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You can Have a CSI experience

“CSI:” EXPERIENCE, a new science exhibit and online learning adventure tied to the hit TV series, now under development

EDITED by Madelyn Miller, the travellady

Fort Worth Museum of Science and History partnering with CBS,  won $2.4 million from National Science Foundation to create forensic science exhibit for national tour

Imagine entering a crime scene and being the one responsible for noticing and collecting every trace of evidence. The pressure’s on: you know the analysis of your evidence must be scientifically sound to crack the case.

You’ve seen the hit television crime drama, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on CBS. Now, there’s a forensic science exhibit related to the TV show, as well as a web-based learning adventure.  The groundbreaking exhibit aims to give visitors something close to the experience outlined above – and some profound science learning, as well.  The “CSI:” Experience opens May 25, 2007 at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago then embarks on a national tour of science museums in September.

The exhibit and web adventure are being developed through an unusual partnership: the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History leading the Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative; CBS Consumer Products; and the National Science Foundation, which provided $2.4 million in funding for both the exhibit and a CSI “Web Adventure” targeted to underserved youth. It has the American Academy of Forensic Sciences’ seal of approval and deep involvement.  Rice University’s Center for Technology in Teaching and Learning is creating the online experience, and Bob Weis Design Island Associates is leading the exhibit’s design.

“With the launch of this exciting new exhibit, we’re extending the CSI: brand beyond entertainment and licensed merchandise into an engaging learning experience,” commented Ken Ross Executive Vice President and General Manager for CBS Consumer Products.  “It was essential that the integrity of the show was upheld in this endeavor and we feel that partnering with Fort Worth Museum of Science, Bob Weis Design Island and Rice University provided the perfect DNA match to make this an educational, authentic and fun experience for visitors of all ages.”

The “CSI:” Experience is a completely immersive exhibit that invites visitors to enter “crime” scenes where they identify and record evidence. It takes them inside “laboratories” for scientific testing and to “autopsy” rooms for pathology analysis. Then it returns them to the “office” to build their case, based on the scientific evidence. The exhibit brings to life real scientific principles and the most advanced scientific techniques used today by crime scene investigators and forensic scientists.

From DNA and firearms analysis to forensic anthropology and toxicology, visitors will be immersed in hands-on science in an exciting multi-media environment with dazzling special effects direct from the CSI TV series. Cast members from the TV show welcome guests into the exhibit from a large video monitor, lead them through the experience, and praise them for a job well done at the end. The exhibit is geared toward adults and youth 12 and above.

This is not the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History’s first venture in the world of forensic science. The Museum also developed the exhibit, “Whodunit? The Science of Solving Crime,” 13 years ago for the Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative (SMEC) and it has toured 32 science centers since.  Advances in DNA science and information technology have dramatically changed the field of forensic science, so the Museum thought it was time for a new exhibit on the topic, said Charlie Walter, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History’s chief operating officer. “We’re excited about our partnership with CBS and the CSI TV show, which will help us reach and engage a much larger audience in this field of science,” he said.

“This project is a great example of how the two worlds of entertainment and museums can come together to the benefit of the public,” added Van A. Romans, president of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History.  “When you consider CSI’s popularity, coupled with our Museum’s ability to produce extraordinary learning exhibits and the work of some very important partners, we know this is going to be a powerful exhibit experience,” he said.

Primary Partners for The “CSI:” Experience:

• The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History serves as a vital component of the educational infrastructure of Texas and an important family leisure destination for North Texas due to its creative, vibrant programs and exhibits. Established in 1941, the Museum today hosts roughly 800,000 visitors a year, including more than 150,000 school children. Because the Museum is constructing a new building beginning in the fall of 2007, it will host the CSI exhibit in Fort Worth in the summer of 2008 off-site. Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the Fort Worth Museum is a founding member of the Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative (see below), for which it is developing The “CSI:” Experience.
   

• CBS Consumer Products manages the worldwide licensing, merchandising and video activities for a diverse slate of properties owned or controlled by the CBS Corporation.  Additional information is available by visiting www.CBS.com.  CSI Crime Scene Investigation is produced by CBS Productions and Alliance Atlantis Communications, in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television.
   

• The National Science Foundation (NSF), an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense…" With an annual budget of about $5.5 billion, NSF is the funding source for approximately 20 percent of all federally supported basic research conducted by America's colleges and universities. In many fields such as mathematics, computer science and the social sciences, NSF is the major source of federal backing.
   

• Based in Orlando, Florida, Bob Weis Design Island Associates is the exhibit’s lead designer. As senior vice president of Walt Disney Imagineering for 15 years, Weis led the design and development of Disney-MGM Studios in Florida and was instrument in the development of Disney-MGM Studios Paris. His firm has developed exhibits for numerous institutions offering engaging public programs, including the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, National Geographic, Rockefeller Center, Kennedy Space Center, the Smithsonian, and The Walt Disney Company.
   

• Rice University’s Center for Technology in Teaching and Learning is developing the CSI online experience.  The Center engages in research, development and consulting on the innovative application of advanced technology to teaching and learning in a variety of settings. The CSI Web Adventure will allow people who cannot visit the exhibit to experience the science behind the investigations. It will also have crimes to solve for museum guests who want to do more with forensic science following their visit.
   

• The American Academy of Forensic Sciences, organized in 1948, is a professional society dedicated to the application of science to the law. With more than 5,600 members, the AAFS consists of ten sections representing physicians, attorneys, dentists, toxicologists, physical anthropologists, document examiners, psychiatrists, engineers, criminologists, educators, and others who practice, study and perform research in the forensic sciences. The AAFS Board voted unanimously to support the CSI exhibit with its technical advice and expertise.
   

• The Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative partners are: the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Museum of Science in Boston, COSI in Columbus, Ohio; OMSI in Portland, Oregon; Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul; and the California Science Center in Los Angeles. All partner museums will host the exhibit and are helping guide its development in the areas of education, exhibit design and marketing.
   

• Boys and Girls Clubs branches in cities that host the exhibit will support the development and use of the CSI Web Adventure.  Boys and Girls Clubs serve inner-city, disadvantaged youth and generally have computer labs with online capability.

Madelyn Miller is a travel and food writer who is also interested in film and cars. You can read her stories on www.travellady.com, www.carladynews.com, www.chocolateatlas.com, www.cocktailatlas.com, www.teaAtlas.com

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