{"title":"Race, Genetics, Medicine and the Museum","authors":"Monique Scott","doi":"10.1080/15596893.2015.1131095","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15596893.2015.1131095","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The natural history museum has long been invested in educating the public about what it means to be human, including human identity, human ancestry and human diversity. With the recent scientific advances in human genomic research and the public fervor for individual genetic ancestry testing, the museum is now challenged both to keep pace with current scientific research and wrestle with popular scientific thinking that circulates outside the museum. This article considers several strategies that the American Museum of Natural History Museum has used to intervene in public perceptions of “race”, genetics and human health through critical interactive dialogue—the museum as a space for audiences of various ages to investigate and interrogate the science and politics of human identity that accompany this new genetic frontier.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/15596893.2015.1131095","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"60438241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Biology Exhibits and the Museum of the Future","authors":"Charles F. Carlson","doi":"10.1080/15596893.2016.1131097","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131097","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Typically museum displays on biology and the biomedical sciences have involved a focus on the specimens themselves, or the equipment and instruments used in various procedures. However, this is but a shadow of the great unfolding story of our time. A biology museum of the future might encompass these specimens and come to focus on the underlying commonalities and shared features that powerfully shape and control the nature of life as we know it. In this article, I reflect on my experiences and suggest a few examples that might foster community interest and engagement.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131097","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"60438525","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Evolution Health Connection-Integrating the Visitor Perspective: Significance for Evolution Education","authors":"M. Weiß, E. Evans, S. Palmquist","doi":"10.1080/15596893.2016.1131102","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131102","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The New York Hall of Science developed an exhibition, The Evolution Health Connection, in order to help visitors understand the role of evolution in their everyday life, particularly in their health. The exhibition focuses on familiar health topics—obesity, skin color, lactose intolerance and health implications related to upright posture—and invites visitors to consider the relationship between natural selection and these health issues. In order to test the validity of the assumption that an evolution exhibition related to personal health could be effective, randomly selected visitors were assigned either to visit the evolution exhibition or an exhibition on astrobiology. Responses to post-visit interviews revealed that adult and youth visitors to the evolution exhibition had a better grasp of the role of natural selection in the prevalence of health issues than did visitors to the astrobiology exhibition.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131102","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"60438675","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Judy Diamond, Julia McQuillan, Amy N Spiegel, Patricia Wonch Hill, Rebecca Smith, John West, Charles Wood
{"title":"Viruses, Vaccines and the Public.","authors":"Judy Diamond, Julia McQuillan, Amy N Spiegel, Patricia Wonch Hill, Rebecca Smith, John West, Charles Wood","doi":"10.1080/15596893.2016.1131099","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131099","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Current research in virology is changing public conceptions about vaccines and infectious disease. The University of Nebraska State Museum collaborated with research virologists, science writers, artists and learning researchers to create public outreach materials about viruses and infectious disease. The project, funded by the National Institute of Health's SEPA program, developed comics, a book with Carl Zimmer, and other materials and programs. The project launched three kinds of learning research: 1) a survey of Nebraska adults on their opinions about vaccines and infectious disease; 2) a study comparing the mental models of viruses, vaccines and infection from virologists, teachers, and students; and 3) a controlled study 873 high school students randomly assigned to read either a comic or a text-based essay with the same virus information.</p>","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/15596893.2016.1131099","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"34308704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The #museumsrespondtoFerguson Initiative, a Necessary Conversation","authors":"Gretchen M. Jennings","doi":"10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000036","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The killing of unarmed African American teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer in Ferguson, MO in August 2014 has stimulated an ongoing national dialogue about race and racism in the United States. Museums have been involved in this discussion, primarily on social media. This article documents the origins, the evolution, and the impact of the #museumsrespondtoFerguson initiative that began in December 2014 and that continues a year later. It discusses the role that museums can and should play in the Ferguson initiative, and addresses questions about the relationship of museums’ individual missions to larger civic issues. The word “Ferguson” in museum discourse has come to refer not so much to the town and event as to larger concerns about race, racism, and the continuing lack of inclusion in our cultural spaces.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000036","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65843168","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Joint Statement from Museum Bloggers and Colleagues on Ferguson and Related Events December 11, 2014","authors":"","doi":"10.1179/1559689315z.00000000041","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1179/1559689315z.00000000041","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1179/1559689315z.00000000041","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65843304","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Guide to Discussions Surrounding Ferguson","authors":"Alyssa Boge, Katherine Rieck","doi":"10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000038","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000038","url":null,"abstract":"Recent media attention on the police violence against African Americans and the protests in Ferguson, MO and Baltimore, MD have spurred museum professionals to talk more openly about the role of politics, racism, social justice, and inclusion in museums. Many of these discussions have occurred on Twitter, blog posts, and conference presentations — in the field’s “grey literature,” so known because it is found outside the academy and frequently ephemeral. Through these outlets writers have called for museums to become more inclusive, transparent, and responsive. The following guide provides a broad overview of the recent discussion of social injustice in museums written by museum professionals, public historians, and anthropologists.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000038","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65843247","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Susan B. Harden, P. McDaniel, Heather A. Smith, Emily Zimmern, Katie E. Brown
{"title":"Speaking of Change in Charlotte, North Carolina: How Museums Can Shape Immigrant Receptivity in a Community Navigating Rapid Cultural Change","authors":"Susan B. Harden, P. McDaniel, Heather A. Smith, Emily Zimmern, Katie E. Brown","doi":"10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000039","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000039","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract To what degree can a museum impact cultural change in a community? Drawing from an evaluation of Levine Museum of the New South's Speaking of Change program, this article – which is the outcome of a community engaged partnership between museum staff, urban social geographers, and urban education scholars – describes one museum's community practice in shaping receptivity toward newcomers in a new immigrant gateway. Specifically, we demonstrate how through its exhibit and dialogue programming, the museum deepened understanding of immigration in ways that led to a warmer welcome and proactive inclusion. This research illuminates the critical role of museums in guiding community receptivity towards immigrants in a way that provides counterbalance to reactive or hostile responses.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000039","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65843258","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sara E. Langworthy, Amanda S. Hodel, Lauren N. Robertson, Brittany Henn, Emily O. Prager, K. Cadigan, Sara J. Benning
{"title":"Informal Science Learning Experience for State Legislators: Influence of a Science Museum Exhibition on Legislator Knowledge of Early Childhood Issues","authors":"Sara E. Langworthy, Amanda S. Hodel, Lauren N. Robertson, Brittany Henn, Emily O. Prager, K. Cadigan, Sara J. Benning","doi":"10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000040","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000040","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Despite the growth of scientific understanding of early childhood development over the past few decades, there remains a sizable gap between what scientists know about early childhood and policymakers’ use of scientific information in creating and implementing policy. Informal science institutions like museums provide opportunities to reach lay audiences. This study sought to examine the degree to which a science museum exhibition about the science of early childhood was a useful source of research information for state legislators, and whether that information informed legislators’ policy decision-making. Results highlight challenges in engaging state legislators in learning from informal science settings, but suggest increased consideration is warranted for science museums’ to use exhibitions as a way to translate and distill scientific concepts for state legislators. Though the exhibition did not have direct impact on policy decision-making, some legislators indicated it added to their cumulative knowledge on research topics pertinent to early childhood policies.","PeriodicalId":29738,"journal":{"name":"Museums & Social Issues-A Journal of Reflective Discourse","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1179/1559689315Z.00000000040","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65843296","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}