BacPack for New Frontiers: A Tangible Tabletop Museum Exhibit Exploring Synthetic Biology

Abstract

We present BacPack for New Frontiers, an interactive museum exhibit that introduces core synthetic biology concepts to visitors through tangible, multi-touch, and physical interaction. The exhibit engages users in the design and engineering of bacteria, which are helpful in extreme environments like Mars. This project aims to allow museum visitors to play and tinker with biology through tangible and multi-touch interactions that bridge size and time scales. Here we present the design, implementation, and preliminary evaluation of this exhibit.