March 21, 2005
MEDIA CONTACT: Caroline Witherspoon
or Jocelyn Collado
Becker Communications
(808) 533-4165
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

EXPERIMENTS ABOUND AT BISHOP MUSEUM’S MAD ABOUT SCIENCE FESTIVAL ON APRIL 9

HONOLULU – Everyone is invited to be a scientist at the first annual Mad About Science Festival! From earth sciences and medical sciences to out-of-this-world space sciences, kids and families will enjoy dozens of activities to explore and discover. On Saturday, April 9, 2005 from Noon to 9 p.m., the mysteries of science take over the campus of Bishop Museum with a host of hands-on, interactive science experiments. When the sun goes down, the Hawaiian Astronomical Society will come out with giant telescopes for an evening of stargazing and galactic fun.

Throughout the day, festival-goers can enjoy interactive programs like the “Who Wants To Be...An Astronaut” game show and rare, guided tours of the Museum’s amazing science collections filled with fascinating insects, fishes and plants. Human space exploration fans can also enjoy the premiere of a brand new planetarium show, “Deep Impact”, as well as special shows in the museum’s traveling planetarium, StarLab.

The Mad About Science Festival offers great ways for kids to investigate what being an archaeologist or entomologist feels like with activities that put them in the role. Would-be doctors can even conduct tests and diagnose patients at the Medical Mystery exhibit. Interested, future astronomers can construct a refracting telescope and use state-of-the-art equipment employed by professionals.

Majority of the programs and activities are from Bishop Museum’s traveling science outreach program, Holoholo Science, which brings hands-on, exciting science to schools across the state. Anticipating the fall 2005 opening of the Museum’s science center, the timing was right for the museum to introduce these fun, dynamic and entertaining programs to the public at-large as a part of an annual event celebrating the world of science.

The Mad About Science Festival will also feature a special lecture, “Tsunami Hazards in Hawaii,” by Dr. Gerard Fryer, Associate Geophysicist of Hawai‘i’s Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, regarding Hawai‘i’s own Tsunami of April 1, 1946, and more importantly current risks and research. Delicious food, rides and games will round out this celebration of all things science.

Admission is $3 for kama’āina and military and free for Bishop Museum members and children age 3 and under.

A treasured resource of Hawaiian history and heritage, Bishop Museum was founded in 1889 by Charles Reed Bishop as a tribute to his wife Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, the last descendant of the royal Kamehameha dynasty. Located at 1525 Bernice Street, the Museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $14.95 for adults; $11.95 for youth 4-12 years; special rates for kama‘āina, seniors and military; children under 4 years and Bishop Museum members are free. For information, call 847-3511 or www.bishopmuseum.org.