There are more than a dozen museums on science and technology in Beijing, among them are the Chinese Science and Technology Museum, Geological Museum of China, Beijing Museum of Natural History, and China Aviation Museum. The last will be dealt with in a separate article.
CHINESE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MUSEUM
The museum, in the northern part of downtown Beijing, was opened to the public in 1988. It was the first comprehensive state-controlled science and technology museum in China.
Activities include popular science exhibits, Astro-vision film shows, training-based education programs and experiment-based exhibitions.
The museum covers more than 53,000 meters and boasts over 700 exhibits. The "Ancient Chinese Traditional Technology Exhibition" displays some of the technologies and processes, such as paper making and production of porcelain, that were invented by the Chinese.
In the "Modern Technology Hall," there are exhibits explaining the theories that underlie modern scientific thought and some important equipment that we use today. There are huge models of the universe, an exhibit explaining how a chronometer works, and information about telluric physics.
The "Science and Technology Hall" has a large vaulted ceiling that acts as a movie screen. A film about contemporary science is regularly shown.
Further Information:
Address: Anhua Bridge, North Third Ring Road
Opening hours: Usually 9:00 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. (Closed Monday); Ticket sales begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. During school summer vacations, during July 1-9 and Aug. 21-31, it opens for the whole week. From July 10 to Aug. 20, it extends its opening time by one hour.
Entry ticket: 50 yuan (about 7 U.S. dollars)/person
Telephone: 6237 9311; 6237 1177 ext. 7117 (for group ticket reservations)
Website: http://www.cstm.org.cn/
GEOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF CHINA
The museum, opened on Oct. 1, 1959, is the oldest geological museum in China. Its area is 10,000 square meters.
The museum has more than 100,000 geological specimens. Many of them are considered national treasures, such as "the Giant Shandong Dinosaur" fossil, which is the most complete dinosaur fossil extant in the world, the fossils of primitive birds and the dental fossils of Yunnan Yuanmou Man, which represent the earliest fossils of human ancestors found in China and East Asia.
The museum has five halls: geological resources, global history, stratum paleontology, mineral rocks and diamonds, with an exhibition area of 2,500 square meters.
Further Information:
Address: 15, Xisi Yangrou Hutong, Xicheng District, Beijing
Opening hours: 9:00 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. (Closed on Monday)
Entry ticket: 30 yuan/person
Telephone: 6655 7858
Website: http://www.gmc.org.cn/
BEIJING MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
The museum, in downtown Beijing, is close to the landmark Temple of Heaven. It was founded in 1951 and formally named the Beijing Museum of Natural History in 1962.
The museum occupies 12,000 square meters, more than 8,000 square meters of which are for displays. It has three main functions: specimen collection, academic research and the popularization of paleontology, zoology, botany and anthropology.
It was the first museum of natural history founded by China after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Today it is the most popular natural history museum in the country with more than 200,000 items, including collections emphasizing paleontology, ornithology, mammals and invertebrates.
The museum has a group of experts involved in research on zoology, botany, paleontology and anthropology. They collect specimens for research that is recognized worldwide.
Admission is free, but individuals must reserve tickets and entry times five days in advance by web or phone. Each visitor is allowed to reserve no more than five tickets every day. The museum's ticket reservation quota is 3,000 every day.
Further Information:
Address: No. 126 Tianqiao South Street, Beijing.
Opening hours: 9:00 a.m. -- 5:00 p.m. (last entry at 4:00 p.m.); from Tuesday to Sunday (closed on Monday).
Telephone number for reservation: 6702 7702
Website: http://www.bnhm.cn/
Source:Xinhua
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