In the Field Spring 2007 Issue The Science Behind Our Exhibitions The Field Museum is much more than a place to see wonderful exhibitions. It’s also a research institution with world-renowned scientists on staff who conduct research in 70 countries around the globe. Our scientific collections number 23 million specimens and objects – less than 1 percent of which are on display. Our collections and research help inform and shape our exhibitions, and we have several exciting exhibitions currently running and on the horizon. Evolving Planet is a 27,000-square-foot permanent exhibition that presents the history of life on Earth as it has unfolded over four billion years through the process of evolution. Evolving Planet uses a variety of story-telling tools including fossils, scale models, videos, animation, and works of art, to address audiences of all levels and learning styles, from preschool children to well-educated adults. Video screens show Museum scientists discussing how their research is unlocking the mysteries of the prehistoric world. The Ancient Americas, our newest permanent exhibition, opens March 9. It takes visitors on an epic journey through 13,000 years of cultural evolution in the Western Hemisphere, where hundreds of diverse societies thrived long before the arrival of Europeans. The 19,000 square-foot exhibition showcases 2,200 artifacts from the Museum’s collections that represent more than 20 distinct cultural groups. It’s only recently that anthropologists have come to appreciate the high level of achievement attained independently by peoples throughout the Americas. Dinosaurs: Ancient Fossils, New Discoveries (March 30 – Sept. 3) is an eye-opening look at dinosaurs as animals that lived in complex environments they shared with countless other species. The exhibition showcases research by scientists at The Field Museum and around the world. Dinosaurs: Ancient Fossils, New Discoveries explores several intriguing ideas, including the link between dinosaurs and modern birds. The exhibition also explores new technologies that have brought engineers, computer scientists, and paleontologists together to better understand how ancient creatures lived and how they might have died. Darwin (June 15 through Jan. 1, 2008) is the most in-depth exhibition ever presented about the scientist whose fascination with plants and animals led him to the concept of evolution and the process – natural selection – by which it works. Visitors will encounter many of the unique animals Darwin observed, including live South American horned frogs and a green iguana, as well as interactive displays and interviews with contemporary scientists. Museum scientists are following in Darwin’s footsteps as they work behind the scenes in our Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution and delve into the genetic detail of evolution. John W. McCarter, Jr. President & CEO