Do you remember dioramas? They were the best. I want to jump on any excuse to grab a shoebox, fire up the hot glue gun (okay, dad handled it) and place plastic tigers and shrubs strategically in their little cardboard habitat. I may have learned something too, but it was extraordinary. I was a little god with a world of my own creation in my hands.
It is no different from the feeling of amazement I just see in my dining room watching a miniature prehistoric habitat come to life. That bit of magic happened thanks to Museum Alive, an iPhone app for augmented reality available today and narrated by none other than Sir David Attenborough. It’s an extension of him Natural History Museum alive film contains three interactive AR exhibits.
Each exhibit features an extinct animal in a recreation of its specific habitat. The app advises you to find and pinch a flat surface to enlarge the image to the right scale. Once finished, the habitat comes to life and begins a 3D animation with the narration of Attenborough. You can move your phone around for a different view while looking at a saber-toothed Smilodon orbit and deceiving its unsuspecting prey.
My only disappointment with the app is that there are only three of these AR exhibits. There’s a promise of an upcoming fourth addition of a dodo, but it’s not really clear if the app, which costs $ 2.99, will get updates. I can see that kids really like the experience, but they will probably lose interest shortly after exploring the three current exhibits. Maybe it’s the right time to stick out the shoeboxes and the hot glue gun.