New museum exhibit goes inside the brain
January 21, 2015
A new traveling exhibit at Museum of Discovery and Science promises to get you thinking.
“BRAIN: The World Inside Your Head” will run from Jan. 23 through May 3 at the Fort Lauderdale museum, 401 SW Second St.
The 5,000-square-foot exhibit shows the intricacies of the organ through hands-on games, displays and activities, including a set with a giant tunnel of flashing fiber optics simulating neurons inside the brain.
“The idea is to point out that the brain is made up of these millions of neurons,” said museum president Kim Cavendish. “The rest of the exhibit really explores a lot of the different aspects of the brain, its physiology, what it does, and what can go wrong with it.”
Displays also focus on brain disorders and conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and addiction, and examine how drugs work on the brain. Another area highlights future brain treatments related to genome mapping and molecular medicine.
A module presents the connection between depression and creativity and how artist Vincent van Gogh, known to suffer from depression, was able to produce unique paintings.
“That depression led to some of his creative spark,” Cavendish said.
The exhibit, which is being presented locally by the Leo Goodwin Foundation, also includes the recreated skull of Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman who survived after his brain was impaled by a metal rod.
Cost: $14 for adults, $13 for seniors, $12 for ages 2-12, and free for those younger than 2. Info: 954-467-6637, mods.org
