After Dark: California Coastal Sounds
The Exploratorium is your playground after dark! Wander the galleries, sip a cocktail, and choose your own adventure with 600+ interactive exhibits. Peek into our workshop for exhibits in development and the tools and machines that help bring them to life. And don’t miss The Great Animal Orchestra, our summer exhibition featuring a symphony of wildlife sounds from around the world, made visible through real-time spectrograms.
Listen carefully to the secret sounds of the animal world. In this collection of videos created by scientist Karen Bakker she takes you up close to five species and their fascinating sounds, and the stories of how scientists have studied them. Drawing from her book The Sounds of Life, Karen invites you to listen for more than buzzes from bees, reflect on the depth of the “elephant dictionary,” and learn how some plants communicate health through sound—as well as the many ways digital technologies are offering new ways for humans to hear and understand these sounds.
Karen Bakker is a Canadian scientist and author known for her work on digital transformation, environmental governance, and sustainability. She teaches at the University of British Columbia and is currently a visiting professor at the Harvard Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.
What’s the difference between mono, stereo, and surround sound? Join us for an exercise in listening closely to nature and separating different elements in a busy soundscape. Then get ready to be transported to natural soundscapes all over California, from the coast all the way up to the Sierras.
The Nature Sounds Society is a worldwide organization whose principal purpose is to encourage the preservation, appreciation, and creative use of natural sounds. The Society promotes education in the technological, scientific, and aesthetic aspects of nature sounds through its programs and a diverse network of contacts.
Food and drinks will be available for purchase at our Seaglass Restaurant and additional bar locations.
