Museums aren't just for old people anymore. This is the message I’m getting when reading this article. It seems that museums are now trying to come in to the 21st century and it seems to be working for them. Smartphone apps and VR experiences are a few of the ways Museums are trying to entice a younger audience to visit. Developers are trying to focus on building a unique experience for every user of the applications and it’s causing younger guests to be much more interested. One museum reported having an average age of 60 for guests reduced down to 27 after the introduction of some new and more immersive technology.
I think it’s great that museums are trying new things in order to keep guests of a new generation interested. I’ll admit that I have never had an interest in going to a museum before, but there are a few things in this article that have me curious. One thing that was mentioned is a VR simulation of golfing on Mars. Golf is not a favorite sport of mine, but I’ll play it on occasion. Golfing on Mars however, sounds crazy. Even just walking around a virtual Mars would be a really cool experience. I think the museums need to focus more on the VR side of the tech if they want a younger audience to stay interested and come back for multiple visits. I would like to see more VR simulations like the Mars golfing one. If I were to be able to fly by Saturn or Jupiter in VR to see the rings and moons, I would probably have gone by now. I think having a more immersive experience to museums is the key. Passively listening or watching a video about the pharaohs of Egypt is not my idea of an interesting afternoon. If I were to walk up to see the sarcophagus and put on a VR headset to explore their tomb, that would be a lot more fun. Even if it were a still image of the area that I could walk around, it would be a pretty fun thing to do. Anyway, I think these few museums are on the right track if they want to stay relevant in the 21st century.
4 Comments
Ana Perez
5/8/2017 07:47:56 pm
Very interesting blog post. I can totally see how many youngsters would be interested in going to museums if VR or any other sort of immersive technology is involved. I know a lot of museums that are popular because they provide tons of optical/infinity illusions. I personally love museums just the way they are now because I am an artistic person. But I wouldn't mind trying something new out. I do think though that if museums apply this new technology to their displays, they would also have to consider adults. Old people might get dizzy when using VR headsets, or they may not be able to do any sort of physical activity like swinging a golf club because they might have medical problems.
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Laura Chavez
5/8/2017 09:19:51 pm
I actually like this idea. When I was younger I went to a planetarium where we watched the stars under a dome. It was just a screen, but it looked real. If VR is applied to a lot of museums then more people would be interested in going.
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Cristina Cachux
5/12/2017 10:04:46 am
I love museums but always felt they could be more interactive with visitors. Making these technological advances will bring more younger crowds but I think would in turn help more of the information you learn in museums be more memorable and therefore more useful. I think these advances would be a great asset for everyone.
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5/14/2017 02:49:51 pm
I think this is a wonderful idea! I'll admit, just reading about it makes me want to find a museum that employs these and visit it. It reminds me of an old, interactive museum I used to go to back in my hometown - that combined playing and learning, where museums tend to fall more on the learning side. It's interesting learning, but still not enough to capture the minds of young kids, and I think this is absolutely a step in the right direction.
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