Expedition Health at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Last Saturday, the three of us had the opportunity to go check out the Expedition Health exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.  We’ve never been to this particular museum, so we couldn’t wait to go exploring.  And, we had so much fun that we’ll definitely be back!

Claire loves all kinds of science and medical things, so I knew she’d like this exhibit.  To be honest, she’s pretty easily entertained, so I knew we’d have fun.

When you arrive, everyone in your party is given a Peak Pass, which looks like a little blue credit card.  You insert your Peak Pass into a computer at the beginning, and you personalize your information:  Name, Age, Birthdate.  You also choose a “buddy” who will act as your personal tour guide.

My buddy was Trish.  Claire chose Alexis, and my hubby went with Brandon.

Then, when you are exploring the exhibit, you put your Peak Pass into the corresponding computer at each station, and your virtual buddy tells you about the exhibit and explains what to do.  For example, one of the stations was about heart-rate.  Your buddy instructs you to grasp the metal handlebars in front of you, and the computer not only shows your heart rate on the screen with a number and heartbeat line, it records it on your Peak Pass.

There are many different stations throughout the exhibit.  When we were the there, the lines at some of the stations were pretty long, so we needed to pick and choose which stations to try.

An interesting one was the station that recorded your stride.  You inserted your Peak Pass into the computer at the beginning and then walked along a wall in front of a camera.  The computer calculated your stride length, speed and energy and also projected a shadow image of you on the screen!  On the wall, you could see everyone who had gone in front of you!  Claire went before me, and I was right after her.  So, in one monitor, you could see a little computerized version of Claire skipping down the path, and behind her was Momma.  My image was funny because I was carrying my purse on my shoulder, but you get the idea.  As more people went through the line, the images moved from monitor to monitor.

When we were done with that, we noticed that the BodyTrek Theater was letting out and another show was just about to start.  We headed into the dark theater and found some empty seats.

On the screen, when the movie started, was a woman who was going to be hiking up Mount Evans, and we were going with her!  Each chair had a device in front of it that when you placed your finger in it, the computer calculated your heart-rate and blood oxygen level.

On either side of the huge screen in front of us were different things to aid in the presentation:  on one side was a replica of weather monitoring equipment, and on the other was a huge replica of the human body.

The graphics were amazing.  The movie was informative and funny.  As we hiked with her, the temperature and wind speed changed, not only on the movie, but in the theater!  At the top, it was snowing, and real snow fell on us!  At one point in the presentation, they talked about body heat, and then, on the screen was a picture of us!  The audience was being filmed with a heat-sensing camera!  Most everyone showed up in hues of orange or yellow or green, but there in the second row, on the left, was a red blob:  Momma with Claire on her lap!  I always knew she was a little space heater!

This was the coolest thing ever!  The BodyTrek Theater was the most amazing part of the whole exhibit, and we almost sat through the show a second time. 

Throughout the exhibit, there is a wide variety of things to see.  The interactiveness of it is really cool.  Of course, Claire is excited about everything, whether it be a really cool computerized exhibit, or a mirror hanging on the wall at her level. 

Mirror, Mirror, on the wall...

And, because Claire is three, we weren’t able to do every station.  Three Year Olds come with their own time-constraints and attention spans.  Some of the lines were pretty long, and one of the areas, the Biology Base Camp was for explorers 5 years old and older.  So, instead of doing that, we headed over to Tykes Peak,  and she had a great time climbing and sliding and playing with the exhibits designed for the littler kids.

Even I had fun playing with the exhibits designed for the littler kids:

How can you resist something like this?

The simplest things are so cool!

After playing there, we took off our shoes and stood in front of another computerized camera that measured our height and arm span.

Then, while Daddy and Claire ventured off into another area, I waited in line to see myself age.  (For real!  The computer takes a photo of your face and then “ages” it!)  But, alas, the line was barely moving, and I was aging all on my own, so I bailed.  If we go again, I’m going straight to that one to wait it out.  Maybe.  I mean, do I really want to see what I look like as an old lady, or should I wait and be surprised? 

When we’d had as much fun as we could handle, we headed over to the end of the exhibit where you insert your Peak Pass and sign out.  It prints a Personal Profile for you:

Personal Profile

Imagine our surprise at how detailed it is!  On the Personal Profile is a digital image of me standing in front of the height/arm span camera.  You can see my walking shadow.  You can see my heart-rate.

But!  That’s not all!  It also gives you a website and log-in, and when we got home, I logged on, and it’s awesome!  The little shadow of my stride looks a little goofy on the paper, but online, it shows the whole walking sequence!  You can click on the different parts of your profile for even more detailed information.

(My hubby is always the funny guy when his true identity is at stake…so imagine my surprise when his Peak Pass spit out a profile for Merlin.  One of our kitties. Merlin is in pretty good shape…for a human.) 

Using your real name or not, I’m tellin’ ya, this is the coolest thing.

If you’re in the Denver area, you need to check out this exhibit!  Be sure to call for reservations; give yourselves plenty of time, and explore!

This is not a paid review, however, we did receive free tickets to this exhibit.