Final Report
July 1, 1996
July 1, 1996
After a successful year at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, Ocean Planet closed on April 30, 1996 to embark on its national tour. In this final report, I present information about visitation, educational programming and materials, publicity, and the results of the visitor studies.
The Ocean Planet project began in 1990 with the planning of the 1991 National Forum on Ocean Conservation. In the Forum, fifty-seven scientists, policymakers and other experts from around the world met to discuss our state of knowledge and frame the issues surrounding ocean conservation. Many speakers, advisors and participants also provided advice and reviews for the Ocean Planet exhibition.
The magnitude and diversity of Ocean Planet educational programming and publicity reached far beyond most major exhibitions. Staff of the Environmental Awareness Program and the National Museum of Natural History developed and hosted a diverse assemblage of printed materials and educational programs. The public education experience has been documented in a nearly 500-page report to the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. It is our hope that the report, which describes everything from how we recruited actors for a theater program to designs for children's craft activities, will encourage other Ocean Planet host sites and other marine educators to plan innovative educational programs. A variety of materials for teachers and students in grades K-12 have been distributed nationwide.
Ocean Planet Online was the Smithsonian's first major exhibition available on the World Wide Web, and it continues to be recognized as one of the most comprehensive exhibition sites available. The online version of the exhibition extends the reach of Ocean Planet internationally, to over 90 countries at last count. Over 200,000 unique machines have logged on to the program, which could represent 400,000 to 1,000,000 users.
Well over 100,000,000 people came in contact with Ocean Planet through articles, advertising inserts and electronic media produced by our corporate sponsor, Times Mirror Magazines. This publicity and other news coverage reached across the United States to audiences beyond the museum-going public.
Nearly 2,000,000 visitors passed through Ocean Planet during its year at the National Museum of Natural History, and the results of visitor studies conducted by the Smithsonian's Institutional Studies Office are particularly encouraging about the effectiveness of the exhibition. Most of our visitors walked away with a greater understanding of how healthy oceans relate to their lives, better comprehension of the threats to the health of the oceans, and knowledge of how to personally contribute to the future well-being of the oceans.
My only disappointment was the need to truncate Ocean Planet's national tour. As of June, 1996, the tour will include five museums and end in 1998. However, the publicity and educational efforts have served an enormous national and international audience and far exceeded the anticipated national audience. Staff at the Environmental Awareness Program continue to fill requests for information, and the research that supported the entire Ocean Planet project is being used in a variety of other national and international educational efforts.
The success of Ocean Planet is due in great part to the vast numbers of people and organizations that contributed support, information, materials, advice, review, and in many cases, sweat and tears. I owe a deep debt of gratitude to the people and organizations mentioned in this report, and many others who helped the project in innumerable ways.
Judith Gradwohl
Curator, Ocean Planet
July 1, 1996
Ocean Planet was produced by the Smithsonian Institution and received generous funding from:
Ocean Planet's National corporate sponsor was Times Mirror Magazines, Inc.
Times Mirror Magazines wishes to thank the following for their participation in the Ocean Planet project:
From April 22, 1995, to April 30, 1996, Ocean Planet, a major traveling exhibition, was on display at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. The culmination of a four-year effort to study and understand environmental issues affecting the health of the world's oceans, Ocean Planet employs cutting-edge computer animation, compelling objects and photos, and interactive displays to promote the celebration, understanding and conservation of the world's oceans. Ocean Planet will reach millions of Americans through its national tour, related publications, multidisciplinary educational programs and materials, and an electronic online companion exhibition.
The Ocean Planet exhibition was extremely well attended. During the year that the exhibition was at the National Museum of Natural History, more than 5.4 million visitors came to the museum. If an estimated one-third visited Ocean Planet, the attendance would be nearly 1.8 million people.
On May 8, 1995, the Smithsonian Institution unveiled an
electronic, online version of its traveling exhibition,
Ocean Planet. This electronic exhibition, located at:
http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ocean_planet.html
was the first of its kind for the Smithsonian and is still
one of the most comprehensive and advanced exhibitions
available through the Internet via the World Wide Web.
Ocean Planet Online is a joint project of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Smithsonian's Environmental Awareness Program. Lead staff on the project are Dr. Gene Feldman, NASA Oceanographer and principal developer of the online exhibition, and Judith Gradwohl, Curator of the Smithsonian's Ocean Planet exhibition.
Ocean Planet Online is organized around an interactive floor plan of the exhibit and incorporates all panel designs, text, graphics, video and audio from the three-dimensional exhibition. Both the exhibition text and the electronic "resource room" provide built-in links to other sources of oceanographic and marine science information available through the Internet, and include copies of educational materials, brochures and other publications developed for the Ocean Planet exhibition. Ocean Planet Online comprises more than 400 local "pages" or screens containing 1612 unique links to other local pages or other Web sites, with an overall total of 5543 links (that may be duplicated among the pages).
Online features of the electronic exhibition include:
Ocean Planet Online was selected as NCSA Mosaic's "Pick of the Week" for the week of May 8, 1995. A brief description of Ocean Planet Online and the URL were featured prominently on the top of the "What's New" page a frequent starting point for Web surfers. NCSA singled out Ocean Planet Online from more than 140 new sites listed on their "What's New" page for that week, and those sites are culled from the thousands of new sites which come online every week.
In June 1995, Ocean Planet Online was on Bill Nye the Science Guy's Top 20 Links home page, along with sites from NASA, Le Web Louvre, Buena Vista Pictures, Star Trek: Voyager, and the Smithsonian home page. The Reef, an Australian Internet design consultancy, lists Ocean Planet Online on their Cool Sites list, while the Ontario Science Centre includes Ocean Planet Online in its list of "Other Interesting Places to Virtually Be..." It has received rave reviews on the Web. Here's what the MidNet Community Information Network had to say:
Additionally, several organizations have included links to Ocean Planet Online from their own sites on the Web. Anyone visiting such diverse Web sites as the University of Hawaii at Manoa's School of Ocean & Earth Science & Technology, The Waterfront (a marine recreation site), Downtown Anywhere, the University of San Diego, the Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research in Utrecht, the Edmonton Space & Science Centre in Alberta, or the Busy Teacher's WebSite K-12 at Georgia Tech can now go directly to the Ocean Planet Online home page with the simple click of a mouse. Over 1,700 Web sites have links to Ocean Planet Online from across the United States as well as from countries such as Norway, Canada, Japan, Australia, Venezuela, and Poland.
The Ocean Planet site has been recognized as a valuable educational resource. During the month of September 1995, Ocean Planet Online was featured in the Eisenhower National Clearinghouse's Web site as one of the "Digital Dozen" sites they select each month as a physical or virtual resource useful to math and science educators for classroom use. The ENC also added it to their main listing of educational resources and there are links to Ocean Planet Online from several K-12 school Web sites. The September/October 1995 issue of Art-to-Zoo, an educational publication from the Smithsonian Office of Elementary and Secondary Education is now available online as well at http://educate.si.edu /art-to-zoo/oceans/cover.html . This issue focuses on the oceans and weather, and derives much of its information from the Ocean Planet exhibition.
Most recently, Ocean Planet Online received an exceptionally high rating of 9.5 out of 10 in the June 1996 issue of Science and Engineering Network News, accompanied by the following review:
"This is a great way to help educate students. It offers much more than boring classroom lectures, as well as "informational videos." This is the closest you can get to "hands on" without being there. It is great that schools will be able to access this with very little funds and equipment."
The following is the abstract of a visitor assessment study conducted by the staff of the Institutional Studies Office:
"This report presents the results of an assessment of the exhibition Ocean Planet at the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) in Washington, D.C. The study was based on personal interviews and observations of 978 visitors entering and exiting the exhibition in August and October 1995. Observations of 246 visitors recorded their activities in the galleries.
"The curator's decision to assume that the audience would be fairly knowledgeable about the importance of oceans and the problems they face was justified by the results. The results indicate, however, that the exhibition contents clearly modified the views of a number of visitors. This impact was relatively focused on a few specific topics. Visitors left the exhibition more cognizant of the products that oceans provide, more aware of how human activities affect the health of the oceans, more willing to change their consumption patterns to help the oceans, and slightly less hopeful about the future of the oceans (especially young people).
"We found that the exhibition reduced by one-third the small number of individuals who did not think that oceans affected their lives. The exhibition increased by over one-fourth (from 43% of visitors to 55% of visitors) the proportion of visitors who thought that the oceans affect their lives through its products. The exhibition more than doubled the percentage of visitors (from 14% to 32%) who characterized ocean problems as a consequence of "human actions." In addition, the tiny percentage of visitors who felt that oceans affect their lives through conservation issues rose from 3 percent to 10 percent. The exhibition nearly doubled the percentage of the audience that thought they could help the oceans by changing their consumption patterns (their proportion rose from 14% to 27%).
"We believe that these effects can be attributed to specific exhibition components. The Johnson Sea-Link video stood out in the Ocean Science section. There are indications that it may have led some visitors to learn something new. The Product Pyramid in the Sea Store section was quite popular and may have played a role in increasing the proportion of visitors who saw ocean products as a way the oceans affect their lives, as well as in leading visitors to consider changes in their consumption patterns.
"In particular, the Product Pyramid probably informed visitors about ocean products; the buoy panels influenced visitors emotionally, leading them to feel that human activities endangered oceans and that the future of oceans is in question. These two sections together contributed to the desire to change patterns of consumption."
The full report, Ocean Views, is available free of charge from the
Educational programs and materials to accompany the exhibition were developed both within the Smithsonian and by other interested educators. Smithsonian materials include pre-, post- and museum visit activities for grades K-5 and 6-12, Art to Zoo (a quarterly publication for teachers of grades 4-9 developed by the Smithsonian's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education), an Ocean Planet classroom activity guide for grades 5-9, and an annotated list of marine-related films and videos (see publications list, page 20).
The Sea Theater program was a collection of four short plays developed to accompany the Ocean Planet exhibition. The theater program, which ran from April 22 to August 13 and September 13 to November 26, 1995, was attended by nearly 25,000 visitors. This major educational component of the exhibition was both an experiment in museum theater, and an additional means of communicating exhibition themes to visitors. In a theater adjacent to the exhibition that seated about 60 people, six free performances were held daily, Wednesday through Sunday. The plays ranged in content, scope, and style and included puppet plays, storytelling, and participatory theater.
The Web Diner and Another Meal at the Web Diner: Everything is food for the customers at the Web Diner! These two humorous musical puppet plays introduced young children to the animals in an Antarctic food web. The audience joined Paul the penguin as he learned how to keep the orders straight at the Web Diner. Grades K-3.
Surf's Up: Surfers spend a lot of time in the water. They know where the killer waves break, and they also know when not to go into the water. The audience joined two teenaged surfers who found out that everyone has a hand in keeping coastal waters clean, even if they live far from a beach. Grades four and up.
Salmon Boy: Adapted from a Native American tale, this play follows the transformation of a young boy who does not care about the environment into a live salmon who sees the value of nature. Grades four and up.
Teacher Open Houses were held twice during Ocean Planet's tenure at the National Museum of Natural History: once in the spring just after the exhibition opened and again in the fall to coincide with the beginning of the school year. The events were held in the evening to allow teachers to attend and so outside organizations could participate and share educational materials and give demonstrations. The evenings included visits to the Ocean Planet and Exploring Marine Ecosystems exhibitions, as well as live performances in the Sea Theater.
The events brought in educators from the surrounding area to see the exhibition, and put the teachers in contact with representatives from local organizations who have developed educational materials especially for them. Teachers were able to pick up materials and meet these representatives. Some of the organizations participating were: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NOAA National Sea Grant Program, NOAA Office of Global Affairs, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA Public Affairs Office, Environmental Awareness Program, National Aquarium at Baltimore, American Meteorological Service, Center for Marine Conservation, National Museum of Natural History, Times Mirror Magazines, Coastal America, U.S. Geological Survey, National Aquarium, and Environmental Protection Agency. Others who sent materials but could not send a representative were Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, Kids F.A.C.E., Center for Marine Conservation, National Geographic, and National Fisheries Institute.
Two sets of classroom demonstrations took place as well. One group of demonstrators included teachers who had participated in the Project Ocean Planet Awareness teacher training program (see below). These demonstrations explored coastal marine life, changes in sea levels, and dissection of various marine animals. The second group was comprised of teachers from The MARE Project, a teacher training program developed by the American Meteorological Society. These demonstrations explored the relationship between the weather and our oceans. Demonstration topics included global winds and ocean currents, El Nio and our weather, and timing the tides.
Project Ocean Planet Awareness
Project Ocean Planet Awareness (POPA) was a program developed to train K-12 educators to use the Smithsonian's traveling Ocean Planet exhibition as an educational tool. The purpose of the project was to provide teachers with an appropriate level of understanding of basic oceanographic principles and issues. The teacher training program consisted of a series of five accredited courses based on Ocean Planet's major themes. Teachers were presented with basic principles, background materials, classroom exercises and other resources. The project was developed and implemented by the Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education (CORE), in cooperation with the Smithsonian's Environmental Awareness Program, Dr. James O'Connor, Professor of Geoscience at the University of the District of Columbia and member of the advisory group for Ocean Planet, the University of the District of Columbia and the D.C. Public Schools.
By introducing teachers to existing local marine education resources and helping them develop strong community ties in the marine education arena, POPA will remain with Washington, D.C. teachers long after the exhibition leaves the area. Content and activities presented in the program conformed to the new systemic reforms in the D.C. public school system, and introduced teachers to the scientific, economic and environmental issues underlying ocean conservation.
All aspects of POPA were administered by CORE staff. CORE obtained funding for POPA from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the National Science Foundation, handled course publicity and registration and oversaw the logistics of implementing the courses at local schools. CORE is actively pursuing funding to extend POPA courses to each Ocean Planet tour site.
Ocean Planet Discovery Cart Program
Funding from the Smithsonian Women's Committee supported the design, construction and programming for the Ocean Planet Discovery Cart Program. Two different activities were created for use with the carts. One focuses on marine geology and the other on marine life.
Marine Organisms. This activity is an investigation into the living world within the sea. More than fifteen different organisms are among those that the public can handle, investigate and ask questions about. In this presentation, docents discuss the incredible diversity of life in the sea, echoing one of the main themes of the exhibit. This activity is conducted in the exhibition section called PharmaSea, as many of the organisms discussed have beneficial or therapeutic uses for humans. By making connections to everyday life, docents conducting this activity can help Ocean Planet visitors to understand some of the many reasons to value the oceans.
04/19/95
04/21/95
The Smithsonian Associates sponsored numerous events in celebration of oceans and associated with Ocean Planet.
04/20/95
Ocean Planet: Writings and Images of the Sea Edited by exhibition curator, Judith Gradwohl, and featuring original writing by Peter Benchley and reprinted essays by twenty other authors, Ocean Planet: Writings and Images of the Sea is an anthology that follows the themes of the exhibition. Objects and photographs from the exhibition are featured in 120 illustrations and 95 full color plates. The book was published by Harry N. Abrams Inc. and released with the opening of the exhibition in April 1995.
The Wealth of Oceans Written by Michael Weber and Judith Gradwohl and published by W. W. Norton, this book provides a comprehensive overview of environmental issues that affect the health of marine ecosystems. The Wealth of Oceans is oriented toward policy makers and college students, and was also released in April 1995.
Ocean Planet: Multidisciplinary Marine Science Activities The Smithsonian Office of Elementary and Secondary Education also produced this sixty-four-page curriculum guide for middle and secondary grades. The guide explores undersea geography, ocean currents, different types of ecosystems, water pollution, stranding of marine animals, oceans as a source of consumer goods, and the sea's influence on language and culture. The booklet contains background information, six complete lessons plans, activity sheets, maps and photographs. The guide is $5 per copy and will be available in Fall 1996.
To order copies of these publications, write to the Smithsonian Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Arts & Industries Building 1163, MRC 402, Washington, D.C. 20560.
The Ocean Planet is an eight-page, newspaper-styled family guide to accompany the exhibition. The family guide is organized under typical newspaper sections (finance, entertainment, letters to the editor, etc.), and was distributed free at the National Museum of Natural History. It offers family activities related to the exhibition, provides information about ocean-conservation issues, and includes a list of resources for ocean information. Regional editions of the family guide will be available at the Ocean Planet tour sites. The Ocean Planet was produced by the Environmental Awareness Program and sponsored by the National Marine Fisheries Service. 500,000 copies will be published. Copies of the family guide may be obtained from the Environmental Awareness Program.
The Ocean Planet Filmography is a listing of engaging, informative, and entertaining films and videos inspired by the oceans and was compiled by the Environmental Awareness Program. The films are organized in four categories Conservation/Environment, Feature/Art, People/Cultures, and Science/Nature and are indexed alphabetically as well as by geographical area, classroom grade level, and species. Although not a comprehensive film list, it provides a good starting point for those interested in the oceans, the life they support, and the human cultures they affect. Copies of the filmography and information on organizing an environmental film festival may be obtained from the Environmental Awareness Program.
02/14/94 New York Times: Times-Mirror Widens
Environmental Push (Deirdre Carmody)
02/23/94 Washington Post: Smithsonian Dives Into
Corporate Partnership
02/25/94 Washington Times (Arts): Into the Deep
04/94 The Torch: Ocean Planet Exhibition
Planned for Museum of Natural History
01/06/95 Washington Post (Calendar): This Year's
Museum Crop: Ocean Planet
01/16/95 Publisher's Weekly: listing of Ocean
Planet: Writing and Images of the Sea
02/17/95 The Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL):
Autoshow Continues Through Weekend (Herald news Service)
03/95 Smithsonian Associates: Ocean Planet
(Mara Mayor)
03/24/95 Washington Post (Calendar): Smithsonian
Sampler! Ocean Planet
03/27/95 Publishers Weekly: review of The Wealth
of Oceans
04/95 The Torch: Ocean Planet Opens at MNH
(Randall Kremer)
04/01/95 Booklist: review of The Wealth of
Oceans (Gilbert Taylor)
04/04/95 USA Today: Series on the Seas Honors
Earth Day (Discovery Ocean Planet Programming)
04/08/96 Associated Press (Religion): Season
Brings Holy One's Biography' (Ron Berthel) book review of
Ocean Planet: Writings and Images of the Sea
04/12/95 Washington Post (Horizon): Tracking the
Health of the Ocean Planet (Louise Levathes)
04/16/95 Los Angeles Times (Book Reviews): reviews of
Ocean Planet: Writing and Images of the Sea and
The Wealth of Oceans
04/19/95 United Press International (DC Wire):
Press Preview Event
04/20/95 Associated Press (Washington):
Smithsonian Ocean Exhibit Opens April 22
04/20/95 Washington Times (Calendar): Our Living Oceans
04/21/95 Washington Post (Weekend): Earth Day
Celebrations, Exhibit Openings, Celebrating Mother Earth,
Ocean Planet is Here!
04/21/95 Washington Hispanic Metro: Exposicion
que celebra El Dia de la Terra'
04/21/95 Baltimore Sun (MD): Smithsonian Pools
Troubling Facts for Exhibit on Endangered Oceans (Kevin Galvin)
04/21/95 USA Today: Oceans Make a Splash at
Smithsonian (Gene Sloan)
04/21/95 News & Record (Greensboro, NC): Ocean
Exhibit to Open April 22 at Smithsonian (AP)
04/21/95 The Press (Atlantic City, NJ):
Smithsonian's Ocean Planet to Flood Visitors
with Sea Facts (Associated Press)
04/21/95 The Beacon Journal (Akron, OH):
Smithsonian 'Ocean' Exhibit Is Opening (AP)
04/22/95 The Journal (Sioux City, IA):
Smithsonian Shows off Ocean (AP)
04/22/95 Washington Times (Calendar): Today's
Best Bets Ocean Planet Ahoy
04/22/95 Hampton Chronicle-News: Ocean Planet:
Wonders of the Sea in an Essay Collection (Scott Straus)
04/22/95 Washington Post: Ocean Planet a Modest
Splash (Curt Suplee)
04/23/95 Call (Allentown, PA): Waves of Visitors
Expected at New Smithsonian Exhibit (Randy Kraft)
04/23/95 New York Times (Book Review): Ocean
Huggers reviews of Ocean Planet:
Writing and Images of the Sea and The
Wealth of Oceans (Bill Kent)
04/24/95 U.S. News and World Report: Ocean Planet
04/26/95 Chicago Tribune: Smithsonian Sails the
Seven Seas (Michael Killian)
04/27/95 El Pregonero: Institucion Smithsonian
Present a Ocean Planet (Jose Carnevali-Doun)
04/27/95 New York Times (Metro): Pearl-Buttoned
Tradition Lives On (States News Service)
04/27/95 The Potomac News (Woodbridge, VA):
Smithsonian Exhibit Explores Deep (Chris LaSonde)
04/28/95 Washington Post: Water, Water Everywhere
(review by Hank Burchard)
04/28/95 El Tiempo Latino (Cultural Y Espectculo):
Caminando en El Ocano (Marcela Snchez Fonseca)
04/30/95 The Mobile Register (AL) (Metro): Kids,
Crabs and Cockleshells (Jeff Hardy)
04/30/95 The Chicago Sun Times: A World of Oceans
(Gannett News Service)
04/30/95 The Gazette (Janesville, WI):
Smithsonian Sails the Seven Seas With New Exhibit (Knight-Ridder)
04/30/95 The Times-News (Kingsport, TN):
Smithsonian Unveils Ocean Planet Exhibit (Knight-Ridder)
04/30/95 The Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, WI):
Smithsonian Exhibition
04/30/95 The Chicago Tribune: A Good Thing: A
Match Made in the Ocean Ties Culture, Commerce (Michael Kilian)
Spring 95 Smithsonian Institution Research Reports:
World Wide Web
05/95 The Forecast (Bridgewater, NJ): Ocean
Planet: Writings and Images of the Sea
05/04/95 The Ledger-Enquirer (Columbus, GA):
Mobile Kindergarten Teacher Gets Her Lessons in
Smithsonian Exhibit (AP)
05/05/95 Washington City Paper: Exploring the
Undersea Realm: An Ocean Film Festival
05/05/95 Washington Post (Weekend's Best): Sea
Cinema (Larry Fox)
05/07/95 The News Tribune (Woodbrdige, NJ):
Wonders of the Deep
05/07/95 The Item (Sunbury, PA): Exhibit Explores
World's Oceans (Michael Kilian)
05/07/95 The Ledger-Enquirer (Columbus, GA):
Ocean Planet Opens at Smithsonian (Michael Kilian)
05/07/95 The Eagle (Reading, PA): Exhibit Shows
Diversity of Ocean Life (Hank Burchard)
05/07/95 The Tribune-Democrat (Johnstown, PA):
Ocean Planet Exhibit About the World's Oceans
05/08/95 Business Week (Marketing): The Spirit of
St. Louis, Brought to You by Ford: Corporate Sponsorship
at the Smithsonian Institution (Richard S. Dunham)
05/11/95 The Alexandria Gazette Packet (VA):
Smithsonian's Ocean Planet: Invitation to Take
Action (Darrell Stover)
05/11/95 Washington Post (Buzz): Cyber
Smithsonian (Rob Thompson)
05/12/95 El Tiempo Latino (Cultura y Espectculos):
Inters Especial: 'Planeta de Ocanos'
05/14/95 The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City, OK):
Dazzling Exhibit at Smithsonian Explores Oceans of the
World (Michael Kilian)
05/14/95 The Register (Des Moines, IA): Ocean Exhibit
05/15/95 Government Computer News: Web Site Offers Visitors
One Whale of an On-line Exhibit (Shawn P. McCarthy)
05/15/95 Library Journal: review of The Wealth
of Oceans (Jean E. Crampon)
05/19/95 El Tiempo Latino (Cultura y Espectculos): Inters
Especial: 'Planeta de Ocanos'
05/21/95 San Jose Mercury News: Writing by
Nature: Environmental Movement Confronts Age, book review of
The Wealth of Oceans (Susan Salter Reynolds)
05/28/95 Asbury Park Press (PA): All You Ever
Wanted to Know About Oceans & More (Michael Kilian)
05/28/95 Pioneer Press (MN): Cyber Smithsonian
05/28/95 Tampa Tribune-Times: review of The Wealth of Oceans
05/29/95 Insight: Smithsonian in Cyberspace
(Laura Outerbridge)
Sum 95 Current Waves (The Water Foundation):
Ours is an Ocean Planet
Sum 95 Socioeconomics News (American Fisheries
Society): review of The Wealth of Oceans
Sum 95 Outdoor West (FWOC): review of The Wealth of Oceans
Sum 95 CASTME Journal: review of The Wealth of Oceans
06/95 Outdoor Life: Ocean Planet: The Book (Luce Report)
06/95 Quest: Educational Programs in the Fall
Calendar (National Museum of Natural History)
06/95 Oceans Day Network Newsletter (Canadian Wildlife Federation)
06/95 The Torch: Smithsonian's New Home Page
06/95 Sea Technology Magazine: Ocean Planet
Exhibit Celebrates Ocean Diversity
06/95 World News Features: review of The
Wealth of Oceans (Gordon M. Quarnstorm)
06/06/95 Los Angeles Times (National
Perspective): Smithsonian Flows with Corporate
Tide (Robert L. Jackson)
06/09/95 U.S. Dept. Of Commerce News: United
States, Canada Holds First Joint 'Oceans Day' Celebration
(press release)
06/11/95 Washington Post (Book World): The Wealth
of Oceans (book review)
06/17/95 Washington Citizen: Ocean Planet (Sherry
Sundick)
07/95 Chesapeake Bay Magazine: Water, Water
Everywhere review of The Wealth of Oceans
07/95 The Good Book Guide (Vol. 79): Ocean Planet:
Writings and Images of the Sea
07/95 Conde Nast Traveler: Ocean Planet:
Writings and Images of the Sea (Strawberry Saroyan)
07/95 Lloyds List, London: Custodians of Our Underwater
Riches review of The Wealth of Oceans
07/95 Sea Technology, London: review of The
Wealth of Oceans
07/09/95 Financial Times (Weekend): Trouble on
the Ocean Waves, review of The Wealth of Oceans
07/28/95 Texarkana Gazette: Waters Hold Riches:
Book explores link between ocean, environment, economic
future (Lyn Blackmon)
08/95 Glamour: The Serenity of the Sea (Peter Benchley)
08/95 Country Living: Visions of the Sea
08/95 Maritime Traveler: Ocean Planet: Writings
and Images of the Sea
08/95 Sailing: Ocean Planet: Activating the
Conscience (Sally Smaida)
08/95 Sailing: review of The Wealth of Oceans
08/95 Future Survey (World Future Society): review of
The Wealth of Oceans
08/10/95 The Washington Times (Weekend): Keeping
Cool: Wave Heat Away Inside Aquarium or at a Museum
(Kate Mulligan)
08/20/95 The Washington Post: Pixels at an Exhibition:
Washington Takes the Lead in On-Line Culture
(Jacqueline Trescott)
09/95 Field & Stream: Ocean Planet book review
09/95 Samvirke (Denmark): Havet ven og fjende (Ellen Bick Meier)
09/95 Signals: book review of Ocean Planet:
Writings and Images of the Sea (Bill Richards)
09/95 50 and Forward: Ocean Planet Exhibition
Comes to the Smithsonian (William O. Craig)
09/95 NEA Today: Kids, Crabs, and Cockleshells
09/03/95 Eugene Register (OR): book review of
Ocean Planet: Writings and Images of the Sea (Faris Cassell)
09/03/95 The Washington Times: review of The
Wealth of Oceans (Jonathan H. Adler)
09/95 Coastweeks 95 (C.M.C.): Coastweeks 95 at the Smithsonian
09/18/95 Smithsonian Education Update: Ocean Festival
09/22/95 Washington City Paper (Events): Ocean Festival
09/22/95 The Washington Post Weekend's Best: Ocean Festival
Fall 95 Allied Whales News: Allied Whale in Washington
10/95 Smithsonian Marine Station Newsletter: The Year in Review
10/95 Goddard News (NASA - Greenbelt, MD): Smithson Medal
Awarded (Ernie J. Shannon)
10/95 Smithsonian Magazine: Around the Mall and Beyond
(Museum Without Walls) (Michael Kernan)
10/95 Islands: Waterworld (Kerry Blankenship Allen)
10/95 New Texas Magazine: Have to Have a Habitat
(Marybeth Gradziel)
11/05/95 The Washington Post Education Review:
Learning About the World From Your Mouse (Mark Bechtel)
11/10/95 The Courier-News: Bridgewater-Raritan
Kids Taking Show on the Road (Barbara Bowers)
11/10/95 Washington City Paper (Arts): Consuming
Interests (Philip Burnham)
12/95 The Martha's Vineyard Times: Students
Create With Ocean Products
12/02/95 Financial Times (Weekend): My book of
the year for 1995 review of The Wealth of Oceans
(Michael Thompson-Noel)
12/07/95 The Springfield Times Courier: For Hunt
Valley Students, A Whale of an Experience (James A. Madison)
Win/Sp Quest: Special Exhibitions Feature Oceans, Antiquities
and Insects 1996 (National Museum of Natural History)
01/96 The Torch: Don Gourley keeps MNH Webs and Gophers (Ana Acosta)
01/19/96 The Washington Post (Weekend): Pixels at an Exhibition
(Hank Burchard)
06/96 The Torch: A Whale of a Time (Richard Strauss photo)
07/96 Illustreret Videnskab (Denmark): Gummisko afsl rede havstr mme
(Ole Hoffmann)
Back to Table of Contents Talks and Tours
04/03/95 Talk: National Ocean Industries
Association Annual Meeting (125 people) (JAG)
04/06/95 Talk: D.C. Consortium of Environmental
Educators (45 people) (KML)
04/07/95 Tour: Julie Packard, Executive Director,
Monterey Bay Aquarium (JAG)
04/11/95 Tour: Secretary Heyman, Marc Pachter,
Counselor to the Secretary for Electronic Communications
and Special Projects (JAG)
04/12/95 Tour: Casey Keller, Producer of Beakman's World (JAG)
04/17/95 Tour: Admiral Watkins, President, Consortium for
Oceanographic Research and Education, Undersecretary
Constance Newman, Anna Martin, John Berry (JAG)
04/21/95 Tour: Donor, artist and family members
associated with A Rural Basket Maker in Japan exhibition,
with Donald Ortner and translator (10 people) (KML)
04/25/95 Tour: Phelps High School General Biology
(30 people) (KML)
04/28/95 Talk: NMNH Friday Noon Lecture in Baird
Auditorium (50 people) (JAG)
04/30/95 Talk and Tour: Smithsonian Magazine
advertisers (100 people) (JAG)
05/95 Tour: Georgetown University Environmental and
Cultural Studies Seminar, English as a Second Language Class
(20 people) (KML)
05/02/95 Talk and Tour: NMNH Paleontology Hall
docents (30 people) (JAG)
05/03/95 Talk and Tour: Young President's
Association (45 people) (JAG)
05/05/95 Talk and Tour: Treasures of the
Smithsonian group (70 people) (JAG)
05/05/95 Tour: Link family (requested by Mary
Rice) (JAG)
05/08/95 Talk: Smithsonian Institution Corporate
Members (100 people) (JAG)
05/16/95 Talk and Tour: South Florida Fair and
Expositions staff, Palm Beach, 1995 theme is
Oceans: A World of Wonder (8 people) (JAG)
05/16/95 Talk and Tour: Women's Aquatic Network
(20 people) (JAG)
05/17/95 Tour: Multidisciplinary Curriculum
Planners, Fairfax Public Schools (5 people) (KML)
05/18/95 Tour: Keith Bashford, CSIRO, Australia (JAG)
05/18/95 Tour: Staff from PowerHouse Museum,
Sydney, Australia (2 people) (KML)
05/22/95 Talk: Ocean Coalition (8 people) (JAG)
05/23/95 Tour: Jim and Puchie Romig, Executive
Board of Bishop Museum, requested by Donald Ortner (JAG)
05/24/95 American Association of Museums Annual
Conference, Theater in Museums: More is Better.
Presented the Ocean Planet Theater Program as part of a
panel discussion on theater in museums (200 people) (KML)
05/19/95 Talk and Tour: Office of Elementary and
Secondary Education Summer Workshop Environmental
Education and D.C. Public Schools (30 people) (KML)
05/31/95 Tour: Prince Georges County Public
Schools, 3rd grade (25 people) (KML)
06/02/95 Talk and Tour: Consultative Group on
Biological Diversity preceding one day meeting at
NMNH on ecological effects of aquaculture (40 people) (JAG)
06/02/95 Tour: Aidan Montessori School, first
grade students and parents (15 people) (JAG)
06/04/95 Talk: Underwater Explorers Society (by
Michael Lang, Smithsonian Institution Diving Officer)
06/05/95 Tour: Portuguese Ambassador, Fernando
Andresen Guimar es and delegation from Lisbon for Expo '98,
following lunch at the embassy (6 people) (JAG)
06/06/95 Tour: Michael Savidge, Presidio Project,
National Park Service (JAG)
06/08/95 Tour: Alex Trebek, host of Jeopardy! (JAG)
06/08/95 Online Tour: IBM Asian-Pacific Group and
Museum of Ethnography in Osaka (5 people) (JAG)
06/95 Tour: Andy Acho, Vice President, Ford
Motor Company (JAM)
06/13/95 Tour: District of Columbia Public School
Teachers (25 people) (KML)
06/14/95 Tour and Talk: NMNH Highlights docents
(25 people) (JAG)
06/14/95 Talk: Christopher Parsons, Parsons Films
and Environmental Recording Archive
Project (JAG)
06/20/95 Tour: Ruth Boorstin and grandchildren (3
people) (JAG)
06/22/95 Talk: Michele Conger, University of
North Carolina at Wilmington (JAG)
06/23/95 Talk and Tour: U.S. Presidential
Scholars Program, Scott McVay, executive director,
Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation (150 people) (JAG)
06/26/95 Talk: Jill Fallon, director of
Boston-based aquaculture support group (JAG)
06/28/95 Talks and Tours: Principal's Center for
the Garden State, Congressman Rodney Frehlinghuysen,
Scott McVay, executive director, Geraldine R. Dodge
Foundation, Sylvia Earle, CBS Sunday Morning film crew
(75 people) (EAP staff)
06/30/95 Tour: Dennis Hough, writer for Fresh
Water and Marine Aquarium (LAM)
07/06/95 Talk: Kiwanis Club of Prince Georges
County (25 people) (JAG)
07/06/95 Tour: George Mason University Summer
Camp (60 students) (KML)
07/17/95 Tour: Environmental Delegation from
South Africa (8 people) (JAG)
07/19/95 Talk and Tour: Baleen vs. Toothed
Whales, Junior Associates course (15 people) (BAJ)
07/20/95 Talk and Tour: Baleen vs. Toothed
Whales, Women's Committee and Tom Lovejoy (20 people) (BAJ)
07/20/95 Tour: Women's Committee raffle winner
group, Thomas Lovejoy (14 people) (JAG)
07/20/95 Talk: Robert Boone, President, Anacostia
Watershed Society (JAG, KML)
07/21/95 Talk and Tour: Baleen vs. Toothed
Whales, Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (75 people) (BAJ)
07/21/95 Tour: Sue Philips, marketing agent for Elizabeth Taylor (JAM)
07/21/95 Tour: National Museum of American History staff
(5 people) (KML)
07/26/95 Tour: Teach Baltimore (50 people) (KML)
07/27/95 Tour: Charline Dindo, Ocean Planet hero (LAM)
07/28/95 Tour: Milwaukee, Wisconsin Public School
teachers (5 people) (KML)
07/28/95 Tour: Hanike Hanson, wife of the Chief
of the Allied Forces of Central Europe (5 people) (JAG)
07/30/95 Tour: Three generations of the Rollins family of
Atlanta (donors to the Museum, owners of Orkin Pest Control
and Rollins Security) by David Pawson, Acting Director of NMNH.
07/31/95 Tour: Roger Perry and Mrs. Perry, Board of
Directors of Bermuda Biological Station (JAG)
08/01/95 Talk: Smithsonian Singles Summer (The Smithsonian
Associates) about the making of Ocean Planet
(250 people) (JAG)
08/03/95 Tour: Exhibit development staff of
Children's Museum of Raleigh, N.C. (KML)
08/04/95 Tour: Director of Science, Minnesota
Science Museum (KML)
08/11/95 Talk: Tony Davis, Neil O'Hare, Sunburn
Pictures, Australia (JAG)
09/05/95 Tour: Margie Mizrachi, Elena Lombardo,
Panama's Committee for the Establishment of a Science Museum (JAG)
09/05/95 Online Tour: Beyond 2000 Discovery
Channel TV crew from Australia (NPM)
09/07/95 Online Tour: Dennis Minty, Project
Director, Environmental Science Project, and Elaine McNeil,
Program Coordinator, International Services, Saskatchewan
Institute of Applied Science and Technology (NPM)
09/13/95 Tour: Sue Cook, Director of Education,
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Research Institute (KML)
09/14/95 Online Tour: Dr. S. M. Nair, Advisor,
Education & Communication, World Wide Fund for Nature, India (NPM)
09/14/95 Online Tour: Mikhail B. Gnedovsky,
Senior Researcher, Center for Museum Planning & Design,
Russian Institute for Cultural Research (NPM)
09/18/95 Tour: Ann Woods, author of children's
books on the environment (KML)
09/30/95 Information table: Youth Conservation
Day, sponsored by the Izaak Walton League, Poolsville, MD (KML, LAM)
10/03/95 Tour: John Englander, Chair of Ocean Futures Foundation
(JAG)
10/04/95 Tour: Anthony Anderson, Ford Foundation,
Brazil (JAG)
10/11/95 Tour: Neca Marcovaodi, Conservation
International Pamar Project (sea turtles)
(JAG)
10/15/95 Talk: Georgetown University Environmental &
Cultural Studies Seminar, English as a Second Language Class
(20 people) (KMC)
10/19/95 Tour: Frank Hoch, Michael McBride, SI National Board (JAG)
11/02/95 Tour: Mitsubishi Corporation executives (6 people) (JAG)
11/30/95 Talk: Kansai Keizai Doyuki (25 members of Kansai
Electric Power Company, SI Corporate members) (JAG)
12/01/95 Talk and Tour: SI Women's Committee (60 people) (JAG)
12/06/95 Tour: John Farrington, Vicky Cullen, Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution (JAG)
12/13/95 Tour: Maria Beckett, Revelation and Environment (JAG)
12/13/95 Talk: American Fisheries Society (30 people) (JAG)
12/12/95 Talk: In support of Consortium for Oceanographic
Research and Education's effort to bring Project Ocean Planet
Awareness to San Francisco (30 people) (KMC)
02/01/96 Talk: Smithsonian Institution History Roundtable
(75 people) (JAG)
03/05/96 Talk: Intermedia Conference (Ocean Planet Online) (JAG)
03/11/96 Online Tour: Daniel Schwabe, Catholic University,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (JAG)
04/05/96 Talk: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced
International Studies (15 people) (JAG)
04/22/96 Talk: World Wide Web exhibit group NMNH (20 people) (JAG)
06/12/96 Talk: Watershed 96 conference,
Baltimore, MD (1,500 people) (JAG)
06/26/96 Talk: National Museum of the American
Indian, New York, NY (20 people) (JAG)
06/26/96 Talk: The Seaman's Church Institute, New
York, NY (20 people) (JAG)
06/27/96 Talk: Mark Goodson Theater, New York, NY
(15 people) (JAG)
06/28/96 Talk: South Street Seaport Museum, New
York, NY (50 people) (JAG)
BAJ = Beth Jewell
JAG = Judith Gradwohl
JAM = Johnna Miller
KMC = Kathleen Connolly
KML = Karen Lee
LAM = Leila Murphy
NPM = Naina Mistry
Back to Table of Contents Curatorial Interviews
04/12/95 U.S. News and World Report (by phone), Dana Hopkins
04/14/95 Island Magazine (by phone), Kerry Allen
04/19/95 Good Morning America (with Peter Benchley, at exhibition),
Charlie Gibson
04/19/95 Ukrainian Voice of America (by phone), Phil Staruch
04/20/95 Ocean Planet Press Preview (at exhibition)
04/24/95 The Alexandria Gazette Packet (at exhibition),
Darrell Stover
04/26/95 Mobile Register/ Knight Ridder (by phone), Jeff Hardy
04/27/95 National Fisherman (at exhibition), Pam Glass
05/01/95 Television crew from Wisconsin (at exhibition)
05/05/95 The Herald Journal Syracuse, NY (by phone), Mark Weiner
05/09/95 Atlantic Monthly (by phone), Marty Hergert/Catherine Rath
05/10/95 CBS Radio Charles Osgood (at exhibition), Alex Van Coss
05/12/95 Philadelphia Enquirer (at exhibition), Julia Klein
05/22/95 Washington Citizen (at exhibition), Shari Sundig
05/24/95 Chesapeake Magazine (by phone)
05/26/95 Smithsonian Institution Research Reports (by phone),
Holly Hammett
05/31/95 Sailing Magazine (by phone), Sally Smayda
06/01/95 Association of Science and Technology Centers Newsletter,
Ron Stanley
06/08/95 The Australian (Australian national newspaper), Peter Fries
06/08/95 Harper's, Ian James
06/28/95 CBS Sunday Morning film crew, Cathy Lewis
09/05/95 Beyond 2000, Australian TV weekly science program,
Peter Reese
04/03/96 Stern magazine, Thomas Borchert
05/09/96 America West inflight magazine, Molly Rose Teuke
Back to Table of Contents National Tour
The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service
(SITES) exhibited Ocean Planet at the National Museum of
Natural History from April 22, 1995, to April 30, 1996.
SITES will circulate Ocean Planet between August 1996 and
December 1998. Bookings as of June 1996:
The Presidio of San Francisco August 17 to October 20, 1996
San Francisco, California (possible extension to
March 15, 1997)
Bishop Museum May 17 to October 5, 1997
Honolulu, Hawaii
California Museum of Science and Industry January 24 to April 19, 1998
Los Angeles, California (not confirmed)
Museum of Science and Industry May 23 to August 15, 1998
Chicago, Illinois
Museum of Science September 19 to Dec. 13, 1998
Boston, Massachusetts
Back to Table of Contents
gene carl feldman (gene@seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov) (301) 286-9428
Judith Gradwohl, Smithsonian Institution (Curator/Ocean Planet)
Ocean Planet Home Page