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The Extraordinary Growth of the Science‐Technology Museum
Author(s) -
Friedman Alan J.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
curator: the museum journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.312
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 2151-6952
pISSN - 0011-3069
DOI - 10.1111/j.2151-6952.2007.tb00250.x
Subject(s) - exhibition , curriculum , face (sociological concept) , visual arts , history , art history , sociology , art , social science , pedagogy
Science museums, coming off a period of 50 years of explosive growth, have been undergoing evolutionary development for over 200 years. Examples of three distinct generations thrive today, though hybrids are also common. The Science Museum in London is about half interactives; the Lawrence Hall of Science is known at least as much for its curriculum development as for its exhibitions; and the Exploratorium has built a large presence on the World Wide Web and in cities around the world. The evolution is continuing, but where is it going? Are science museums merging into one species, at last? Or are they diverging into many more categories, including virtual institutions with no physical collections at all?