Freshman Seminar Fall 17 LC06

Blog

For my academic blog, I decided to attend the exhibitions at the American Museum of Natural History. I always appreciated museums because of the vast knowledge and abundance of things I’m able to see and learn about. It was a wonderful experience and I enjoyed everything the museum offered. The moment I walked in through the doors of the museum, I was intrigued by all the different halls and cultures of the world. The different types of halls I went to were the Hall of African Mammals, North American Mammals, Big Bang Theater, Birds, Primates, etc.

My favorite part of the museum was watching the Big Bang presentation at the Hayden Big Bang Theater. We had the chance to look into a concave screen to view a 3D dynamic flight of the virtual universe. It was extremely interesting and I learned about the different galaxies, stars, and planets. I also learned that dark energy is a mysterious force counter to gravity that dominates the modern universe.

Another part of the museum I liked was the fossil hall of dinosaurs and mammals. There, I got to see various types of vertebrate animals that are existing as well as extinct. My favorite exhibit of the dinosaurs was the Tyrannosaurus rex, or the T-rex. I learned that the T-rex had a walking speed of 3-6 miles per hour and that their arms were weak. All advanced tyrannosaurs had only two fingers on each hand, which I found interesting. In addition, I learned that it was possible that these dinosaurs may have hunted in packs based on their track ways and footprints.

Overall, the American Museum of Natural History was really fun and entertaining. I liked all the exhibits and enjoyed learning about the different types of animals and people in our history. I would definitely recommend this museum to anyone if they are fond of history.T-Rex exhibit

Blog # 1

On September 02, 2017, me and family went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art or also known as “ The Met”. First we sat on the famous Met steps and enjoyed the view. Then we entered the museum and purchased our tickets. The first exhibit we saw was the Asian Art exhibit. There, we saw different type of porcelains which are white Chinese vitrified translucent ceramic, statues of Buddhas , steel weaponries that was once use during Chinese warfare , and many more. My favorite part of the Asian Art was The Astor Chinese Garden Court. Upon entering the garden there are two lion statues on each side of the entrance. When I enter I felt so stress free. The atmosphere was just so gentle and relaxing. In the garden was Taihu rocks, granite terrace, and ceramic tile flooring like the once you see in China and on TV. You feel like you’re in China when standing in it.

After the Asian Art we went to the Egyptian Art. There we saw tombstones, hieroglyphics on walls, statues of Egyptian people , replica of the Sphinx , and The Temple of Dendur. This trip to the museum further educated me on the history of Asia and Egypt. I learned that the Egyptians believed in many gods and goddesses and like to respect them by engraving them onto their temples and walls. Another thing I learned was that the female pharaoh Hatshepsut was also portrayed as a sphinx. I use to thought that only males were allowed to be represented on a sphinx. My experience in this museum is great and I would definitely come back again to look at more exhibits and learn more  history.