Where the Titanic meets the dinosaurs
Egyptian mummies, dinosaurs, the Mars Rover and the Titanic are just some of the things you’ll find at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.
The museum is located at 2001 Colorado Blvd. in Denver, right next to the zoo. It creates an interactive world of learning cleverly disguised as entertainment. Visitors can walk through a Jurassic swamp, climb through the human body, control robots in space and see history brought to life.
“I like the exhibits where you can see the (stuffed) wildlife from different parts of the world,” said Ally Demos, a senior broadcast news major.
The museum is a popular spot for elementary school field trips, but the experience is one many people are eager to repeat even as they get older. If you are planning a field trip or a family vacation to a museum or another city, you may consider booking a bus charter for a more convenient mode of transportation.
Demos visited the museum on a sixth-grade overnight trip. Jack Ringel, a senior philosophy and sociology major, went to the museum for the first time as a child and returned for a visit in the summer of 2006.
“I think the Hall of Life is pretty cool,” Ringel said. “Body World was way incredible. I loved that.”
The museum’s current marquee, the Titanic Artifact Exhibition, features items retrieved from the ocean bottom. The exhibit also has things left behind in England and photos and stories of victims and survivors of the sinking of the Titanic.
Actors portraying various characters from the ship interact with visitors. Before entering, each person is given a “ticket” with the name and story of an actual ship passenger. At the end, they can look at lists to see if their person lived or died.
“I just went to the Titanic exhibit,” Demos said. “It was really, really well done.”
The Titanic exhibition will be in Denver until January 6, 2008.
Exhibitions in the past have included “Body Worlds 2,” the preserved human works of Dr. Gunther von Hagens. Body Worlds 2 achieved brief infamy as the museum’s air conditioning system broke down during a heat wave during the final, crowded days of the exhibition.
Phipps IMAX Theater, located inside the museum, is currently showing “Ghosts of the Abyss.” The film is about an exploratory mission to the Titanic wreckage in conjunction with the exhibition. The IMAX theater is also showing “Living Sea,” an oceanographic film about reefs and the effects of global warming on the oceans.
“IMAX is sick,” said Steve Jones, a senior engineering major.
The museum also offers the Gates Planetarium. The current planetarium show is “Black Holes: The Other Side of Infinity” and “A Cosmic Journey.”
For students with identification entry to the museum is $10, with an additional $5 for entry to IMAX or planetarium shows. The Titanic exhibition tickets cost an additional $10. The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays the Titanic exhibition and IMAX theater will remain open until 8 p.m..
For daily show times and details visit to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science Web site
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Arwyn Rice at arwyn.rice@thecampuspress.com
