Ok, so we took a lot of pictures at MSI, but I could only fit so many into last week’s post without it being ridiculous. So now that I’ve got the excited rambling out of the way, here are some more photos!
Though the first one is actually a video of the Tesla coil activating; fair warning, it’s accompanied by a loud and obnoxious noise.
Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry is both expansive and entertaining, full of different wonders to learn about and explore.
On our most recent trip, we started with the upper level balcony area, learning about the science of storms through a variety of interactive displays. Some were physical, like the tornado tube and the controlled flame in the wildfire section, which you could, adjust the fuel and mist content for to see how it altered the live thermal readings. Others were purely hypothetical, such as a simulation about how scientists study lightning by launching rockets to draw it to them.
The next section, Chemistry, had its own fascinating facts, and what may have been my favorite of the permanent displays — a large table with the periodic table projected on it, and pucks with which we could select elements, and then combine them off to the side, unlocking intriguing facts about each new compound. I also particularly enjoyed the firework simulator, which shows you how different chemical compounds burn different colors, and then lets you choose a few (and patterns for them) to light up the virtual sky! Meanwhile, the coolest part of Taking Flight (presented in partnership with Boeing and United Airlines) was either the actual retired plane you could tour… or the lesson on the various signals ground crews use to help the plane park safely. I feel like there should be an obvious answer here….
There are a plethora of other amazing exhibits, like Genetics (they have baby chicks!) and Colleen Moore’s Fairy Castle, which is the single most intricate dollhouse I’ve ever seen, full of fun tiny Easter eggs like Cinderella’s slippers and the golden harp, and of course the many areas we didn’t even get to this trip, but none of that is actually why we were at MSI this fall. No, our trip was prompted by something a little more… Marvel-ous.
That’s right! Through October 24th, 2021, the Museum of Science and Industry has partnered with Marvel to bring forth a superhero-themed exhibit, showcasing the evolution of the super hero genre and its many iconic characters! Do I sound like I’m advertising this? Yes, I suppose I do. But y’know what? This was awesome. The way they had everything laid out combined history, some statuary photo ops, framed comic book panels (many of which were the original art), and a variety of the very same costumes worn in the movies, which had me geeking out at every turn. And this is coming from someone who hasn’t read the comics! (And now kinda wants to!) It was just… wow.
All in all, MSI is one huge hub of geeky, nerdy glory, with so much variety it’s 99% guaranteed to have something for everyone, and if you’re in the area I highly encourage you to check out Universe of Super Heroes while it’s available.
Hey look at that, I actually got photos of all four cats this time!
Diane seems less enamored with the paparazzi than Zuko and June are. (This is the best picture I could get.)
And Arwen… Arwen just doesn’t care.
Well, I hope we are. Though there is a certain amount of “hey, stop stealing my stuff!” Why? Well, Chums is a SimplyFun take on Go Fish!
I’ll admit I haven’t really played Go Fish recently to compare the two, but Chums works like this: you start with five cards (seven for 2 players), and on your turn you pick a card you already have, let’s say number 8, and ask one of the other players, “[Person], do you have any 8s?” If they do, they have to give you all their 8s, and you get to ask again. Once someone says no, you have to draw the top card of the deck. If that card is the most recent card you asked for, you show it to the table and get to ask again anyways; if it’s not, your turn is over, and play moves to the next person. Once you collect all four of a set, you place it face up on the table in front of you — when someone no longer has any cards in hand, or when the deck runs out, the game ends immediately and whoever has the most face-up sets wins.
Where Crazy Ates is mostly the luck of the draw, Chums has that strategic element, trying to remember which other players have what; there’s been many a time where one of us has asked another for something they didn’t have, only for the next player to turn around and ask for that card.
As a bonus, every number (1-12) has its own colorful species of fish! I used to make a point of collecting 4s and 10s, because I liked the lionfish and pufferfish illustrations best.
