All that’s disgusting, sticky and foul-smelling about the human body and how it functions make for an unusual but educational museum visit for children in Paris.
“Crad’expo”, at the Cite des Sciences et de l’Industrie in northern Paris, employs the vocabulary of young children to describe flatulence, faeces and urination for example, “to dare to speak of things that one does not usually speak of”, organiser Perrine Wyplosz told reporters.
Playful though scientific, the exhibition which opens on November 30 and runs until next August aims to teach youngsters about the human respiratory and digestive systems.
Visitors can play pinball machines, scoring points for “farts” by hitting marbles on the spots marked “bean” or “cabbage”, or climb the epidermis wall where the grips are spots or warts.
The “Vomit Pump” demonstrates how a human being throws up, while activating sprays emits the odors of smelly feet, armpits, the anus and mouth.
Bodily noises are not ignored either. Press a button to hear the gurgling of the stomach, or enter the gigantic nose or the “food toboggan” to slide along the digestive system.
“The scientific side complements always the playful part,” Wyplosz said.
Each activity is accompanied by simple explanations on where bodily secretions and excretions come from, as well as the origins of gas or the forming of spots. Screens show the inside of the body thanks to endoscopy.
The displays give children “a realistic science of the body in a way that is certainly not polite but not incorrect or indecent”, said Philippe Grandsenne, a paediatrician associated with the exhibition. – AFP