Indoor stuff to do in Boston?

[CalMeacham]

@Robot_Arm

I was just there a month ago; interesting, but damn hard to find.

The Museum of Science has a temporary exhibit on Pixar. I’m going today, will let you all know if it’s any good.

We saw it a couple of weeks ago. It’s good. Give yourself plenty of time to see it. There’s a lot of interactive stuff. Unlike what is normally the case, all of it was working. I don’t know if this is a function of it being a recently opened exhibit, or of Pixar keeping an eye on it and making constant repairs. But my usual experience is that interactive stuff, under the use of a lot of inexperienced hands, tends to break down quickly. I was pleasantly surprised in this case.
It’s a popular exhibit. You might want to buy tickets in advance over the internet.

[Robot_Arm]

@CalMeacham

We saw it a couple of weeks ago. It’s good. Give yourself plenty of time to see it. There’s a lot of interactive stuff. Unlike what is normally the case, all of it was working. I don’t know if this is a function of it being a recently opened exhibit, or of Pixar keeping an eye on it and making constant repairs. But my usual experience is that interactive stuff, under the use of a lot of inexperienced hands, tends to break down quickly. I was pleasantly surprised in this case.

I’ve noticed the wear and tear on interactive exhibits, too. Seems like they often have instructions that are more detailed than the participants really want, and they wind up skipping the instructions and just pressing buttons. Or the Pacific Science Center’s (the science museum of my youth) copy of the Mathematica exhibit, the number of balls in the probability generator got less and less over the years.

Sadly, it shared another trait with the Museum of Science. As I got older, their exhibits tended toward a younger audience. I think we passed each other somewhere around 12 years old.

It’s a popular exhibit. You might want to buy tickets in advance over the internet.

I’m going with a museum member (and lapsed doper), I think she booked in advance.

[Robot_Arm]

Mathematica is back at the Museum of Science and I am posting from there right now. Joy! Rapture! 100% pure awesomesauce!

[Arabella_Flynn]

@CalMeacham

If you’re into art, go to the main branch of the Boston Public Library in Copley Square. There’s a Map Room exhibit, there are the paintings of the Quest for the Holy Grail by Edwin Austen Abbey, the Triumph of Religion by John Singer Sargent, numerous galleries and murals, there’s the Rare Book Room, and there are rotating exhibits in various places. There’s the central courtyard with its Dancing Bacchanalian with infant Faun, and there’s even a place to get a bite to eat.

http://www.bpl.org/

You might want to be aware that the library is under heavy construction right now. The old McKim building is indeed as gorgeous as advertised above – and open, as it’s not the wing that’s half-dismantled – but there’s a lot of temporary signage and confused patrons milling around. Some of the exhibits also have shorter hours than the library itself, so I’d check the website beforehand.

Fortunately for you, it’s not yet cold enough to shut the fountains down. The one in the courtyard was running when I was there on Tuesday. In torrential rains, no less.