Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Celebrates National Lab Day
May 1, 2010

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania…Carnegie Museum of Natural History celebrates National Lab Day on Saturday, May 1, from 1 to 4 p.m., with hands-on, discovery-based activities and demonstrations for visitors of all ages. Visitors work with museum scientists and staff, as well as representatives of scientific organizations, to conduct scientific experiments and even use high-tech laboratory equipment. All activities and presentations are free with museum admission and include opportunities to:

• Use a beak-like tool to weave together a bird’s nest and more fully appreciate the skill and agility birds possess.
• Observe tiny snails under a microscope and explore other highlights of the museum’s Mollusk collection.
• Meet a Carnegie Mellon University robot that looks and acts like a human.
• Extract DNA from a plant sample.
• Inspect bugs and crayfish using the museum’s new scanning electron microscope.
• Discover which colors absorb and reflect light, and what that means for the earth.
• Find out how blubber helps a whale maintain its body temperature.
• Create a model crystal and examine mineral specimens up close.
• Learn about new neurobiology research from the laboratories of the University of Pittsburgh.

Presenters at Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s Lab Day celebration include Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment Technology Center, University of Pittsburgh’s undergraduate neurobiology and engineering programs, and Pittsburgh Science & Technology Academy.

National Lab Day is a nationwide initiative to foster collaborations and relationships between teachers, science and technology professionals, students, and communities. More than 200 organizations and 6 million professionals are expected to participate in the 2010 event.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History, one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, is ranked among the top five natural history museums in the country. It maintains, preserves, and interprets an extraordinary collection of 20 million objects and scientific specimens used to broaden understanding of evolution, conservation, and biodiversity. More information is available by calling 412.622.3131 or by visiting the Web site at www.carnegiemnh.org.

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