Tag Archives: Robot Zoo

Did someone say FREE? Grand Rapids Public Museum is on July 10

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The grasshopper from "The Robot Zoo" at the Grand Rapids Public Museum.
The grasshopper from “The Robot Zoo” at the Grand Rapids Public Museum.

The Grand Rapids Public Museum (GRPM) will open its doors free of charge on Sunday, July 10 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors will receive free general admission on this day, to explore the Museum’s three floors of core exhibits at no cost – including “Earth Explorers,” a traveling exhibit presented by National Geographic.

The GRPM offers fun, hands-on learning opportunities for all ages through a variety of core and traveling exhibits. Visitor favorites include the Streets of Old Grand Rapids, an immersive exhibit that transports visitors back to nineteenth century of downtown Grand Rapids, and West Michigan Habitats that showcases the vast wildlife found in West Michigan.

“We are excited to be able to offer the Museum to the community free of charge, allowing more community members to experience and learn from our exhibits and artifacts,” said Dale Robertson, President & CEO of the GRPM. “The GRPM has been a cornerstone of education in the community for more than 160 years, and we are continuously working to make our Collections more accessible to the public.”

Additional costs for admission to “The Robot Zoo,” planetarium shows and the Museum’s 1928 Spillman Carousel still apply. Museum members receive free admission to all current offerings at the Museum.

The free day will be held during the Museum’s normal hours, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, July 10. For more information on the event, visit grpm.org.

The Museum is able to open free to the public on this day through sponsorship from Downtown Grand Rapids, Inc.

The animals invade Chaffee Planetarium in new show

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Returning with new xxx is "Dark Side of the Moon: the Light Show, featuring the music of Pink Floyd.
Returning with new production is “Dark Side: The Light Show,” featuring the music of Pink Floyd.

Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

joanne@wktv.org

 

One new, original planetarium show along with a returning favorite were recently added to the Grand Rapids Public Museum’s Chaffee Planetarium scheduled.

 

Starlight Safari, a state-of-the-art globetrotting planetarium adventure, is an interactive trip across the continents to see and learn about various animal constellations.

 

Visitors join a live presenter in the Chaffee Planetarium to begin their adventures. This 40-minute show includes interactive questions that test the audience’s knowledge of animal and mythical constellations, as well as teaching about lesser known animals in the sky. Beginning near Grand Rapids, attendees will learn about what is in our night sky. From there, venture to remote areas in Africa, Australia, South America and Asia to see Pisces, Leo, Draco the Dragon and many more.

 

The program, which will run through Sept. 18, is a fun, entertaining, and educational experience suited all ages, especially families with children. Tickets are $4 each with general admission to the Museum, $5 each for planetarium only tickets and free to Museum members. For more information and show times, visit grpm.org/Planetarium.

 

Starlight Safari is an original production by the Chaffee Planetarium inspired by the Museum’s 2016 traveling exhibitions, The Robot Zoo and National Geographic’s Earth Explorers, which is set to open in May.

 

The popular Dark Side: The Light Show, featuring music from Pink Floyd’s album “The Dark Side of the Moon,” also returns tot he planetarium.

 

Visitors will experience this iconic album “The Dark Side of the Moon” as never before, featuring stunning 4k visuals, brilliant LED sequences and incredibly clear 5.1 surround sound. Dark Side: The Light Show was the GRPM’s first original production since the planetarium underwent major renovations in 2013/2014.

 

This most recent production of this show was developed by members of the original crew that worked on previous laser light shows at the GRPM in the 1990s and 2000s. Members of the volunteer planetarium production team include: Jacob Bourjaily, Matt Bourjaily, Ethan Brown, Dave Staskiewicz, Chad Kremer, Dave DeBruyn, John Foerch and Daniel Tell.

 

Each song from this album is played in this show with its own unique thematic visuals. Following the course of the album, the visuals increase in complexity each song, taking the audience on an unforgettable rock and roll journey.

 

Dark Side: The Light Show will play Tuesdays at 8 p.m., Fridays at 9 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 4 p.m through June 19. Tickets are $4 each with general admission to the Museum, $5 each for planetarium only tickets and free to Museum members. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit grpm.org.

 

Dark Side: The Light Show contains adult language and dizzying visual effects. It is not recommended for individuals prone to motion sickness, seizures or light sensitivity.

 

Robot animals make a ‘zoo’ out of the Grand Rapids Public Museum

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By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

joanne@wktv.org

 

Ever wonder why a giraffe does not pass out when it lifts its head up and down? Curious how a giant squid breathes?

 

These and other animal questions are explored in the Grand Rapids Public Museum’s newest exhibit “The Robot Zoo,” opening this weekend.

 

“There has been a lot of comments and interest on social media about the show,” said Kate Moore, the museum’s vice president of marketing and public relations, who added that the 1,700 tickets for the grand opening event on Saturday, March 19, are sold out.

 

“Part of the appeal comes from the fact that it is a little more hands on then our last exhibit [‘The Discovery of King Tut’] and it is a shift from the historic subject matter to more a science focus.”

 

Moore added that the staff purposely works to vary the different exhibitions at the Museum so as to attract different audiences. While the Museum’s last exhibits, “Tut” and “American Spirits: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition,” were for more of an older crowd, “The Robot Zoo” is geared more toward kindergarten through eighth grade. The Museum has developed a pre-kindergarten curriculum to go with the exhibit as well.

 

“The Robot Zoo,” which is based on a book of the same name that is now out-of-print, exhibits machinery in the robot animals that simulate the body parts of the machine’s real-life counterparts. Muscles become pistons, intestines become filtering pipes and the brain becomes a computer. For example, in the giraffe, a cooper pipe outlines the main vein in the giraffe’s neck with several gages showing where the vents are located. These vents are what help control the giraffe’s blood flow so the animal does not pass out from too much or too little blood flowing to its head.

 

Because of the design of this exhibit, it has an appeal to those interested in biology as well as those interested in technology and engineering, Moore said.

 

Eight robot animals and more than a dozen hands-on activities illustrate real-life characteristics, such as how a chameleon changes colors, a giant squid propels itself and a fly walks on the ceiling.

 

Popular among the staff is the chameleon, which rocks back and forth as it turns its head, looks around and fires its tongue at its insect pray. “It also has three interactive elements,” Moore said. Those include being able to see what happens when the chameleon is angry, scared, and looking to attract a mate.

 

Other larger-than-life-size animated robots, besides the chameleon and the giraffe, are a rhinoceros, a giant squid with 18-foot tentacles, and a platypus. Joining the animals are a house fly with a 10-foot wingspread, a grasshopper and the monster-of-the-night bug eater, the bat.

 

Admission to the exhibit is free for Museum members and for non-members, $11 for adults, $10 for seniors, and $6 for children with the price including general admission to the entire Museum. Staff does recommend purchasing tickets early since lines can get long on Saturdays and during Spring Break. A membership is $65 for a family and includes parking and planetarium shows, which staff said a new planetarium show for “The Robot Zoo” will be opening soon.

 

Several activities are planned around the exhibit including special Spring Break programs and a summer camp dedicated to robotics. Also, in May, the museum will be opening the National Geographic exhibit “Earth Explorers,” which Moore said has a connection to the “The Robot Zoo” since it looks at animals living in various environments around the globe.

 

“The Robot Zoo” will be open through Sept. 18. The Grand Rapids Public Museum is located at 272 Pearl St. NW. For more on programs and upcoming exhibits, click here.