The Sentinel-Record - HER - Hot Springs
Moving dinosaurs head to Mid-America Science Museum
V isitors to Mid-America Science Museum have a lot to look forward to this summer. Through Sept. 2, the museum is hosting a number of new exhibits sure to pique the interests of all who set foot inside.
“We’ve got a lot of exciting things happening this summer,” said Brooke Ownbey, marketing coordinator for MASM. “We’ve got animatronic dinosaurs and the SkyCycle, which are two really cool exhibits.”
The dinosaur exhibit, which was donated by Kokoro Exhibits, consists of 10 dinosaurs that are three-quarter scale.
“Nine of the dinosaurs actually move, and the T-Rex is really cool because his eyes move,” she said. “Our techs have done a great job of giving this exhibit a really awesome ‘Jurassic Park’ feel.”
The museum’s other big summer exhibit is the SkyCycle. This interactive exhibit allows visitors to ride a bicycle 12 feet above the ground along a 20-foot track.
“The rider is harnessed in and, because it has a counterweight, you can sway from side to side and the bike won’t tip over,” she said. “The rider can go out to the end of the track, ring a bell and then pedal backwards to the platform and slide down a slide when they’re done.”
In addition to exhibits, educational programs will be featured thought the summer.
“We’ve been asked to be a part of a citizen science project where we will be surveying ‘muck’ from a mastodon site,” said Casey Wylie, educational programs coordinator. “I’ll be working with the ‘muck’ on Thursdays and anyone who comes to the museum can see what I’m doing and look at the fossils, or even help out.”
Wylie said she hopes to see “future archaeologists” visit and help with the project.
“We also have our Innovation Station in our classroom, except this summer we’re making it the Innovation BUILDING Station,” she said.
With the Innovation BUILDING Station, kids of all ages will be able to build cities out of cardboard, Rube Goldberg inspired contraptions and more with different challenges on Fridays and Saturdays all summer.
“We hope to have a lot of visitors this summer,” said Diane LaFollette, executive director. “We’re going to have a lot of fun with our visitors and, as always, we have lots of opportunities for family fun and learning.”