Feature
Strange New Worlds Issue 8 - Apr/May 1993

Star Trek ^® Federation Science Exhibit Treks to Buffalo Museum

STAR TREK: Federation Science, a traveling interactive museum exhibition, has transported to the Buffalo Museum of Science in Buffalo, New York. The one million dollar, 6,000-square foot exhibit utilizes "Star Trek" to promote science and technology literacy among people of all ages.

Visitors to this hands-on exhibit will navigate through an asteroid field, program a voice-activated computer, turn into a Klingon, visually beam onto an alien world, command a starship, and get a close-up look at props and costumes used in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and the "Star Trek" feature films. Original "Star Trek" artifacts on display include costumes worn by William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart, Whoopi Goldberg, and others. Museum patrons will examine tricorders, phasers, life-size alien models, medical instruments, and scenes from favorite episodes.

The science fact behind the science fiction can be explored through the exhibit’s forty modular displays. These relate information about physics, practical astronomy, physiology, and the principles behind propulsion systems to aspects of the Trek universe. Thematic representation of science stations throughout the U.S.S. Enterprise include the Bridge, Engineering, Sick Bay, and a simulation of the Transporter Room. The Museum gift shop will feature a Starfleet area that includes a large variety of unique "Star Trek" memorabilia and merchandise.

Why use "Star Trek" as the centerpiece of a learning exhibit? According to the creators of the exhibit, "Science and technology literacy in our culture is suffering from a crippling absense of vision. With no sense of wonder about what might be possible, we focus more negatively on the short-range problems of our world, distrust the capacity of science and technology to help find solutions, and set aside opportunities which could ultimately improve the quality of life in the futures. To a generation alternately torn between the fear of nuclear destruction and the promise of space, ‘Star Trek’ is an inspiration. ‘Star Trek’ provides a positive vision of the future in which science and technology have become humanized. It is a future where exciting possibilities, not only in space but in human potential, are being explored and realized. It portrays positive changes in education, medical care, the environment, and in human relations. Science and technology play an integral role in these improvements. The message is strong — to participate in this grand adventure, a knowledge and interest in science and technology is essential."

STAR TREK: Federation Science was created by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland, Oregon. The exhibit was originally developed to coincide with both the "Star Trek" 25th anniversary and the 1992 International Space Year. Buffalo is the third stop on the exhibit’s three-year, ten-city tour. After completing its cross-country Trek, STAR TREK: Federation Science will reside in a new 210,000 square-foot facility on the east bank of the Willamette River in downtown Portland, Oregon.

STAR TREK: FEDERATION SCIENCE
Exhibition Travel Schedule

Jun-Aug, 1993 Buffalo Museum of Science, Buffalo NY
Oct-Dec, 1993 Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago IL
Feb-Apr, 1994 Denver Museum of Natural History, Denver CO
Jun-Dec, 1994 Buhl Science Center (Carnegie Institute) Pittsburgh PA
Feb-Aug, 1995 Museum of Science and Industry, Tampa FL
Oct-Dec, 1995 The Science Place, Dallas TX

Star Trek ® is a trademark of Paramount Pictures.

 Browse these Star Trek items
that you can purchase online: