FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Randall Gann, Public Information Officer

505.252.6869 Email: randall.gann@state.nm.us

There are things we simply don’t talk about in polite company, so it might be best to leave the polite company at home when you come to the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science for Grossology: The (Impolite) Science of the Human Body. This is a fun, exciting, and educationally stimulating exhibit based on the best-selling book, Grossology, by science teacher Sylvia Branzei. The exhibition, which runs from November 16, 2013 – May 4, 2014, is a physical extension of the book and explains to children ages 6 to 14 how and why their bodies produce things that many people think are downright gross.

Take a “Tour du Nose” with a leaky faucet named Nigel Nose-It-All, who explores 10 nasal features, including how and why your snoot acts as an air filter, a smell sensor, and a mucus producer. Play the pinball game “Gas Attack” by scoring off bumpers dressed up as food items that cause gas. Mimic the build up of acid indigestion by causing the “Burp Machine” to release a giant belch. Explore the role of the kidney in a virtual reality experience in “Urine: The Game.” Climb a large-scale replica of human skin, and discover other mysterious ways your body’s biology does what it needs to do to keep you healthy.

Grossology is a collaboration between Science World, Advanced Exhibits, and Grossology author Sylvia Branzei. As a teacher, writer, curriculum designer and microbiologist Branzei explains the concept of Grossology as a learning tool. “This is science in disguise,” she says. “If we teach students in their own words, they’ll understand better and actually learn something.”

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science preserves and interprets the distinctive natural and scientific heritage of our state through extraordinary collections, research, exhibits, and programs designed to ignite a passion for lifelong learning. NMMNHS is located at 1801 Mountain Road, NE. For more information visit www.nmnaturalhistory.org

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