Installation, www.mos.org/cst
Production Company: Magian Design Studio
From
the producers:
"The Current Science & Technology Center is the place
where you can find out more about science and technology in the
news.....and catch up on the leading edge in research and exploration.
Located in the Blue Wing of the Museum of Science, Boston, the
Center offers exhibits, live events, video and digital media updates
and live links to researchers and explorers in the field. The
CS&T Center was designed by Magian Design Studio.
The challenge facing the producers:
"The exhibits and live presentations at CS&T are constantly
being updated and changed to tell current science stories. The
combination of plasma panels, touch screens and website is particularly
appropriate for this.The Magian DMoC System is used to publish
and update the multimedia content at high-resolution to the multi-screen
stage presentations, the exhibit touchscreens and the exhibit
plasma panels. The DMoC System simultaneously takes the same content
as the touchscreen programs, resizes and reformats it and publishes
it at low-resolution to the website."
The judges said:
"The Current Science and Technology Center brings the most
timely science and technology news and information into the museum
and synthesizes it with a variety of media and content delivery
mechanisms in order to reach broad audiences.
"The Center offers exhibits, video, animation, frequent
updates of topical news and info, live links to researchers in
the field, a web site and the capability to stage planned or spontaneous
live events based on current science news and events. Video of
those presentation can then be repurposed back to the other content
media.
"We encountered high-quality writing that targets broad
audiences in a news brief format that is concise yet detailed
and illustrated well enough to satisfy. The Web site’s navigation,
architecture and template design is complex but not cluttered.
"Most impressive was the ability of the system to allow
the museum the option of licensing and repurposing any of their
programs via an Internet distribution system that delivers ready
made content to partnering institutions regardless of their size
or geographic location.
"This level of synthesis of in-house/informal education
and electronic outreach is a true innovation. Kudos to the museum
and the technology developer for implementing a very robust and
extensible system."
Installation
The judges said:
"Astro Bulletin represents one of three Science Bulletin
categories currently in production at the museum. It presents
breaking news and visualizations from leading scientific institutions
as well as in-depth feature stories.
"The program is composed of three components: A large-screen
projection to capture viewer attention with high-definition video
and graphics, interactive kiosks offering in-depth exploration
on a variety of regularly updated topics, and Astro Bulletin online
which provides current science reporting to public audiences around
the globe.
"The programs breaking news section is updated weekly and
six in-depth features are created each year. The sample programs
this jury scored demonstrated top-notch writing in all segments,
particularly in the extended in-depth programs where attention
to narrative structures is critical to maintaining the attention
of public audiences. The navigation and design of kiosk and web
programs is clean uncluttered."
© American Museum of Natural
History. Photograph by Denis Finnin. |
Installation
The judges said:
"This program was submitted by the American Museum of Natural
History as a single segment of a larger, temporary exhibit on
the subject of genetics. Titled “Mutation Station”,
this interactive invites visitors to experience the consequences
of altering the DNA of a fruit fly. A floor-to-ceiling interactive
electronic sculpture of a DNA helix is made up of illuminated
rungs representing individual fly nucleotides. The visitor turns
the rungs on the sculpture to search for point mutations.
"A large projection screen responds to the physical manipulation
of the model DNA helix by mutating a large computer graphic of
a fruit fly demonstrating the dramatic and sometimes gruesome
results: stunted wings, legs growing out of foreheads, and more.
"This is a concise, smartly conceived and well designed
program that provides intense visual and audio feedback to the
user. The program is designed to appeal to a wide audience with
a smart, fun interface and appears to function as an excellent
compliment to the overall experience of the larger exhibit."
Science
| History and Culture
| Art | Promotion
of an Institution | Collection
Database or Reference
Two-Way Communication
