Science Tourism: Paris ideas
I’ve been to Paris twice, but the first time I was only about 5 and the second time I was 16. So my memory is a bit foggy on what I did and saw.
But the hubby and I will be going to Paris next week to celebrate our anniversary!
So I can’t vouch for any places but am compiling a list. Perhaps when I get back I can write up something with more commentary.
La Cité des Scienceset del’Industrie
This is apparently one of the largest and most impressive science and industry museums in the world. It is modern, entertaining, informative, and interactive.
Said to be filled with fascinating historical artifacts of science, technology, architecture, and science and truly a hidden gem of Paris and to those who have any interest at all in technology, engineering, and science.
Located right off the Champs-Élysées. There are exhibits on Astronomy, Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Geosciences, Life Sciences, and Astrophysics.
An exhibit on the history of computing. There are displays of old computing devices and an exhibit on the history of the Internet and the World Wide Web. There are also stunning views of Paris from the top of the Grande Arche.
Largest national center for research in astronomy with guided tours of the observatory.
Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace (Air and Space Museum)
It is indeed on this airfield established in 1915 for the purposes of the war, the airlines will launch, in 1919, the first links to Brussels and London.
Musée des Arts et Métiers de Paris
Museum of historical science and technology with old science apparatuses.
It occupies the south wing of the first building of the Institut Pasteur, which was inaugurated on 14 November 1888. Founded in 1936, this museum preserves the memory of the life and work of Louis Pasteur in the large apartment he occupied the last seven years of his life in l888 to 1895. The museum also includes memorabilia room scientific illustrating the work of the scientist and the funerary chapel in the Byzantine style which was buried Louis Pasteur.
A mathematical institute in Paris which has established itself over its eighty year history as an important meeting place for French and international mathematicians and theoretical physicists. The Institute hosts seminars and quarterly and half-yearly themed programmes for visiting scholars through its Centre Emile Borel, maintains an extensive library, and houses many of the French national scientific societies in mathematics and physics.
The sewer museum may be out of sight, under the streets of Paris, but it’s worth a visit, especially if you’re familiar with Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables, or if you’re fascinated with the offbeat. The city’s current sewer network was begun in 1850, although some rudimentary pipes were laid earlier, under order of Napoleon. The visit, dotted with explanatory panels and dredging equipment, takes you around a maze of tunnels and sewer pipes. You likely won’t want to make it a long one, as the smell can be off-putting. The entrance is in the riverside gardens the Quai d’Orsay and the Seine. Closed 2 weeks in Jan. METRO: Alma-Marceau (and cross bridge) or RER Pont de l’Alma
The Catacombs gather the remainders of approximately six million Parisian, transferred between the end from 18e century and the middle from the 19e century, progressively of the closing of the cemeteries for reason of insalubrity. Along a labyrinth of obscure galleries and narrow corridors , the visitor discovers the bones laid out in a “romantico-macabre” decoration. Pillars, bells of subsidence or bath of feet of the quarrymen evoke the origin of the places, the limestone quarries, while sharpening the curiosity of the visitor. This underground museum restores the history of Parisian and invites to a voyage out of time.
Hunting Museum (Maison de la chasse et de la nature)
Where else can you get a picture at the base of a narwhals tusk at a ceiling covered with goat antlers. The collections illustrate the relationships between man and his natural environment, including through the traditions and practices of hunting. They are organized around three basic themes: hunting instruments, from the beginning until today, the products of hunting: trophies and stuffed animals in Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America and representation of wildlife and hunting through the ages through works of art including paintings, prints, sculptures, tapestries, ceramics and furniture pieces.
The museum testifies to the richness and diversity of the French craft of winemaking, through an exposure to tools and objects used to work the grapevine and the wine. The collection is showed in an old setting from the Middle Ages and arranged later in storerooms by the Tiny Brothers of the Convent of Passy.
Music Museum is a unique site within the Cité de la musique that harbours a collection of musical instruments, works of art and scale models covering four centuries of the history of Western music and presenting an overview of the main musical cultures throughout the world.
Musée de l’Erotisme
A sex museum in Paris devoted to the erotic art collections of antique dealer Alain Plumey and French teacher Jo Khalifa. Founded in 1997, the museum is situated in the Pigalle district of Paris, at 72 Boulevard de Clichy. The collection ranges from the ancient religious art of India, Japan and Africa right up to contemporary art with an erotic focus. There are five floors, including a basement exhibition. One floor is devoted to maisons closes, the legal brothels of the 19th and early 20th century. The film Polisson et galipettes is shown; it is a collection of pornographic shorts formerly exhibited in the maisons closes. The upper two floors have revolving exhibitions, mainly of contemporary artists.
Considered one of the world’s greatest maritime museums, this Parisian institution details France’s sea-going history beginning with the 18th century. Among the holdings are a vast collection of model ships, maritime artwork, a replica of an 18th-century vessel, the French Navy’s last sailing ship, and artifacts crafted of ebony, ivory and silver. METRO: Trocadéro
With exhibits highlighting Paris from Neolithic times to the present day, this museum has a broad historical range. A variety of collections includes memorabilia from the French Revolution, archaeological treasures, paintings, sculpture and rare furniture, often presented in panelled period rooms. Museum holdings are housed in the spectacular “Carnavalet” and “Pelletier de Saint-Fargeau” mansions, which have been restored to period authenticity (15th to 19th centuries). METRO: Saint-Paul (line 1), Chemin-Vert (line 8)
Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle
Highlights nature and science. The museum includes the Royal Botanical Gardens, a menagerie including reptiles and birds,a gallery dedicated to paleontology and, of course, the wonderful Grande Galerie de l’Evolution. Hours and admission vary with the specific destination.
In the spacious wings surrounding the Courtyard of Invalides, the Musée de l’Armee presents an impressive collection of early weapons, armour, military equipment and uniforms, as well as impressive film footage from World War II. Mementos from Napoleon’s era can be examined, and visitors may also view plans of French military campaigns. In addition, a number of exhibits from the late Gothic and Renaissance periods are particularly intriguing. METRO: Latour-Maubourg (line 8), Saint François-Xavier or Invalides (line 13)
Musée de la Mode et du Textile
The fashion museum presents temporary exhibitions from a collection that contains an astonishing 80,000 costumes dating from 16th century court costumes to today’s haute-couture designers. Plus, hundreds of thousands of fabrics chronicle the history of textiles going back to Antiquity. Closed between exhibitions. The premises in a wing of the Louvre also contain the decorative arts and advertising museums. METRO: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre, Tuileries, Pyramides
If currency and compensation intrigue you, this wonderful, informative museum tells the story of money in France. Its exhibits include collections of coins, medals, minting machines, and related tools that extend as far back as Roman times. Audio guides available in French, English, German, Italian and Spanish. The stately 18th-century building is the former French mint, where commemorative medals are still. Phone for details of tours of the ateliers. METRO: Odéon, Pont-Neuf
So, lots to do and I’m sure I’ll find more when I get there to come back and review. Please feel free to post any science in Paris ideas!
nerdoscientist.com 