Telus World of Science’s new exhibits suit young visitors, but still entertaining
Though the exhibits may be more suitable to younger audiences, it was still a valuable trip.
Edmonton’s Telus World of Science has been a field trip hotspot for many students for years. As a student from the Edmonton area, there were very few years (until high school) that we didn’t take a field trip there. Until reading week, I hadn’t visited the science centre since my last school trip in junior high.
I ventured to the Telus World of Science for a look at their expansions and renovations, more specifically, to see the opening of their new exhibit, Health Zone. This new exhibit showcases topics in biology, with a focus on genealogy, the study of genes and evolution.
The Health Zone exhibit was mostly aimed towards a younger audience and not the 22-year-old audience that I’m a part of. There were machines to hold to hear your heartbeat and an ongoing “Learn About Biology,” or “L.A.B” display, for younger kids to identify some bacteria samples. There were also some basic microscopes with samples to look at, and an EMT doing a live CPR demonstration.
Overall, it was an exhibit that I, as an adult, wouldn’t visit again, but I could definitely see myself taking my partner’s younger sisters.
The next exhibit we visited was James Cameron — Challenging the Deep. This was my favourite of the excursion, but part of me feels like it was because this exhibit is more like something you’d find at the Royal Alberta Museum than the TELUS World of Science. The atmosphere of this exhibit felt vastly different from the rest of the science centre. It felt like something made for adults to enjoy compared to most of the other exhibits we saw, which felt more targeted for younger children.
In Challenging the Deep, the videos running about James Cameron’s (yes, the James Cameron, of Avatar fame) dives were the highlight for me. The video that depicts the dissent was the most interesting. There’s a shot in the film showing the deep, black water and all the viewer can see is the neon green submersible — truly depicting the ocean that most people never see in a single haunting frame.
Then we visited the Nature Exchange, which still felt geared towards younger audiences. However, it did have a few interesting things, specifically the corn snake and the sugar gliders they kept there.
This is one of the two exhibits that I remembered from my childhood visits, but they have updated it quite a bit since I’d last visited. The floor-piano that you played by jumping across the keys had been replaced by many different samples of crystals and geodes.
The last exhibit we walked through was the S.P.A.C.E. Gallery, which we only did a quick walkthrough of, as by that point none of what we’d seen had really changed since our last visit, and we were getting hungry.
There were two exhibits that we didn’t have the time to visit: the Zeiss Star Projector and the IMAX showing. We did look at attending the IMAX theatre, which was showing a documentary on Ireland. Had there not been a half-mile-long lineup outside, that was a showing we definitely would’ve watched.
Overall, I’m glad we went. I really enjoyed it and I would definitely recommend visiting if it’s been a while since you’ve been or if you’ve never gone, and especially for those looking for something to do with a kid.
The TELUS World of Science also offers a student discount, so don’t forget to bring your student ID if you do visit. However, I would advise waiting until the summer to go at a less busy time and wait for the arctic journey exhibit to open.
