Last month, at the annual ASTC conference in Raleigh, I had the chance to visit the North Carolina’s Museum of Natural Sciences’ Naturalist Center. The room is a science exploration room for children with a really fascinating space, notable for its “Magic Table.”
The table is surrounded by a wide range of scientific specimens but the table itself is empty, blank, with nothing but a white top… that is, until you place a specimen on top. Then it comes alive.
I filmed the following video of my supervisor, Preeti Gupta, analyzing for us while checking it out, exploring when and how it aligns with what she’d call either transmissionist or initiative/response/feedback styles of interaction.
This will be the first of three posts exploring the role digital media plays in a number of their innovative hands-on labs and exploration spaces.
I so appreciate this great video. Ever since I returned from ASTC I have been trying to explain the fantastic resources of the Naturalist Center. I think its a wonderful example of how technology can put the “stuff” of museums into the spotlight for some very dynamic learning.
This looks very cool – thanks for posting. I’ve also been doing research into multi-touch tables, with a summary here: http://musdigi.wordpress.com/2014/10/27/multi-touch-tables-overall-what-did-the-research-say/ Be keen to hear more of what you find out!
This is so cool! It reminds me of the ‘wizards book’ in the poison exhibit or the cooking module in the food exhibit. What’s even better is there is a physical object involved, not just a projection.