It's gross. Worse — it's an academic exploration glorifying grossness.
That's why it has "kid" written all over it.
Squeamish parents beware: On Saturday, Carnegie Science Center will open the burping, flatulent, mucus-dripping exhibit "Grossology: The (Impolite) Science of the Human Body."
Based on former science teacher Sylvia Branzei's popular book — with elementary-schoolers, at least — the traveling exhibit forays into every possible scientific aspect of the human body a polite society would prefer to ignore.
But it is science. And interesting, if you can get past your initial revulsion.
"It really takes (science) from a perspective of gases and liquids," says Ron Baillie, director of education at the Science Center. "Because it really does address younger kids. It doesn't talk about microbes — things they can't see. It's things kids know, in very concrete things that everyone does."
Some facts gleaned from the exhibit include the following:
These facts in the exhibit come from posted signs and speaking robots such as Professor Nigel, whose stuffed-up head is a giant dripping faucet. But that drip coming out of the faucet isn't water.
A pinball game offers facts on gas build-up in the colon, with the ball representing bacteria. Another game allows kids to cannon fire ping-pong balls — representing dust — into the nostrils of a giant nose.
A giant, walk-in nose sneezes — it's just air, though — on people exploring replicas of blood vessels and cilia within it. Cranking a pump fills a spherical tank representing the human stomach with soda until the pressure from gas bubbles forces a loud ''buuuuurrrp'' from the cartoonish, slack-jawed man to which it is attached.
He does excuse himself, at least, which he does in a goofy redneck drawl: "Excuuuse me! Ah wonder where that came from?"
"Grossology" runs no risk of being called "tasteful." But that is probably why kids ages 5 to 12, and some adults, are chomping at the bit to see it.
"A woman with her kids came up to me at the gas station," Baillie says. "She saw my (Science Center) shirt, and said, 'Oh, that slimy exhibit is coming.' It engages kids where they are (in age)."
| Gross facts |
Source: The "Grossology" book series, by Sylvia Branzei
