This site is an online museum that tours a miniature Fairy Castle, watches a chick hatch, explores a historic city street, shows cells being attacked by the AIDs virus, visits exhibits on airplanes, a submarine, fantastic machines, and more. This site is highly informational and would be helpful to teachers, in planning classes, and students doing research. There are several links for more information within the site that is set up like a real museum tour. The site could also spark the curiosity of students to find out more information about the exhibits in the museum. Some linked sites were slow to download, but were tolerable. (Note: Some exhibits use Shockwave, RealAudio, Quicktime, and Quicktime VR.) **Updated 7/24/01:
This site has changed quite a bit since it was last reviewed—and that change has been for the better. The site serves as a showcase for the museum's actual exhibits and its Omnimax movies. There are also some online exhibits, which mirror exhibits found in the museum. For example, there is an online exhibit called Time in which the user can obtain background information and view images of time pieces that are featured at the museum. There are also activities associated with the online exhibit. One particularly interesting part of the site is a learning lab called Tales from the Underground. This lab contains data on nitrogen, pH, and phosphorous, key elements in determining the health of the soil, collected by students and residents in the Chicago area. The use can see the results of the research by viewing the Map of the Underground.
