Among the ones not mentioned. Besides basic science museums (like the Boston Museum of Science):
The Exploratorium in San Francisco. I haven’t been there in ages, but the old one on the grounds of the old SF Exposition was a wonderful places, with lots of hands-on science
The Ontario Science Center – Okay, it’s a Science Museum, but it’s got a lot of very different and original exhibits, many of them working
** The Franklin Institute** in Philadelphia. It’s got an original Wright airplane, lots of static electricity stuff, and the kids’ favorite, the Giant Walk-Through Heart.
The MIT Museum – continually changing exhibits, but usually some cutting-edge science.
The Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation in Waltham MA. Tiny, but lots of interesting stuff. Waltham used to be a center of precision watch manufacturing, and a lot of that stuff is here. there are also lots of functioning old machines that you can see in action. The museum has re-invented itself as a center of Steampunk activity. There’s a Steampunk meetup every Sunday at 1, and a Steampunk Festival every May
Cornwall Furnace in Cornwall PA – unlike many other iron works (like the 17th century Saugus Iron Works, in the town I live in, and which has been reconstructed), this one was never abandoned, even after it closed in the 19th century. The ironworks are all enclosed in a huge set of brick buildings, and in great shape.
Another idea for an overseas visit would be the Millau Viaduct. You could easily combine that with touring ancient Roman aqueducts in the same area, though I’m sturggling to think of other modern engineering feats in France…
Lowell National Historical Park in Lowell, MA – see the Mill Buildings, the restored and working weaving machines, and take a tour of the canals and locks on a boat.
When she was the quality control director of a vegetable cannery in Louisiana, my wife used to give factory tours. There are tons available in the US.
In Pennsylvania there are the Crayola factory, Martin Guitars, a potato chip factory in the Philadelphia Northeast, and lots more. There is a tour of the Tabasco factory in Avery Island, Louisiana. There is a Konriko rice factory tour in New Iberia Louisiana - which will make you never want to buy the rice.
There is a nice tour of the Leatherman factory in Portland, as well as Pendleton Wool Mills, with quite old machines.
Hershey’s Canada had a tour where you can see the actual production. The tour in Hershey PA is pretty much a fake now.
I came here to suggest a combination of the Millau Viaduct and the Pont du Gard. Separated in distance by 120km and in time by 2000 years, they have comparable power to stun the beholder.
FeAudrey, Thanks so much for your suggestions, especially Open House Chicago. I’ve never been to Chicago as a tourist, and I’m thinking of extending it into a week, including one or two day trips (I’ll be driving).
This way off topic but my father who was an aerospace engineer wanted nothing more than to get away and spend the month of August camping in Oregon.
He held degrees in three areas and spent twenty years as the engineer in charge of the Polaris, Poseidon missile project. We took the odd lumber mill or dairy plant tours but mostly that was for us kids.
The Leonardo National Museum in Milan, Italy has an amazing classic aircraft collection, submarine, Leonardo models, trains, astronomy artifacts, a real engineering/astronomy geek’s dream.