MIMO is The Mind Museum’s in-house obstacle avoiding robot.

MANILA, Philippines —Five years ago, the board of trustees of the Bonifacio Art Foundation, Inc., (BAFI) came up with an idea of putting up a world-class science museum. Cognizant of the fact that the country does not have a science museum that can be at par with those in the developed world, the BAFIraised P1 billion from private donors and built what they promise to be the best science museum in the country.

In March this year, The Mind Museum (TMM), located on a 12,500 square-meter lot in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, will finally open to the public. The beautifully designed museum is made by Filipinos, for Filipinos.

“This is a museum by Filipinos for Filipinos. Ninety five percent of our exhibit is made by Filipinos, designed by Filipinos, bettered by Filipino scientists and Filipino engineers,” BAFImanaging director Manny Blas shares with pride.

With its vision to be the country’s center for the public understanding of science, the exhibits are largely original and not off-the-shelf types found in other museums. The designs are by Filipino artists working with Filipino scientists and engineers.

EMOTIONAL CONNECTION

The building was designed by a team of architects from Lor Calma & Partners, led by renowned architect Ed Calma. The inspiration behind the building’s futuristic yet organic look was based on cellular growth and structures.

The building is also designed to function efficiently. The curved roof serves as an efficient rail collector. The slanted exterior walls minimize the entry of sunlight while the strategic orientation utilizes the shadows of adjacent buildings, all of which contribute to greater energy efficiency.

However, since it’s the first time the Philippines is building this type of facility, the proponents still consulted international experts like Jack Rouse and Associates and the Science Center Singapore during the planning stage.

“We don’t have an experience in Science museums and we wanted to know what works in some spaces. We asked experts but it’s an all-Filipino team,” says TMM curator Maria Isabel Garcia. “What matters is what you feel when you go inside the museum. I’d like to think that it is different because it emotionally connects with you, you can see you connection with the spaces.”

The museum also has a special group of tour guides, or more appropriately, Mind Movers who are all science course graduates and are well-versed in Science.

BASIC SCIENCE

The Mind Museum starts with the basics. Its exhibits are not about the most advanced technology there is today but the basics of science. There are more than 250 exhibits in the museum.

“We want to present nature in scale, in school you’re always taught with the discipline but we wanted to show that to understand Science you don’t really have to cut them to disciplines in terms of informal learning. We wanted to show, from the littlest of things to the biggest of things that’s why there’s the atom gallery, the life earth in between and the galaxy, which is the biggest of things. The technology gallery is above the science gallery. This is what we know and how we know it,” Garcia explains.

The museum is divided into five main galleries and is mainly spread out on the main museum floor. It tells the story of the atom, the Earth, life, universe, and technology.

The Atom Gallery has exhibit pieces that show the strange world of the very small in terms of forces and particles. The Earth Gallery which tells of the story of the planet and our archipelago across the breadth of time. It includes a 3D animated film made by an all-Filipino crew that features 4.6 billion years of the planet’s natural history and evolution in 12 minutes. It also features Stan, the T.rex, the first Tyrannosaurus rex exhibit in the country that is made of plaster cast from real fossils.

The third is The Life Gallery, which presents a deeper understanding of how life surrounds and inhabits us — from microbes to large animals — such as a life size ‘butanding’ or whale shark — and from DNA, cells to a giant human brain model.

On the other hand, The Universe Gallery features the mysterious vastness of the universe and holds clues to where we came from and where we are going. The gallery also contains a unique planetarium which simulates star-gazing from the point of view of literally laying down on a bed beneath the stars.

The Technology Gallery, located on the second floor of the museum, shows how humans invent and innovate and are able to express evolving humanity. Different technologies are presented here, from the wooden printing press to the Light Harp, an instrument that uses lasers instead of strings in producing music.

There’s also the outdoor Science-in-the-Park where visitors can experience playful science through four-themed pockets: Music, Math, Living and Water. Other educational offerings include facilities such as an auditorium, laboratory and classrooms, for educational workshops which explore how things work and the relationship of science to other fields of learning.

“We wanted people to appreciate basic sciences. Science is not just about gadgets, science is about how things work. Basic understanding of science principles,” Blas says.

READY FOR THESTUDENTS

As of now, the museum is already receiving a lot of inquiries from schools and organizations. They also have a different approach. The museum is selling time slots to schools and organizations.

“We’re going to sell a three-hour timeslot. The average stay in a museum is one and a half to two hours but we will give you two hours. We will only accept, up to 500 people inside at a time. You get a reserved slot so you are assured, when you go in its only 500 students, you’re comfortable and you can play with the exhibit,” Blas explains.

The regular ticket prices for adults is P600 while student tickets are priced at P450. Public school students have a special price of P150 while children three feet below are free. Tickets may be bought online from their website www.themindmuseum.org