Representing Science as Culture in Museums

Li Xiang

National Academy of Innovation Strategy, CAST, Beijing, China

Abstract: The function of science and technology museums to promote public understanding of science has been increasingly valued by the academic community. In recent years, the scientific centralization of science and technology museums has become distinct, including the increase in the number of science centers and the transformation of traditional science and technology museum into science center. By taking the UK, i.e. the museum power and the cradle of public understanding of science, as research case, this paper reviews the scientific centralization progress of science and technology museum and analyzes the essential characteristics of science center as well as science and technology museum. By summarizing the situation in the UK, the view of science contained in science and technology museums is put forward, and then the refection on construction and development of science and technology museums in China is proposed.

1. Introduction

From the exploration on relationship between the traditional functions and new functions of science and technology museums to the reasonable review on scientific centralization trend of contemporary science and technology museums, we shall trace back to the background of the birth of different functional traditions, and consider the connotation displayed by museums and science centers. In recent decades, as the public science education function of science and technology museums has been increasingly concerned, museums have paid more attention to wide public influence.[1], [2] With the increasing importance of science education function, promoting the interactive display mode of science center has become one of the main development directions of science and technology museums.[3-6] However, although the increasing growth of science center has expanded the way of public participation in science, it has also impacted the concept of communication science of traditional museum. Domestic and foreign scholars have proposed various functional issues at different levels for science and technology museums.[7-13] Throughout the birth and development of science and technology museums, the collection of industrial heritage and the research on the history of science and technology once dominated. The educational function of British science and technology museums, as a derivative, only drew public attention after the rise of public understanding of science.[2], [14]

2. Scientific Centralization of Science and Technology Museums

The scientific centralization of science and technology museums has broken through the original museum tradition and strengthened the function of science education. Since the birth of museums, the exhibition and display of natural science has never stopped. After the successive emergence of natural history museums and science and technology museums, the emergence of science center has brought a new display mode, thus promoting changes in the museum industry.[11], [15], [16] The Palace of Discovery in Paris, France is currently recognized as the first science center in the world. Since then, the science centers have been built at a rapid pace in about 100 years. The construction of science and technology museums in China in recent decades may also be considered as a microcosm of the development of science centers around the world. Some scholars refer to this process as science center movement.[4], [6], [17] The Exploratorium in the United States and Ontario Science Centre in Canada further have highlighted the interactive display on the basis of the Palace of Discovery, while the City of Science and Industry of La Villette in Paris has created a more relaxed environment to allow visitors to experience science in leisurely culture atmosphere. Compared with natural history museums and science and technology museums, the most distinct feature of these emerging science centers is that they no longer regard physical collection and historical research as their main functions. From the significance of display, it means that the original elements of a story are no longer a necessity, that is, the story of science center can be completely created by exhibit design.

The science centers have strengthened science education while also impacted the traditional museum concept. Since the publication of‘Bodmer’ report in the UK in 1985, the role of museums for public understanding of science has been increasingly concerned, and the display and teaching method of science center has become the learning object of many museums.[18-20] In 1986, UK established the first batch of science centers and had continued the construction for 30 years.[21] According to the report of ‘UK Association for Science and Discovery Centres’, there were more than 60 non-formal education institutions such as science and technology museums and science centers in the UK by 2014, of which about 15 were science centers, and most of them were completed after 2000.[22] 3, 5 At the same time, the existing science and technology museums have gradually joined the interactive display and teaching method of the science center, and even some science and technology museums have set up separate exhibition halls as micro-science centers. However, compared with North America, the boundaries between the science center and the science and technology museum in UK is clearer, and the former is mostly targeted at children.

As a new type of non-formal education institution, the science center is not naturally regarded as a science and technology museum. Some museum visitors have no idea what the science center is.

Now, science center has a more pronounced impact on the science communication of British museums. On one hand, the newly-built science center has attracted a large number of children to visit in a family form, and the update of display technology has also expanded the form of participation of visitors. On the other hand, museums are also influenced by the concept of science center. Breaking down information barrier and attracting public participation has become one of the most important tasks. At the same time, the emergence of activities such as science week and science festival have extended the display and education of museums and science centers, and the differences between them are further blurred in these activities.

3. Two Functional Traditions: Case Analysis on Museums and Science Centers in UK

In the late 1980s, the Committee on the Public Understanding of Science (COPUS) set up working groups in important fields of public understanding of science. In view of the increase of science centers in UK, COPUS decided to further research the role of museums in public understanding of science and established a museum working group in 1990. In 1992, John R. Durant summed up the research findings and raised the core issue in research on science and technology museums: what is the distinctive role of museums in public understanding of science?He also pointed out that the focus of this issue is to understand the difference between museums and science centers, and proposed the main differences between them:[23] 7-11

science centers are dedicated to making the public understand science through display and interaction, while museums are provided with a collection function;

museums display a complete scientific story, while science centers display fragmented scientific knowledge and principles;

science centers displays science to be discovered, while museums displays the steady progress in a steady walk in nature.

Obviously, it has been noted here that they focus on different aspects of science. In contemporary, although both museums and science centers are committed to public participation in science, and the scientific centralization of science and technology museums is intensified, the differences in contents between them have not obtained enough attention. By review on differences between them, we may see different views of science behind the two display modes.

1) Science Center: Promoting Public Participation in Science

Science center emphasizes practical participation of visitors, and this concept has been carried forward with the changes of the times. If the initially born science center is to get rid of the shackles of the museum, which not only makes museum exhibits, usually displayed as cultural relics, become more intimate and participatory due to more exposure, but also makes the new museum no longer lacking the necessary materials caused by restriction on the number of collections, most of the existing science centers in UK are born without such shackles, so they are more free in exploring new ways of public participation, and their targeting at young people also makes the form of activity more important than exhibits. The most important task of a science center is to stimulate the public interest in science. The knowledge, principles and applications of science can be selected and arranged in order to accomplish this task, and finally contained in exhibits to be presented in front of visitors. Therefore, a science center cannot display isolated scientific knowledge, but strives to put science displayed in contexts that are closely related to public life, and to evoke the resonance of visitors through the connection between science and life.

Most science centers in the United States are named as ‘museums’. Many well-known science centers are finally aimed at comprehensive museums rather than relatively single-function science centers. The situation in UK is quite different, and the ‘museum’ and ‘center’ have their respective clear references. The clear positioning makes the objective of the science center more singular, and the identity separated from ‘museum’ is no longer essential for all-round representation of science, and the tool attribute of science is also highlighted under such a target positioning. From scientific explanation of various phenomena in life, hot scientific issues widely concerned to certain industry with high scientific and technological content, the display of the science center must always reflect the social situation in which science and life are inseparable, so as to maintain attractiveness to the public.

The core objective of a science center is to guide visitors to cultivate a ‘scientific way of thinking’ through the experience of scientific connotations in life context, especially in the hope that they will still maintain such a way of thinking after leaving the museum. From the perspective of decision-making, the displayed content of a museum is usually decided by the administrator and the academic committee while that of a science center is directly in the charge of the curator, with influences by the opinions of the funders from time to time. Therefore, the definition of ‘scientific way of thinking’ is largely influenced by administrators and funders. The science center puts scientific content into context in order to promote public understanding, but this artificial context created to achieve a certain understanding is far from the real context where science itself is located, and ‘useless’science naturally abandoned during the selection of displayed contents. As Durant said, what can be seen in a science center is always the ‘science to be discovered’, while other scientific content unnecessary for the public to understand will not be put in a science center.

2) Science and Technology Museums: Carry History and Describe Science

The long tradition of museum in the UK has given the public a clear understanding of it, and history-oriented science display has become one of the deep-rooted expectations of visitors to science and technology museum. The differences of display ways proposed by Durant are still the criteria for judging whether a museum is a science and technology museum or a science center. However, the difference between the two is not only reflected in the display ways and the function of collection, but also the background of the birth. The duty of science center is to communicate science, while most of science and technology museums in the UK are derived from the remains of industrial heritage, and the collection agencies are gradually opening up to the public for their own survival, eventually forming a public-oriented work style. The emphasis is that these exhibits are not collected for the purpose of display, but more for judgment of historical value. Compared with art museum and natural history museum, science and technology museum is not very special in museums,[24]but has the functions of cultural relics collection and historical research previous to science communication.[25] Although traditional museums pay more and more attention to public science education, this derivative function has not subverted the museum tradition.

Collection and historical research are the unique functions of science and technology museums, but these traditional functions determine the inevitable difference in communication content between museum and science center to some extent. The public education of museum cannot be separated from the display of existing collections, which determines that even if the museum is committed to making science related to contemporary life through display, a series of statements on certain discipline or technology are necessary. As an essential element of exhibits, the collections limit the curatorial range and story context, while the historical research on collections further limits the narration style of museum based on historical facts. A collection is given the historical value of science by museum in collection process. The presentation of such value always needs to return to the historical situation in which it is located, which makes all the scientific knowledge displayed in museum become historical knowledge and lead visitors to view science historically.

Another main content characteristic of science and technology museums comes from the characteristics of collection work. Science center can select scientific content for exhibition or activity design to convey the knowledge and idea they wanted to express. Global science and technology events can be the exhibition objects of any science center. Science and technology museums have gradually introduced the science of other historical traditions into exhibition hall, but the characteristic of collection work relying on accumulation enables the local scientific tradition still the main content of museum. The Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester demonstrates the contributions of Manchester to industrial revolution. The London Science Museum is dedicated to demonstrating scientific and technological achievements of UK, therefore the country’s scientific image has become an important goal in the process of exhibition. Similar to the history research of science and technology, any kind of diversified view of science always requires an in-depth understanding of certain traditional science prior to reviewing the history through change in perspective. Therefore, the science collection of science and technology museums based on local cultural traditions is the important basis for expanding global perspective.

The functional orientation of science and technology museums is clearer and the form is more mature. Although science center has a relatively clear definition, it is more like a product of conception. Even the mature science centers in the world are still making new attempts to explore the connotation of science center. Museum is an important reference frame when judging the exploration of science centers. Such relation enables science center more like an extension of museums rather than a complete separation from museums.

3) Different Views of Science Between Science and Technology Museum and Science Center

The views of science embodied by science and technology museum and science center are different to some extent, and such difference also affects the public understanding of science.

(1) View of science of science and technology museum

The key difference between science and technology museum and science center is to represent two kinds of sciences, that is, to represent science from different evolvements. In terms of collection function, the age-old artifacts have the value of cultural relics, which is not different from the collection of other categories of museums, and is one of the symbols of museums. In terms of historical value, the collections, as unique historical data, still have high representation value, and can provide unique visual impact or providing model for replica.[26] 56 Therefore, the significance of collection for representation is irreplaceable:if the stories of science museums in connection to the ancient and modern allow people to see the way evolution of understanding nature and transforming nature, collections makes the story provided with irreplaceable historical basis rather than just being told.

Certainly, the story told by museum is more close to the reality not because of representing the science with historical evolvement. Since the wide variety of museum collections, some donated collections are eventually accepted by museum because of the collector’s personal preferences, resulting in no uniform standard for historical value of collections. However, the diversity of history itself enables the exhibition of science and technology museums not limited to conclusive historical stories, causing possibility of statement in various ways instead so that the museum can make open description on science. If the donated collections reflect the collector’s historical understanding on science, the museum gathering collections will become a historical data library integrating works of numerous historians. History is restored by combining the historical data, science is not only the power for promoting development of human society but also a monster which may bring disaster.

(2) View of science of science center

Since the rise of public understanding of science in 1980s in the UK, the importance of the public participation in science, right to know about science and participation right to related policy making have been emphasized continually.[18], [27], [28] In recent years, surveys on the public have further highlighted British emphasis on public participation in science, especially the public’s interest and attitude on science have received continued attention.[29] The contemporary science that gradually develops into the cause of the whole nation certainly needs public support. The understanding and participation of the public also provide certain guidance for the progress of science; however, the science is limited to tool attribute by linking science with national development and economic construction. The UK’s latest report on public attitude to science in 2014 shows:[30]

People do not consider science as a way of thinking in most case.

. . .

The vast majority of the public believes that science is beneficial and can provide people with more convenient life.

Obviously, the public understanding on science reflects the judgment of tool attribute, they believe that science is the means of providing convenient life rather than a way of thinking. The public participation in science and technology museums forming a contrast; as indicated in the report in the past year:

67% of the public participated in science-related culture or recreation activities, among which, 40% have visited nature reserve, 39%visited zoo or aquarium, 23% visited science museum, and only 13% visited science center.

It can be seen that the public is neither disinterested in exploring nature, nor down-hearted on historical display of science, they just don’t think that above are constituents of science. The image of science in their minds is clear and single, and it doesn’t require much attention as a tool to improve life; people are more inclined to spend their leisure time on the exploration of nature and the attention to history rather than link these contents with science.

4. Summary on UK Case

1) Evolution of View of Science for Science and Technology Museums in UK

The summary of changes in content and form of science and technology museums in UK can be regarded as the evolution of view of science in the past few hundred years ultimately. At the beginning of birth, science and technology museum is similar to other types of museums, which is a comprehensive space for cultural relics collection, historical accumulation and wisdom gathering. The science in museum is reflected as the achievement gathering of great ideas. Therefore, the displayed content in early stage is not different from the stacking of monuments, and the scientific communication based on this highlights the important role of science culture relative to other cultures. With the continuous integration of science and technology, the tool attribute and economic value of science have become increasingly prominent, making knowledge dissemination an important factor for affecting innovation and controlling comprehensive national strength. Under such era background, science communication not only plays a role in spreading a culture called science, but also makes more people understand and participate in science, and achieve the utilitarian appeal of improving national strength through the maximum use of social resources. When science and its communication are increasingly being rethought by researchers, the rationality of communication itself and the selection of communication content are re-examined. Just as the London Science Museum, it begins to pay attention to non-western traditional science, such change reflects the regression to the cultural attribute of science. With such view of science, the history-oriented science display is no longer as old and boring as the scholars who emphasize public participation, but possesses a new cultural connotation through repeated examinations of history, so that people can view the science culture of UK regardless of the scientific tradition of UK.

What is noteworthy is that most of the early science centers were born in cities that already possessed science and technology museums. Science center emerged in an augmented manner, at least it did not result in subversive impact on the view of science of traditional museums at the beginning of birth. Figure 1 shows the classification of natural history museums based on represented co content and labeling is made according to the order in which each type of museum is born. Science center and science and technology museum are often referred to as science and technology museums in the industry, and the sum of garden museums including natural history museum, zoo and botanical garden, and aquarium is called natural science museum. As a new form of museum, science center naturally occurred in the corresponding historical stage, adding the science content represented in museums. The relative perfection of other representation forms is an important prerequisite. The scientific centralization of science and technology museums can only form the filling of the fourth quadrant in Figure 1 under such prerequisite.

2) In the UK: Two Views of Science Coexist, and the Types of Science and Technology Museums Vary

Seen from the situation in UK, the emergence of science center has expanded the displayed content of museum, allowing the visitors to see a more diversified science. The science and technology museum built at the end of the 19th century shows the physical culture of science to the public, but it prefers to show the benefits and inspirations brought by the science rather than considering whether the public understands it. Visitors are deemed as accepting the words of scientific authority rather than interacting directly with nature itself. Such a tradition makes the science and technology museum in UK tend to describe the achievements obtained in the past while ignoring the contemporary science which has been changed. The lack of change in representation way of science not only leads to a one-sided statement of science, but even overstates the authority of the museum itself. Definitions and choices are always contained in science communication. Contents exposed to the public not only include ‘facts’, but also those considered scientific (by some people).[31] In this sense, the science center brings at least some other contents considered as scientific (by others).

The main problems of science and technology museums in UK are: first, the collections, as museum-specific physical materials, limit the representation way of science to a certain extent while providing materials, and the emergence of scientific center is obviously a supplementation to this limitation. For example, Frank Oppenheimer was influenced by the Children’s Gallery in London Science Museum, prompting him to lead the establishment of Exploratorium many years later; however, the Science Museum itself was limited by too many collections, and it was difficult to make major reconstruction in space. Second, the collections largely guarantee the authenticity of scientific characterization, but when the collection-based display becomes an authority, it will also cause the deviation from scientific communication content in the museum.

Although the scientific centralization trend of science and technology museums in UK is becoming more and more obvious in modern times, the boundary between museum and science center is still relatively clear. New science centers, represented by Glasgow Science Center and @Bristol, are mostly deemed as an activity center and convention center for teenagers rather than a museum. Science and technology museums, represented by London Science Museum, Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, and Thinktank in Birmingham, have arranged exhibition halls in the existing space as the children’s activity center or interactive experience area without changing the original major display areas. For the UK, which has large-scale collections, the scientific centralization of science and technology museums can be regarded as a balance to the authority of traditional museums. The presentation of two views of science enables the museum and science center to jointly provide a more complete scientific picture, thus forming a more diversified view of science.

3) Outside the UK: Relationship Between the View of Science and the Type of Science and Technology Museum

In China, the thinking to functional orientation of science and technology museums and the understanding of scientific culture need further investigation. By 2014, the number of science and technology museums in the whole country had reached 409, and it is still growing at a faster rate.[32] 31 The science and technology museum in China is equivalent to the science center in western countries,[33] 52 corresponding to the fourth quadrant in Figure 1, while the science and technology museum corresponding to the third quadrant has developed slowly. In terms of the growing demand for science popularization in China, although the science and technology museums, as important infrastructures, have achieved remarkable achievements for the promotion of public understanding of and participation in science, the reflection of view of science by museum has not received enough attention behind the functions of display and education. If the display and teaching method of science center provides a more efficient means for public participation in science, the science and technology museum still holds an important position to show a distinctive view of science in a certain geographical or cultural context. For a museum in the name of science, the view of science shall not stop at the simple copying of the cognitive style of scientific community, nor portray science as merely a tool for achieving purpose, but be based on the deep thinking of research approaches such as history of science, philosophy of science and sociology of science as well as the accurate mastering of local science and culture. However, unlike the attributes of tools, these dimensions of science have not been naturally considered by the constructors of science and technology museums in China, instead, they have been repeatedly ignored due to deliberate misinterpretation of western advanced cases.

The science and technology museums in UK show various milestones that can represent the scientific image of the UK, which is based on the recognition and understanding of the unique scientific culture of the UK, that is, the reflection on view of science born in the context of British culture. By analogy, the lack of foundation of industrial revolution is not a key factor hindering the construction of science and technology museums in the backward countries; the lack of excavation of treasures in their own cultural context is an insurmountable gap in the construction of science and technology museums;a view of science stemming from continuous research and exploration rather than from following the herd is more precious than the industrial heritage that China lacks. Only with such a view of science, can the science and technology museums and science centers continue to spread more comprehensive, vivid and real science and lead the public to understand, participate and reflect the science, rather than just‘allowing’ the public understand science. Only with such a view of science, can the scientific centralization of museums endow the original intellectual space with new vitality.

5. Conclusion

According to the multi-angle cognition to scientific centralization of science and technology museums in UK and reflection on their influences, and in combination with the current research achievements of scientific communication theory and the analysis on current situation of the British empirical investigation, the researchers believe that with the deepening of scientific communication research, it is very necessary to research the science and technology museums, as well as specifically research the roles of museums and science centers in science communication, which is of great significance for us to understand the issue of science communication more comprehensively. However, the research on science and technology museums and science communication at present needs further study in the following aspects.

First, in the context of the scientific centralization of science and technology museums, the emphasis on attributes of scientific tools is far greater than that on the attributes of culture. As science and technology museums become more and more important in science communication, such a single communication orientation will hinder the public to understand the science comprehensively and deeply. Second, as far as the practices of science and technology museums, it can be seen that the construction and development of domestic science and technology museums (science centers) have received sufficient attention, while those of other types of museums such as natural history museums and science museums have received less attention. On the contrary, in the UK, the birthplace of public understanding of science, the communication at different levels like scientific culture, scientific thought and scientific spirit has received sufficient attention from science and technology museums; the parallel development of various museums also provides a basis for the communication of diversified scientific culture. Finally, the supreme goal for the science communication of the museum is always meeting the demands of the public. However, with the improving scientific quality of citizens, the increasingly diversification and rapid changes in public demands have brought more challenges to science and technology museums.

When we recognize that the science and technology museum plays an important role in shaping the public cognition to science, we will pay more attention to the scientific centralization of science and technology museums, make a research on corresponding museum history and scientific communication, and propose the advantages and communication effects of various science and technology museums on the basis of theoretical research, thus making it conform to the scientific communication concept advanced with the times and become a more ideal scientific communication mechanism.

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