The Museum was flooded last weekend with visitors who came to dive into our 2^nd annual Miami Underwater Festival. Friday night kicked off the event with showings of award-winning French and English underwater films from the 39^th Festival Mondial de L’image Sous-Marine, including The Surprise Salmon, narrated by Jeremy Irons. And the film festival continued on Saturday with an evening of marine conservation films sponsored by COSEE Florida and Beneath the Waves Film Festival. Throughout the weekend, lots of special guests came to shed light on fascinating underwater worlds, and the amazing creatures that call water home:

Dr. Ted Caplow of Fish Navy Films showed his film Fish Meat: Choose Your Farm Wisely, and talked about how to support sustainable fish farming (for example, eat the “bottom feeder” species)… Dr. Mike Heithaus of Florida International University talked about all the incredible research they are doing in Shark Bay, one of the world’s most unique ecosystems… Julian Sprung of Two Little Fishies discussed new trends and species in ornamental marine aquaculture (everyone loved seeing all the new blends in hybrid fish coloration)… Dr. Lisa Krimsky of NOAA’s National Sea Grant Office talked about lionfish, which are an invasive species in south Florida (this means they are not native to the region), and the problems they are causing for native species. This was followed by a yummy lionfish taco tasting prepared by Chef Alan McLennan… Expert divers Nick Morrell and Jason Bacon of the Miami-Dade Reef Guard Association shared tips on the best places to dive and the fantastic things you can see there… and Chris Olstad from the Marine Resources Development Foundation connected with the Museum via videoconference from Key Largo, and let visitors here at the Museum remotely operate an underwater vehicle in the ocean!

For those visitors who wanted to really get their hands wet, there were workshops to learn how to set up and maintain an aquarium (and a raffle to win your own new aquarium), activities to learn how things float, interactive story time with Oscar from the Miami-Dade Public Library, displays of fluorescent coral, viewings of WPBT2’s Changing Seas, and an exhibition of underwater photography by the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. If you really wanted to get up close, you could even dissect a squid (if you could stomach it). And of course, when you are showing award-winning French films, the weekend would not be complete without a delicious French breakfast by PAUL, sponsored by the General Consulate of France in Miami and partners.

We are just starting to dry off after our weekend underwater, but we are already looking forward to diving in again next year!

What you’ll see in our Sea Lab, or diving off south Florida

Visitors dissect squid in the Museum’s Sea Lab exhibition

Starfish can grow a whole new body from just a single limb!

Elizabeth and her family meet a seahorse for the first time

Zach meets a diver while remotely operating an underwater vehicle

Algae living in these coral fluoresce under ultraviolet light

The Miami Science Museum is one of only 10 museums nationwide that was selected to participate in the Smithsonian’s National Youth Summit on October 17th.  The focus of this summit was contemporary environmental issues and the legacy (as well as lessons learned) from the Dust Bowl period in the 1930s. During this time, the boom of wheat farming (sometimes called the “great plow-up”) brought on a 10 year drought, showing that human activities can cause large scale environmental effects. Students from around the country participated in the summit via video/web conferencing, and had the opportunity to view clips from Ken Burns’ recently released “The Dust Bowl” documentary. They discussed what they learned from the Dust Bowl and shared ideas on how they can be protectors of their environments.  The overarching theme of the event was to explore how to better understand the complexity of environmental issues and to learn what people can do today to avoid (or lessen) other environmental crises.

Each of the 10 selected museum sites also hosted a local town hall discussion with these themes in mind, but in the context of their own local environmental issues, especially as it relates to how humans can impact their environment and what the youth can do to help.  The Miami Science Museum’s town hall focused on climate and conservation in South Florida environments. Local experts were invited to talk with local students for the event. These included Dawn Shireffs of the National Parks Conservation Association, Dr. Benjamin Kirtman of the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Dr. Jayantha Obeysekera of the South Florida Water Management District, and Maria Beotegui of Biscayne National Park. Over 100 students from Centennial Middle School and Riviera Middle School that were present for the event now have some idea of how they can have a positive effect on their own environment.

Students filled the Museum theater for the town hall meeting to talk to local environmental experts

Have you ever been to a Museum and wondered how the exhibits are created? How do they decide what the interactive exhibit experiences should be? Who designs them? Do exhibits get tested before they officially open? Young people participating in the Museum’s Environmental Explorers Summer Camp program not only found out the answers, they even gave their opinions on a game prototype for an upcoming hurricane exhibit. These 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th graders tested a Hurricane Preparedness Game that allows players, through interactive touchscreen technology, to choose different hurricane scenarios and try to get all the supplies they need to survive the storm and its aftermath – before time runs out (in other words, before the storm arrives). After the storm passes, players get to see how well they were prepared. When the participants were finished trying out the game, they gave Museum exhibit designers lots of creative ideas for improving the game design and experience, and some of their ideas have even been incorporated into the game! As a thank you for their help, participants were then offered the unique opportunity to visit the Aplysia (Sea Slug) Facility at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. And when these young people come back to the Museum to see the upcoming Hurricane exhibit, they will know that the exhibit would not have been the same without them.

Many young people wonder… How do I take what I’m interested in, and turn it into a career? For Dr. Arthur Mariano, it was a a simple love of fishing and being on the water that sparked his career. He is one of the world’s leading experts in ocean dynamics, and is a Professor of Meteorology and Physical Oceanography at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. Dr. Mariano recently came to speak to students in the Museum’s Digital Wave program about his work and his career path. His research concentrates on modeling and predicting ocean variability, and he spoke to students about various research methods of understanding ocean dynamics. Methods include numerical circulation models as well as direct measurements using a system of ocean buoys and satellite observations. Two applications of this knowledge really made students stop and think about how science applies to our everyday lives. 1) How can we best predict and stop the spread of oil after a spill? 2) How do we find someone if they’re lost at sea? The answer to both questions is: Go to scientists like Dr. Mariano, who can predict, based on knowledge of the ocean and currents, how the oil is moving through the water, or where to search for the missing boater. And all of this knowledge, and this amazing career, all started with a young boy’s love of fishing.

Dr. Mariano with Digital Wave participants