Field Museum's Darwin exhibition

At Chicago's Field Museum, there is an exhibition called "Darwin," which is running from June 15, 2000 to January 1, 2008. The exhibition comes 150 years after The Origin of the Species was published, and traces Darwin's life and discoveries through personal artifacts such as manuscripts, photographs, and letters. In addition, "Darwin" features interactive displays and interviews with contemporary scientists.

The "All About Darwin" section is purely text. The "Photo Gallery" has 18 photos of items that can be seen in the exhibition. Each image appears as a 120 x 101 pixel JPG thumbnail. When the user clicks on it, a separate window opens to a 523 x 403 pixel JPG image. The images are quite clear and brilliant. Unfortunately, the website is not designed so that the user can simply go directly from that enlarged image to the next. Instead, s/he must close the window and click on another thumbnail.

In terms of metadata for these images, each includes a brief description of the image and how it relates to Darwins's life and works. It gives a good idea of what visitors will see if they come to the exhibition. Also beneath each photo, there is the copyright symbol, the name of the photographer, and his/her organization (e.g., Joe McDonald, Clyde Peeling’s Reptiland).

To make the connection between Darwin's work and the current work being conducted by Field Museum researchers, there is a "Field Museum Research" section. It includes biographies of scientists and their photos. These photos were all taken by J. Weinstein of the Field Museum and the copyright information includes the unique identifier for the photograph (i.e., GN90809_21d).

Overall, this is a very attractive website. It is clearly intended for those curious to see what is going on at the Field Museum. The explicit connection between Darwin's groundbreaking work on evolution and the research by modern researchers at the museum are particularly appealing for those who want to see the how Darwin's work is being applied today. It also gives viewers a glimpse into the world of an evolutionary scientist. The site, while not aimed for children, is certainly aimed at their parents and teachers; it includes "Educational Resources" as well as special "Events and Programs" (lectures, films, games). And finally, the exhibition website includes a cute "E-Card" feature that allows viewers to send a Darwin-related photo and a message.