Think Ahead is Scienceworks newest permanent exhibition and it focuses on children, find technology and their ideas of what the future holds for them.
Think Ahead covers big themes – communication; medicine and health; music and sound; food; natural systems; transport; space; cities; daily life; and money – and explores them in small bite-sized pieces. The layout is somewhat confusing but so it’s best not to follow a linear course but to pounce from pod to pod to investigate what takes your fancy and not to get too caught up with reading every skerrick of information. I suspect that most kids will get the most of all the button-pushing opportunities and hopefully they’ll absorb some of the detail along the way.
One of the most fun exhibits for young and old was the computer screens where you could redesign your body using cybernetics then test out your new cyber-body on a physical skills test. You can even email a copy of your new body doing its funky moves! Move along and you can even design your own car or sneakers and have it emailed to you.
No exhibit about the future would be complete without robots and Nao, from France, was the most impressive. He’s an advanced humanoid that walks, talks, remembers faces (somewhat inaccurately from our experience) and can even do tai chi!
Lady AB was most enthralled by the ice cores and had to be dragged away crying for them. You never know what will capture a child’s imagination!
Think Ahead exhibition is free with general admission to Scienceworks. While you’re at Think Ahead also visit the newest temporary exhibition Rescue and temporary exhibition Mathamazing (closes 14 July).
