Lisa Borgsdorf and Ruth Slavin join Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning DialogTable, which won a Gold for best “Interactive Kiosk,” a category that recognizes single interactive kiosks in a gallery, visitor center, or other public space. At the University of Michigan Museum of Art, Borgsdorf is the Manager of Public Programs and Campus Engagement and Slavin is the Director of Education.

Project Background:
The University of Michigan Museum of Art is in the midst of a three year “Interpretive Project” that will re-imagine the visitor experience, and enhance interactive learning through multimedia interpretation. To further this goal, UMMA decided to incorporate 800-plus display objects into a single kiosk, which would open up a dialog between visitors and art. The museum worked with Kinecity LLC, Night Kitchen Interactive, Audience Focus, and independent artists to create the DialogTable, a dynamic and social learning tool that brings museum guests into close interaction with UMMA’s collection.

Description:
The DialogTable is an elliptical glass table, placed in a central crossroads location in the University of Michigan Museum of Art. Its interactive surface, operated entirely by gestures caught by a camera over the table, gives visitors the opportunity to watch videos about works of art, discover connections between objects, and create a collection pool of favorite items to continue exploring at home.

Related resources:

• DialogTable
• MUSE Award “Interactive Kiosk” Category (2010)

Video about the DialogTable:

The video above was produced by and is posted with the permission of the University of Michigan Museum of Art.

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Tim Rolfe joins Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning Worldwide Animal Viewers, which won a Gold for best “Interpretive Interactive Installations”, a category that recognizes interactive and educational entries that are made up of multiple kiosks or that compose a full gallery installation. Rolfe is the Head of MV Studios at Museum Victoria.

Project Background:
Wild: amazing animals in a changing world is a new biodiversity exhibition of over 770 mammal and bird mounts from all over the globe that opened in November 2009 at Melbourne Museum in Victoria, Australia. It was designed to reach a broad general audience, so it was essential to develop an interactive interpretive device that could be used by young and old; short and tall; the techno-enthusiast and the techno-challenged. Adapted from a concept by Professor Jeffrey Shaw, Museum Victoria worked with Megafun Pty Ltd to create the PANORAMIC NAVIGATORS (generic name)—in this context dubbed the “Worldwide Animal Viewers”—a sophisticated but simple and fun to use system for accessing additional information on each and every one of the mounted specimens in the exhibition.

Description: the Panoramic Navigators are a pole-mounted, tilting and rotating touchscreen greeting visitors with a seemingly live image of the scene before them. Touching on an animal brings up factual information and conservation status. A high quality photograph or video of the animal in its natural habitat can be viewed and a 360° movie of the object can be rotated by the visitor and even downloaded to a BlueTooth compatible cell phone.

Related resources:

• Virtual Exhibition
• Wild: amazing animals in a changing world
• MUSE Award “Interpretive Interactive Installation” Category (2010)

Video about the Worldwide Animal Viewers:

The video above was produced by and is posted with the permission of the Melbourne Museum in Victoria, Australia.

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The 2010 International Museums & Mobile Survey is an international research project that explores the international museum community’s use and ambitions with mobile technology tools.

Dana Allen-Greil of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History joins Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning O Say Can You Sing? National Anthem Singing Contest. Allen-Greil is New Media Project Manager at the National Museum of American History.

Project Background:
On September 14, 1814, U.S. soldiers at Baltimore’s Fort McHenry raised a huge American flag to celebrate a crucial victory over British forces during the War of 1812. The sight of those “broad stripes and bright stars” inspired Francis Scott Key to write a song that eventually became the United States national anthem. Key’s words gave new significance to a national symbol and started a tradition through which generations of Americans have invested the flag with their own meanings and memories. The National Museum of American History thought that a singing contest would be a fun way to dispel the notion that history is boring and engage people with the story of their flag and national anthem. Inviting the public to participate on YouTube fits well with the idea that the Star-Spangled Banner—and the flag that inspired it—belongs to everyone. Over 800 eligible entries were submitted and thousands of people rated and commented on their favorite singers. Jordan Shelton of Arvada, Colo., was selected as the grand-prize winner and was invited to perform the national anthem at the museum and at the Baltimore Orioles versus Atlanta Braves game in Baltimore on Flag Day, June 14, 2009.

Related resources:

• National Anthem Singing Contest site
• The Star-Spangled Banner site
• Smithsonian National Museum of American History
• MUSE Award “Community” Category (2010)
• AASLH History News Community Online Discussion on “Radical Trust”

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Robert Semper of the Exploratorium joins Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning Total Solar Eclipse: Live From China. Semper is Executive Associate Producer of the Exploratorium.

On August 1, 2008, the moon slid between the earth and the sun, creating a spectacular solar eclipse. Working in partnership with NASA’s Sun-Earth Connection Education Forum, the Exploratorium sent a team to remote northwestern China to capture this awe-inspiring event in a live Webcast. We offered several ways to see the eclipse: at an all-night sleepover at the museum, on our Web site, or in our “auditorium” in the virtual world of Second Life. The response was overwhelming. More than 700 people camped out at the Exploratorium and enjoyed music, dance, roving astronomers, and more along with the Webcast–plus about 100 museums used our feed to host their own eclipse events. Live telescope feed of the eclipse was also carried by NASA TV and shared with NASA Learning Centers. In the days before and after the eclipse, 640,000 people from 190 countries, representing 136 different languages, viewed our eclipse Web site. More than 96,000 people watched the Webcast live; nearly an equal number of people viewed it the next day. And in Second Life, about 136 “people” (avatars) from England, Italy, Thailand, the United States, Canada, and other countries watched the eclipse together live.

Related resources:

• 2008 Total Solar Eclipse site
• Exploratorium Solar Eclipse Site
• The Exploratorium
• MUSE Award “Community” Category (2009)

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Eliza Benington Kozlowski of the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film joins Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning podcasting project, General Collection Podcasts for George Eastman House. Kozlowski is Director of Communications and Visitor Engagement at the George Eastman House.

The podcast series features an ongoing campaign of general interest podcasts to highlight the various collections at George Eastman House. The directive from the Director and the Director of Communications was to: “Take the message of George Eastman House beyond the gates at 900 East Avenue.”

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Chris Alexander and Lucy Larson of the San Jose Museum of Art join Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning public relations project, Road Trip: The Giant Artichoke. Alexander is Manager of Interactive technology and Larson is Director of Education at the San Jose Museum of Art.

The Giant Artichoke video features a wild shoe-wearing traveler on a road trip to Castroville, CA who visits a quirky landmark and sends a postcard to SJMA. Created for the exhibition Road Trip and capitalizing on the common experience of a summer road trip, the goals of this hybrid marketing and interpretation project were threefold: to create buzz around the exhibition, sow the seeds for a participatory experience both outside and inside the Museum, and build connections between the Museum’s online audience and onsite visitors.

Articles promoting the exhibition and video were featured on websites such as Road Trip America, uploaded to the museum’s server, SJMA’s YouTube Channel, and iTunes. Utilizing these online portals for audience development, the video reached new audiences previously unfamiliar with SJMA. The video was selected by You Tube as one of their featured videos, which in turn resulted in over 82,000 views and hundreds of postcards arriving from around the world—ranging from the SPAM Museum to the Eiffel Tower. During the exhibition, the video was shown in the gallery alongside the received postcards. An art-making station where visitors could make a postcard, which was stamped and mailed, furthered the viral reach outside the Museum.

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Emily Blumenthal and Michelle Hagewood of the Walters Art Museum join Jonathan Finkelstein of LearningTimes for a discussion of the MUSE award-winning game, Waltee’s Quest: The Case of the Lost Art. Blumenthal is Manager of Family Programs and Project Manager and Hagewood is Senior Coordinator of Family Programs at the Walters.

Waltee’s Quest: The Case of the Lost Art is an online interactive adventure for kids ages 5-12 and their families. This free web game is part of the Walters Art Museums’ technology initiative and aims to engage new audiences and foster recreational, object-based learning.

On a magical journey through imaginative worlds, users help Waltee, the museum’s family mascot, search for missing art — revealing games, stories, and surprises along the way. Project goals include: supporting self-constructed, experiential learning; extending the time a user spends engaging with a work of art; fostering inter-generational learning; and supporting the Walters’ mission of bringing art and people together for enjoyment, discovery, and learning.

Users may play Waltee’s Quest at home or at the museum, where they may also engage in a scavenger hunt through the galleries searching for treasures. Upon game completion, users are awarded certificates to display on Waltee’s Wall of Heroes.

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Have you ever wanted to meet one of the Smithsonian’s curators? Or wished you could ask a question of one of our researchers? In February 2009 the Smithsonian launched a series of online education conferences that let you do just that. In each online conference you can interact with Smithsonian experts in subject areas that interest you. All conferences have a single theme or topic explored through the lens of several different disciplines. The program includes both general interest sessions and sessions intended especially for teachers.

The Smithsonian is addressing the global challenge of climate change with special exhibitions and ongoing research. You can participate in these investigations and deepen your understanding through the Smithsonian Online Education Conference: Climate Change. Throughout the days of September 29 through October 1, 2009, participants explored Smithsonian research and collections related to the evidence, impact, and response to climate change. Alongside Smithsonian scientists and curators, they looked at the issues surrounding climate change from the perspectives of science, history, and art. If you were unable to join us for these live events, you can still access them by exploring the session recordings, topic discussions, and additional resources available on the conference website.

http://www.smithsonianconference.org/climate/

Join experts from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum for the Apollo Space Program Virtual Conference, a FREE one-day online conference. Forty years ago the Apollo Space Program met President Kennedy’s goal of landing a man on the moon, one of the most significant achievements of the 20th Century. Join experts as they present the challenges of the Apollo Program and examine the remarkable technologies that made the moon landings possible.

This conference is generously funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.