Nature on Display
This exhibit was intriguing because of the atmosphere and the way that the nature was portrayed. Coming from an urban city, I have always been surrounded by big buildings and a materialistic lifestyle. After visiting this exhibit, I realized how unappreciative I've been about the natural beauty of the world around me. This exhibit captured my attention because it was so unfamiliar to me, rarely have I been surrounded by endless ground of trees. From this exhibit, I learned that the universe is so vast. Although the exhibit was created on a two-dimensional medium, the artist had put such a great perspective on the exhibit, making me feel as if I were physically in that environment. If the exhibit did not have this 3-D perspective, it would have lacked the ability to make the viewers feel submerged in the art. The art being portrayed through this medium also made me realize that there is so little that I know about nature. Within this exhibit alone, there were so many different trees, plants, and organisms within the ecosystem. It truly makes me wonder just how much life there is out there that we have yet to discover. What I enjoyed most about the museum was that there was impeccable detail within each exhibit, but there was still such a great deal of variety.
Nature and Ethics
The exhibit with the bug in the plant and the Butterfly Rainforest both provided me with the experience to truly embrace all the little things in nature. Seeing the exhibit of the large bug in the even larger plant reminded me that nature plays a bigger part in our lives than we realize. We are constantly surrounded by interactions in nature that we never truly stop to think about or appreciate. In that exhibit, I did as Leopold advised and loved, respected, and admired the land. Insect and plant interaction is responsible for so many of our life processes, such as food resources, and we are often ungrateful for such small interactions that create such a significant impact. The Butterfly Rainforest provided me the experience to love, respect, and admire nature by fully submerging myself into it. Although I was standing in this manmade exhibit, I could not help but take in all the wildlife in their natural habitat. Rather than feeling as if I was a mere observer of the environment, I genuinely felt as if I were a part of it. Going through the Butterfly Rainforest, I suddenly felt as if I had been lacking this aspect of appreciation in my life. I felt so at peace with myself and in that moment, forgetting about all the stress I had about school and other things and took in the environment for all that it had to offer. I found it amazing that all these organisms could co-exist in one ecosystem. Going through the museum, I realized that I don't need to come to a museum to gain appreciation for all this nature, but rather just step outside and become a part of it. Looking around at people, specifically in the Butterfly Rainforest, other people seemed just as intrigued by the exhibit and the nature of it. I feel as if this indicated that we are all somewhat a bit unappreciative of the nature we are constantly surrounded by. The museum allows visitors to connect with nature by providing very detailed exhibits, making people feel as if they are actually in that time and place, giving them as much of a full experience as they can. My experience in the Butterfly Rainforest exhibit and the museum overall has inspired me to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle. After viewing all the beauty that is around us, I cannot imagine how plain life would be without all the nature.
Nature and the Human Spirit
The Natural History museum helps us delve deeper into the world and the world's history around us. The exhibits take us through different life forms and shows us all the evolution that the natural world has gone through and not how much the world has changed, but also how the change has impacted our lives. It helps us better understand who we are by bringing us closer to our past. The more that we understand our past, the more we know how to act in the future. Seeing the evolution also reminds us that we all started from the same place, and through time, we all just became more individualized. When we step out of our ordinary lives and truly appreciate all the nature around us, we get more information on how to think about all the mystery and majesty of the natural world. We get the chance to appreciate all the natural evolution, advancements in technology, science, and medicine that allow us to view these changes and live life the way we do.