Find your way and identify our exhibitions & scientific activities (levels 1 ans 2) Hello! Welcome to the heart of the permanent and temporary exhibitions of the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie. For this presentation of the exhibitions and scientific activities, please stand in the middle of the central footbridge, near the red rescue helicopter, on level 1. Take a look around you, and to begin, look for the four large hanging signs that indicate the titles and locations of permanent exhibitions. The other signs, which include pictures, indicate temporary exhibitions. We offer an average of five per year. Now turn to the fully glazed south façade. It allows you to enjoy the magnificent view of the Géode and the Parc de la Villette. The exhibitions located along this façade are dedicated to industrial activities, from the viewpoint of innovation and sustainable development. To your left: - At the Greenhouse level, you will find an exhibition and an experimental area concerned with nature and our environment. In the Bio-Inspired: another approach (Bio-inspirés, une autre approche) exhibition, you will discover how nature can be a source of inspiration, helping us to make our industrial, agricultural and societal future sustainable and remain respectful of the ecosystems of other species. Under the mezzanine, in the BioLAB, you can contribute to collaborative projects concerning microbiology and the environment, and interact with our scientific explainers. - Behind the Greenhouse, the Transport and Mankind (Des transports et des hommes)exhibition presents progress in the area of sustainable mobility. You will find many models and a driving simulator. The exhibition opens with a work by Pierrick Sorin, The merry-go-round (Le manège), which features a parade of modes of transport, real or imaginary, and characters who are none other than our visitors themselves. - Further on, Energy (Energie) addresses a major 21st century challenge: how to meet the growing energy requirements of 9 billion people, while reducing the environmental impact. You will find a range of large objects that reflect the industrial reality of energy: wind turbines, photovoltaic panels, Pelton wheels, and so on. Along the south facade, on your right: - The Robots exhibition offers an overview of robotics from its origins, and the opportunity to interact with about twenty machines. Learn to identify them, understand how they work, discover their uses and imagine the future they are preparing for. Then attend the show offered by two industrial robots handling the letters of a word that I will not reveal to you.... It is a work by Aurélien Bory. - Further on, Earthwatch: the Satellite Revolution (Objectifs Terre, la révolution des satellites) invites you to enter the heart of space applications and discover space and Earth as you've never seen them before! In this exhibition, you will find the famous "water rocket" which will delight our young visitors. These five exhibitions are permanent. Now turn to the north façade, opposite the glass façade. You will find many permanent exhibitions devoted to scientific topics organised into 3 hubs. On level 1, on your left, the first hub includes Sounds (Les Sons) and Mathematics (Mathématiques): - You can see the yellow façade of Sounds, which explores the physics of sound, the voice, hearing and the diversity of the sound world. In this exhibition, for example, you can experience fun remote communication using two large sound parabola. - Further on, in Mathematics, many interactive exhibits provide a concrete expression of abstract ideas. The exhibition begins with a demonstration of the famous "Pythagorean Theorem" and ends with a magnificent, chaotic display: the Turbulent Fountain. In the "Inertial merry-go-round" (Le Manège inertiel) at the centre of the exhibition, familiar phenomena will suddenly seem strange to you... At the end of the central footbridge, you will find the entrance of Science in the News (Science Actualités), an exhibition that is updated every three months. To the right of Science in the News, a second hub begins which is dedicated to the fundamentals of human biology: - Man and Genes (L’Homme et les gènes) leads you through the history of the discovery of the genome, and the history of the role of genes in the heredity and evolution of species. These discoveries have led to many applications in genetic engineering that raise both hopes and fears today. - Further on, the Brain (Cerveau) exhibition reveals the extraordinary sophistication behind our everyday activities. Between these two exhibitions, you will be able to visit “Pinhole”: Representations of Space (Sténopé ou la représentation de l’espace), an entertaining display of the multiple effects and illusions of the representation of space in perspective. The third hub, devoted to the physical sciences, is represented by The Great Story of the Universe (Le Grand Récit de l’Univers), to your left on the second level. This exhibition invites you to investigate the origin of matter. You will go back in time to the formation of the first atoms, more than 13 billion years ago. The visit continues on a mezzanine where the great physical theories that have shaped our knowledge of the Universe are presented. You can discover two works there. The Way Things Go (Le cours des choses) is a video by Peter Fischli and David Weiss, which shows objects rolling, colliding, exploding and bursting into flame... The second work, Northwest Space (Espace Nord-Ouest), by Felice Varini, consists of a large circular mirror suspended in a void and bright yellow and red lines on the walls and beams of the building. At a precise location, these features are recomposed into two concentric circles. It's up to you to find the unique point of view that will put you at the centre of the work! Beside The Great Story of the Universe is a video games area! The E-LAB is a permanent exhibition that is renewed each year, where you can play, but also enjoy optimal experiences, while taking part in research. This unique place explores video games in all regards: their technologies, their purpose and their impact on society. Finally, I recommend that you visit the planetarium, on level 2. Its cylindrical façade is decorated with coloured neon lights, a work by Jacques Monory: Memory (Souvenir). Relaxing beneath a large dome, you can travel from planet to planet, contemplate the stars and transport yourself to the far reaches of the Universe, to better understand it. As you can see, you are spoilt for choice. In addition to exhibitions, scientific activities (workshops, creative science performances and more) are scheduled regularly. To help you choose according to your tastes and profile, our reception staff can provide you with advice, and leaflets are available in the reception area. My advice: choose only two or three exhibitions or scientific activities, and take a cosmic break at the planetarium. I hope you have a very pleasant visit.
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