The Health Museum

Surviving: The Body of Evidence

October 3, 2009 - January 3, 2010

© Copyright 2009 The Health Museum

All of our ancestors were successful in surviving the challenges of life and adapting to the world around them. Each of them inherited from their parents the characteristics that helped them to survive - through thousands of generations, and over millions of years, to us. In turn, we will pass on these features to our children and, through them, to our descendants.

This exhibit is about you and all your fellow humans. Your body carries evidence of many distinctively human features that changed in your ancestors through the process of evolution.

Fit for Life
See a dramatic video cascade of people doing typical activities that represent inherited human strengths and capabilities - such as Endurance, Flexibility, Balance, Dexterity, Appetite and Communication - crucial to our survival as humans.

Our Place in the Natural World
Trace human ancestors back through seven million years. Identify a shared ancestry with other mammals - through more than 55 million years with primates (our closest relatives), and much further back to a common ancestor of all placental mammals who lived over 210 million years ago. See how the scientific study of evolution has uncovered the ways in which humans fit into the natural world through images, fossils and interactive graphics.

Finding Your Human Ancestors
Trace the evidence regarding the evolution of our ancestors from discoveries made in Africa, Europe, and Asia. As pieces of the puzzle fall into place, a picture of human evolution emerges - dating back through almost seven million years. Enter a time tunnel of human evolution where touchable fossil casts allow visitors to reflect on their ancient ancestors as they discover the roots of our species.

Witnessing Evolution
Encounter some of the famous naturalists who have contributed to our understanding of evolution. Noticing many similarities between extinct fossilized remains and living animals, scientists soon realized that the fossils were evidence that animals had changed over time. It was from these careful observations that the idea of evolution originated. Hear dramatic re-enactments in the voices of those famous scientists, both past and present.

We Are Not Perfect, But We Are OK
Discover that our imperfect bodies are proof that we have not evolved to a perfect state - some of our imperfections have resulted from the way we have evolved. This section offers a dramatic surprise: The “Body of Evidence,” a 3x life-size recumbent figure of a woman. This interactive model presents an opportunity both to investigate some of the functions of the body while discovering its evolutionary past.

We Keep Evolving
Explore the impact of evolution both today and in the future. Advances in medicine, the advent of universal world travel, and other cultural changes have had a great effect on certain parts of the world. However, we have no idea how change in the composition of human populations will affect our evolutionary future. Visitors see various ideas on the future of human evolution, from those of schoolchildren to scientific experts, and record their own views.

Surviving was developed by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology. Curators are Dr. Janet Monge of Penn Museum and Dr. Alan Mann of Princeton University.

Admission to this exhibit is included with your CityPass ticket. For more details, please visit The Health Museum's Web site.