AMNH Announces Schedule of Events for May 2015
Milstein Science Series: Sea Turtles
Sunday, May 3, 11 am-4:30 pm
Milstein Hall of Ocean Life
Free for Members or with Museum admission
Sea turtles are simply astounding: they lived alongside dinosaurs 150 million years ago, and still survive today. Playing a crucial role in our oceans' ecosystems, this incredible animal group is now endangered due to climate change, poaching, habitat destruction, and accidental capture in fishing gear. Learn more about these resilient aquatic creatures and the conservation efforts in place to protect them with Eleanor Sterling, chief conservation scientist for the Museum's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation; Wallace J. Nichols, scientist and New York Times-bestselling author of Blue Mind; Michael Coyne, executive director of seaturtle.org and moderated by Curator Mark Siddall. The event includes a live music performance by Bash the Trash, playing instruments made out of reused and repurposed materials.
The Milstein Science Series is proudly sponsored by the Irma and Paul Milstein Family.
SciCafe: Mollusks to Medicine
Wednesday, May 6
Doors open at 6:30 pm
Program begins at 7 pm
Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis
Free with cash bar
21+ with ID
Enter at 77th Street
Normally, when you think of venomous animals, you imagine snakes, spiders, or scorpions. Mandë Holford, a biochemistry professor at Hunter College, will discuss her research into relatively unknown marine snails also known as cone snails, the toxins they produce in their venom, and how those toxins may be used as therapeutics.
The SciCafe Series is proudly sponsored by Judy and Josh Weston.
This project is supported by the Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) program of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Identification Day
Saturday, May 9, Noon-5 pm
Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall
Free for Members or with Museum admission
Inspired by the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, the Museum celebrates the importance of natural history collections by inviting visitors to bring in their own specimens to the annual Identification Day. Bring your shells, rocks, insects, feathers, bones, and artifacts to be identified by Museum scientists and explore rarely seen objects from the Museum's collection. Scientists will attempt to identify your discoveries and provide a certificate of identification. Items identified in previous years have included a whale jawbone, a green-beetle bracelet from Brazil, and a 5,000-year-old stone spear point from Morocco.
Note: no appraisals will be given, and gemstones will not be identified.
A Planet for Goldilocks with Natalie Batalha
Monday, May 11, 7:30 pm
Hayden Planetarium Space Theater
$15 ($13.50 seniors, students)
$12 Members
"Not too hot, not too cold" reads the prescription for a world that's just right for life as we know it. Finding so-called Goldilocks planets and evidence of life beyond Earth is a goal of science agencies worldwide. Launched in March 2009, NASA's Kepler Spacecraft is exploring the diversity of planets and planetary systems orbiting other stars. Do Goldilocks planets abound? Kepler mission scientist Natalie Batalha will describe the endeavor's latest discoveries and the possibilities for finding inhabited environments in the not-so-distant future.
Humans as Animals: Primate Politics, Culture, and Morality
Thursday, May 21, 6:30 pm
Kaufmann Theater
$15 ($13.50 seniors, students)
Free for Members; reservations required at 212-769-5200
Science has uncovered major continuities between the social behavior of humans and primates. In this lecture, Frans de Waal will explore the similarities between humans and other primates in power politics, transmission of knowledge and habits, empathy, and sense of fairness.
Dr. Frans B. M. de Waal is a Dutch-American biologist and primatologist renowned for his work on the behavior and social intelligence of primates.
Spotlight Asia: Big Cats
Saturday, May 23, Noon-5 pm
Milstein Hall of Ocean Life
Free for Members or with Museum admission
Scientists might name an Amur tiger Panthera tigris altaica, Chinese children will call him laohu. Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) are the largest land predators in India, and for many Hindus the tiger is a symbol of power, as the tiger is the sacred transport of the Durga, the warrior goddess.
Come to the Museum for a day where nature, contemporary culture, heritage, and conservation are woven together in celebration and awe of Asia's big cats!
Spotlight Asia is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
Special thanks to the Ford Foundation. Support for Celebrate Culture programs is provided, in part, by the May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Inc., the Sidney, Milton and Leoma Simon Foundation, the family of Frederick H. Leonhardt, and The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation.
Astronomy Live: Dance of the Planets
Tuesday, May 26, 6:30 pm
Hayden Planetarium Space Theater
$15 ($13.50 seniors, students)
$12 Members
The evening sky of May 2015 will be exceptionally interesting because of its array of bright planets. Using the Zeiss IX Planetarium projector, Joe Rao, meteorologist, will demonstrate how the two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, slowly approach each other on the final night of spring for a spectacular conjunction. Meanwhile, shining sedately in the southern sky is the "Lord of the Rings," Saturn, displaying the best views of its rings in at least 10 years.
Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Horace W. Goldsmith Endowment Fund.
Museum Info
Hours
The Museum is open daily, 10 am-5:45 pm. The Museum is closed on Thanksgiving and on Christmas Day.
Admission
Museum admission is free to all New York City school and camp groups.
Suggested general admission, which supports the Museum's scientific and educational endeavors and offers access to the Museum's 45 halls including the Rose Center for Earth and Space, is $22 (adults) suggested, $17 (students/seniors) suggested, $12.50 (children) suggested. All prices are subject to change.
The Museum offers discounted combination ticket prices that include suggested general admission plus special exhibitions, IMAX/3D films, and Space Shows.
- Museum Plus One includes one special exhibition, IMAX/3D film, or Space Show: $27 (adults), $22 (students/seniors), $16 (children).
- Museum Supersaver includes all special exhibitions, IMAX/3D film, and Space Show: $35 (adults), $28 (students/seniors), $22 (children).
Visitors who wish to pay less than the suggested Museum admission and also purchase a ticket to attend a special exhibition, IMAX/3Dfilm, or Space Show may do so on site at the Museum. To the amount they wish to pay for general admission, they add $25 (adults), $20.50 (students/seniors), or $13.50 (children) for a Space Show, special exhibition, or IMAX/3D film.
Public Information
For additional information, the public may call 212-769-5100 or visit the Museum's website at amnh.org.
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