ASTC - Traveling Exhibitions

In Hear Here: Listening with Eyes and Ears, visitors will see and experience the characteristics of sound and understand more about how people create and interpret sound.

Sound is created by small collisions—a foot tapping on the floor or a mosquito flapping its wings. These collisions of vibrating molecules make up the highways through which sound travels to our ears. This exhibition uses scientific tools to explore all facets of these highways of sound.

In this exhibition, visitors are invited to:

Search through the cupboards of a model kitchen to locate hidden sounds;
Alter the pitch and frequency of their own voices
Make a movie soundtrack for a short film using sounds to interpret the action;
Gain new appreciation for the adaptations of individuals who are deaf or
hard-of-hearing, as they try to read lips, understand facial expressions, and study sign language; and much more.

As much as possible, Hear Here exhibit components are made available to visitors who are hearing impaired or deaf. Exhibit components include "touch vibration pads" that vibrate along with audible sounds so sounds can be felt as well as heard. Video and computer screens are captioned. Many activities are set inside carpeted, curved enclosures that isolate the sound from other activities.

Hear Here was developed by the Montshire Museum of Science, in Norwich, Vermont, as part of the TEAMS (Traveling Exhibits at Museums of Science) Collaborative, with major funding by the National Science Foundation.