ROCHESTER, NY— A fusion of science fiction and science fact will be on display at Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) when SciFiTech opens this Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. An 8,000-square foot exhibition spanning multiple galleries, SciFiTech is an exploration of pop culture’s impact on technology that celebrates the greatest works of innovation and imagination in human history. The exhibit takes visitors on a fascinating journey from science fiction to 21st-century reality, with pop culture around every corner: visitors will be able to engage with hands-on interactives including the Oculus Rift™, a Mars rover, live 3D printing, and robots; view iconic replicas including a Delorean time machine, androids and extraterrestrials from far-away galaxies, and the world’s first 3D-printed car; explore human communications “From Bone to Phone” through rarely seen RMSC artifacts; discover visionaries and futurists who imagined the seemingly impossible; and more.
The greatest, most innovative breakthroughs often have surprising beginnings and SciFiTech explores how those fanciful imaginings have become everyday 21st-century tools. Throughout four exhibit areas SciFiTech will take curious visitors on an immersive journey:
HOW WE PLAY
The technology of entertainment continually changes the way we spend our free time. This exhibit area includes interactives that explore a timeline of music, art, toys, and video games that make innovative and often surprising uses of today’s technology. The visitor becomes the innovator in this hands-on zone, where creativity and imagination reach astounding new heights through a state-of-the-art Oculus Rift™ virtual reality experience, 3D-projected games, familiar and cutting-edge musical instruments, holograms, and more.
HOW WE CONNECT
Communications technology is truly the game changer of the 21st century. This exhibit explores the relationship between communication and technology by looking at the history and future of communications from landline rotary telephones and VCRs to video chats and smartphones. With photo-ops and hands-on activities, visitors will discover how technology blended with popular culture and science fiction to make it easier than ever to phone home or experience a close encounter; and how the relevance of a self-aware, thinking computer is more prevalent today than ever before.
HOW WE MOVE
This area of the exhibit examines the history and evolution of human transport. Visitors will get up close with replicas of iconic, pop-culture transportation modes including a jetpack, hoverboard, and Delorean time machine; the world’s first 3D-printed car; artistic sketches of future plans for flying cars and the Hyperloop™ high-speed transportation system; and hands-on experiences including Mars rovers and challenges on the red planet.
HOW WE LIVE & WORK
This zone presents some of the most fascinating innovations currently shaping our lives, many of which were predicted in books and movies. Here, visitors will experience how dreams have turned into reality through interactions with Baxter, the robot that’s revolutionizing the way we work; life-size icons of factual and fictional androids; live 3D printing; and hands-on challenges including operating a five-fingered robotic hand, building a city of the future, and programming software.
SciFiTech also features a number of rare books including 1984, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and The Martian; a gallery of visionaries who predicted future technologies from Nikola Tesla and Leonardo Da Vinci to Elon Musk and Steve Jobs; vintage issues of Amazing Stories and Popular Science magazines; retro video game systems; and vintage props and trinkets.
To launch the exhibit, RMSC partnered with local production company Optic Sky to create an equally rich augmented reality (AR) experience that allows visitors take a sneak peek at the exhibit and its pop-culture references. The experience can be accessed on any smartphone at rmsc.org/arrival or through QR codes on posters placed throughout the community. In addition to offering a peek at the exhibit, the experience gives visitors a digital SciFi-iD badge and an admission discount—and two lucky participants will win RMSC memberships.
The SciFiTech exhibit experience at RMSC is sponsored by Dr. Dawn Lipson. SciFiTech was created by Stage Nine Design (under the original name POPnology®) and is distributed by Exhibits Development Group.
SciFiTech and most related programming are free with regular Science Museum admission: $18 adults, $17 seniors and college students with ID, $16 ages 3 to 18, free for children under 3 and RMSC members. For group reservations and rates, call 585.697.1942.
For high-resolution images and additional information, contact Mare Millow, Marketing Communications Manager, RMSC, 585.697.1944, mmillow@rmsc.org, or visit RMSC.org/press-news.
Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) includes the Science Museum, Strasenburgh Planetarium and Cumming Nature Center. Offering experiences at the Museum with more than 200 interactive exhibits, Planetarium with a 65-foot dome and Nature Center on 900 acres, the RMSC stimulates community interest in exploration. In addition, the more than 1.2 million RMSC collection items tell the story of Rochester’s past and present, including its rich history of innovation and invention. RMSC receives major funding from Monroe County, where it is one of the top three most visited attractions serving children and families. For more information about RMSC, visit RMSC.org. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.
Stage Nine Entertainment Group is a full-service developer of creative, unusual exhibits for permanent or temporary display. Stage Nine Exhibitions owns, operates, and tours six internationally-acclaimed exhibitions including: The Lost World of Dragons, Expedition: Dinosaur, Hall of Heroes, POPnology, The Animation Academy, Sweet: A Tasty Journey, and Rock U: The Institute of Rock “N” Roll. For more information about Stage Nine Exhibitions, call 916-447-3623 or visit http://www.stageninedesign.com.
