Museum Techmuse

Twitter Experiment, Pt 2.

Some time ago I posted thoughts about potential use of Twitter in cultural exhibits (and had some good conversations with Shelley Mannion about her very interesting work with the Tibetan teens in Switzerland). The ability to quickly compare experiences among cultural groups seemed promising.

I've continued to play with Twitter, and had an interesting experience this morning when I was in Harvard Square. I posted an entry about looking at sunlight on the bricks in Harvard Square. Within an hour, I received a notice that my postings were compiled ("followed") by another user, "Harvard Square Now!". And this seemed to be a compilation of all the postings containing "Harvard Square" in the text.

That kind of automatic compilation is pretty amazing. A shared experience in a public space. I'm thinking of implications for other major cultural venues, like Ellis Island, or the Holocaust Museum, where it's likely people will be posting about their experiences regularly...

Falling for Science: Sherry Turkle's new book

Attended a lunch meeting at the MIT Media Lab last week in which Sherry Turkle talked about the new book she's edited: "Falling for Science: Objects in Mind." One of the basic premises of the book is that kids' love for science often grows out of a special relationship with a particular object such as sandcastles, crystal radios, mud, and even My Little  Pony (whose braided tail played a special role in the formation of mathematical thought for one student.)

One of the key steps in the process is to guide children toward objects they love -- and she places a good deal of attention on the role of affect and love (thus the title "Falling for Science"...)

This reminds me of the close connection to pioneering exhibit developer Bernie Zubrowski's early work at Boston's Children's Museum focusing on everyday materials such as soap bubbles in exhibits. Bernie emphasizes materials that kids can easily get their hands on at home.

Where is this all leading us in museums? It's a reminder that one of the best things we can do is point visitors toward extended exploration with materials at home, using technology to provide the right message at the right time to facilitate this...