Home > KIDS & FAMILIES > Goose Bumps! The Science of Fear

• Tweet
• Outlook
• ICAL
• PRINT
• Email
• Feedback

• RSS

• Official Website
• Buy Tickets
• Add to My Favorites
• Check for Discount Tickets

Goose Bumps! The Science of Fear

Presented by Arizona Science Center at Arizona Science Center

January 31-September 6, 2010

Comment on Facebook

Why do our hearts race, our knees shake and our bodies sweat when we are scared? Arizona Science Center's newest featured exhibition, Goose Bumps! The Science of Fear, explores the science behind this universal emotion through fun, family-friendly interactive challenges, and neurobiological and emotional responses.

The 6,000 square-foot exhibit, developed by the California Science Center and sponsored locally by J.P. Morgan and Chase, includes immersive environments and full-body, interactive experiences that allow guests to test their own fears and rate their physiological responses. Leading scientists and their current research on the neurobiology, physiology and psychology of fear are also featured throughout the exhibit.

In addition to exhibit elements, Arizona Science Center will engage guests through live demonstrations that further explore the science behind fear. Taking a deeper look into the concept of Fear Conditioning guests will experience an innate fear and track their own physical response changes as they are 'conditioned' to their fear. A Brain Cart will familiarize guests with the fear response and its effect on the body and brain using interactive neuron models that identify and track how the fear message is transmitted through the body.

Goose Bumps! begins with the Fear Challenge Course, where visitors can face four common fears in a safe environment. The first challenge, Fear of Animals, dares guests to reach into concealed terrariums that might be the home of creepy-crawly creatures. In the next room, Fear of Electric Shock, visitors may feel their heart pounding as they anticipate getting zapped by a jolt of electricity. In Fear of Loud Noises visitors test this innate fear that helps keep us out of harm's way. Finally, the Fear of Falling challenge allows guests to experience a sudden loss of support and then watch a video recording of their reaction to the backwards drop.

Another exhibit highlight is the Fear Lab, a section which explores the brain's structures and pathways that drive the fear response. Visitors will meet Mr. Goose Bumps, a larger-than-life figure that illustrates, through animation, how the brain and body work together in response to danger. Real brains and brain slices preserved through the process of plastination are on display showing similarities in a key fear structure in the brains of humans and animals.

Other thematic areas in the exhibit include: Faces of Emotion, Fear in the Wild, Fear and Society, and Coping with Fear.