I enjoyed the hands-on lie detector exhibit at the Science Center, as well as the device that would precisely measure your height just by standing beneath it. There's also a bed of nails for brave folks to try out!

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

The first floor of the Center features working geyser models and--for an additional fee--a Segway tour. Newton's alley has a lot of classic hands-on physics exhibits. I didn't learn much of anything new in this area, but it was fun to play around and apply or demonstrate simple principles. The Your Body exhibit was more interesting, offered more learning opportunities, and had more unique exhibits. The best exhibit featured an interactive lie detector, so make sure to bring a friend. The instructions ask that your try to guess a number that your partner is chosen, but it's also fun to ask embarrassing or nagging questions for which you've been dying to know the truth.

It was a fun, although half the exhibition areas were kind of boring. But that allowed us to spend more time in the areas we enjoyed instead of rushing to see everything. I recommend it.

Maryland is hot in July, and we were impressed by how much shade was provided throughout the outdoor exhibitions. We never felt like we were being scorched by the sun, and that allowed us to maintain a good pace, see all the animals, and not feel absolutely drained by the end of the day.

We enjoyed the outdoor giraffe exhibit and the indoor monkey exhibits the best. A few of the monkeys were behaving rather strangely; what began as a curiosity became somewhat sad as we continued to watch.

Some tips:
- Definitely take the tram when you first arrive, unless you're a serious nature buff.
- The giraffes provide the best photo opportunities when they're outside, and it's fun to watch the polar bears and otters play in the water--separate water, of course!
- The children's area is also well designed and offers plenty of opportunities for them to learn and play at the same time.
- The polar bear exhibit has an air-conditioned Arctic transporter. It's very refreshing.

The best part of the aquarium is the large shark-and-ray tank on the first floor, which can be seen from every floor of the building. There are also convenient moving walkways to transport you up to the next exhibits. The worst part is the separate building that features dolphins and frogs. Both exhibits were lacking. I learned more about animals by reading the factoids posted in the walkway between the buildings than I did in the buildings themselves.

In general, the Aquarium was very crowded, and discourteous people (especially little children) really detracted from the experience. Most of the exhibits were small and uninteresting, and I found myself having to put forth a lot of effort to figure out what I was looking at and what I was supposed to learn about it. If the term can be applied to aquariums, this one was not very user-friendly.

The ticket lines can be very long, so I recommend getting there early. The tickets also specify at what time you may enter (in an effort to control the crowds). The earlier you arrive, it's more likely that your ticket entry time will be close to the current time and more likely that the crowds will be small once you actually enter the building.

One tip--when we were there, they offered a $5 discount for late entry in a promotion called Aussie Nights. It's a nice way to save some money, but I'm sure the larger crowd later in the day offsets the value of your savings.