three.

Crosby Ramsey Memorial Observatory: The rooftop observatory was completely refurbished in 1999 and features a computer controlled telescope.

SciZones: An all new environment enables school groups to choose among educational offerings that enhance and deepen their understanding of the Maryland Science Center’s core exhibits.

Enrichment Experiences: Hands on science programs provide grade-appropriate content in physical science, life science and earth science. Skills such as problem solving, analyzing data, observations and measurement are highlighted. Classes are led by the Science Center’s education department staff.

Traveling Science Program: Staff lead hands-on activities at schools and civic organizations in biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics. STARLAB portable planetarium shows are also offered. Auditorium style programs are available for large audiences, outdoor events, summer programs, and other large gatherings

Camp-Ins: In 2003, more than 12,000 children participated in the Camp-In program, in which they spend the night at the Science Center. Overnight activities include workshops, dinner and breakfast, and exploration of the exhibits.

Explainers: Visitors engage in informal conversations and demonstrations in small groups on the exhibit floors in activities related to exhibit content.

Demonstrations: Twenty-minute demonstrations introduce a science phenomenon, idea
or content on the Demonstration Stage located on Level Two

Planetarium Shows: The Davis Planetarium offers original productions on the dome of the world famous star theater. Davis Planetarium programs have been exhibited in planetariums around the world.