>I remain unconvinced by what I have read here that these
>experiences will have the depth of impact of actual objects.
>I'm sure that they will be popular, perhaps because they
>require so little of the participant.
 
No No No No No.   Virtual exhibitions will only succeed if they
are far removed from the vicarious, voyeuristic pleasures of movie
going.  If it is going to work, it had better interactive and
educational.  I worry a little that creating virtual worlds will
destroy what has been for me the joy of imagining what it might
have been like to live during a time when the world was, well,
different than it is now.  But I think that college can disabuse
you of some fanciful thoughts too.  Point is that virtuality, if
done right, can stimulate imagination while simultaneously educating,
closing the gap between fanciful and factual.
 
Also, virtuality should be part of an arsenal that a museum employs
to teach about our cultural/biological/artistic heritage.  I
think it is easy to paint these issues black and white, but
I do not see museums becoming movie theatres.  I see museum
incorporating aspects of technology that can help create the
holistic museum experience.  This does not necessarily mean
the death of imagination or the onset of passivity.  In fact,
I think the opposite is possible... an invigoration of museums
and the museum going experience.
 
Cheers,
 
Robert Guralnick   | Museum of Paleontology   | University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720 | [log in to unmask] | (510) 642-9696