Denver Museum of Nature and Science attracts crowds in droves for their Expedition Health Exhibit
Photo courtesy of Denver Museum of Nature and Science
It is obvious to most that climbing Mount Everest is no easy task; for people who wonder whether or not they can do it, there is an easier and faster way to find out how they would fare than traveling to the Himalayas in Asia.
This new exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science is unique in that it is personal to the visitor doing the activities. The process starts with signing in and receiving a “Peak Pass;” a card that gets inserted into many of the machines containing vital information like age, gender, height, etc. Along with entering this information, participants also choose a “buddy” to go along with them on their journey. This “buddy” is one of ten people who have successfully climbed Mt. Everest and reported their observations to help make the exhibit more accurate.
The array of ages and types of people in the exhibit was astounding; from an 82-year-old woman to a 6-year-old girl with her family and everyone in between, there was undoubtedly something for everyone. The focus of the exhibit is to engage all of the senses while learning about health and seeing how well one would do in climbing Mount Everest. Some of the activities included are finding one’s heart’s electricity, riding a bike, finding out one’s wingspan, and more. The “BioRide” is an activity in which a virtual bike ride allows “smaller riders” or “taller riders” to experience the same thing. A heart rate and target heart rate are displayed on a monitor as the exercise becomes increasingly difficult. This is all determined by the information that is read on the “Peak Pass” by the stationary bike machine.
Another eye-opening component of this exhibit is the “The Importance of Sunscreen” experiment. Here, visitors can view their hands under an ultraviolet light that allows the viewing of any sun damage a hand may have. Next the visitors apply a small amount of sunscreen to their hands and observe the difference. The spots that had sunscreen were black under the light and therefore would block out any sun rays from damaging skin. It made visitors aware that sunscreen really does make a difference and that skin is a very fragile thing.
One of the most popular parts of the exhibit was “How will you age?” This exhibit took a picture of the visitor and read their “Peak Pass” accordingly. Then visitors chose one factor that affects the aging process, such as smoking or drugs. The machine then ages the picture based on the chosen factor and shows visitors the predicted view of how they will look when they are 80 years old. Children especially got a kick out of that experiment.
It goes without saying that there are endless ways to learn about the body and assess how healthy an individual is, but the Museum of Nature and Science has taken it to a new level. This interactive, personalized experience is one that anyone can have fun with and learn from. Families, elders, friends and more can all enjoy such an exhibit.
The exhibit is now a permanent replacement to the previous “Discovery Zone” and is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. The cost of the museum admission is free for members, $6 for senior citizens and students, and $11 for adults.
