What is a Museum?

Wherein we ask researchers, curators, scientists, docents, and visitors alike how they would define a museum.
What's your definition?! Let us know in the comments below!
Thank you to everyone who provided answers for this video; we couldn't do it without you!
Facebook: / thebrainscoop
The Brain Scoop is written and hosted by:
Emily Graslie
Created By:
Hank Green
Directed, Edited, Animated, and Scored by:
Michael Aranda
Filmed on Location and Supported by:
The Field Museum in Chicago, IL
(www.fieldmuseum...)
Enormous thanks to Katie Kirby, Esther Schmeiser, Martina Šafusová, Tony Chu, Andrés García Molero, and Seth Bergenholtz for providing the transcriptions on this episode!

[@BonDonnell]

For me, museums are dialogues. They are dialogues between knowledge-creators and knowledge-seekers, and that take place through the thoughtful acquisition, organisation, arrangement and display of a thematic diversity of objects.

[@AudreyBarbaraSanders]

"We can find answers to questions we didn't even know we had" is my absolute favorite definition of a museum from this video

[@rachelannpierce9751]

I get goosebumps whenever I see these new episodes. I've been there, I've lived there and as I learn things I've never thought of before, I flip through my own memories of going to the Field Museum, seeing behind the scenes with my 2nd cousin who works there, and being a child, a student, and now nearly an adult. A museum is a place where history lives. A place to learn about the past and create your own history in memories.

[@MrBristolian]

I love how passionate all the people are about museums. Warms my heart!

[@RoxanneRichardson]

It never occurred to me before watching the Brain Scoop that museums were research facilities. I always thought of them from the visitor's standpoint only: as a place where collections of various types (art, historical artifacts, natural history) were cataloged and put on display for people to see and learn something about, but I never thought about the behind-the-scenes aspect of a museum and the amount of research that goes on.

[@gumfoil]

I love that the museum professionals talked about the research potential and a lot of other people talked about the learning potential of museums. It just shows that there is so much love for knowledge at all levels. And a place for museums everywhere. :)

[@mman4441]

1) My ideal vacation spot 2) A place where cool people like Emily Graslie teach you stuff

[@estelacpc]

I love everything about that little kid, from his Perry shirt, to his definition of museums, to the way he stands so casually with his hands in his pockets. Adorable!

[@savagegardenrox]

a repository of knowledge, beauty and history. Whether those things are open for public viewing or used solely for research is immaterial.

[@abiisapineapple]

I love how excited Emily looks about that kid's excitement

[@dopburnnin]

I feel one emotion when i hear the word museum, "curiosity". Whether you're researching in the back to make new discoveries and/or answer questions about an artifact. Or you're a patron in the front seeing new and exciting things.

[@smOVERCOMINGITALL]

I randomly found your channel and have been watching your videos non-stop and i'm living for it! i'm in college right now to become a curator and i am so refreshed to find a channel like yours! thank you so much!

[@teenwriter89]

A museum is a place that tells stories, with both its exhibits and the collections that are not in the public eye yet. It holds stories and wonders of the world, a way to connect with what's around us or has been around us or will be around us.

[@itsjacobj]

A museum is a learning experience, whether you read the placards about the specimens or just take the specimens in and make your own meaning. It's a storehouse of knowledge, and it's one of the most brilliant experiences you'll have if you know how to experience it.

[@Soldier842]

A museum is a place where Emily shows and tells us about amazing things!

[@matthewpuzzo8521]

For me, a museum is a place of wonder. They awe every one of us in a different way.

[@kelseyrebecca]

A museum is a place of inspiration and inquiry, it presents us with information that sparks new questions and leads to new discussion and new learning for everyone involved.

[@MrBurningDonkies]

I did not realize that Museums were the center of such continuous research. I always thought it was a place where specimens sit around to be observed/appreciated, nice to fully appreciate that it's much more than that :)

[@MsPunpun1]

Wow, I am loving that microphone she is using for the interviews. Listen to those baritone notes vibrate.

[@leshchenko.m]

a museum is a place where they keep artifacts and stuff that needs a place to be safe. The field museum is awesome!

[@kcdada4111]

Good knowledge 👍

[@brainfaqk]

A museum is a collection of all the interesting stuff on earth.

[@thaddeusellis5831]

sorry to be off topic but does anybody know of a method to get back into an Instagram account? I was stupid forgot the account password. I would appreciate any tips you can offer me!

[@kasondamien9895]

@Thaddeus Ellis instablaster =)

[@matejsosilly7014]

A museum is a tactile experience of science and history, a lovingly collected scrapbook of facts, facets and wonders of the world we live in. The best of museums connects one to everything else on the planet and showcases the relationships between all things we can and cannot observe. It induces wonder, amazement, curiosity and passion for a more enriched life.

[@okashi10]

This show was such an eye-opener to me. Before The Brain Scoop, I thought that museums were just places with stuff on display... I didn't realize that they were also storage facilities and active research materials. Thanks, Brain Scoop!

[@nerdfighteremma]

This week after going on three field trips, all to museums, I thought about this a lot. I even had the opportunity to have a really in-depth conversation with my teacher about museums and then a whole bunch of stuff and it was really awesome. I think I've decided that a lot of times, museums are very much people-shaped, even if the museums don't realize it.

[@EtrielDevyt]

Okay, but that dude at 1:10 had the smoothest voice ever. I want this man to record an album. Not necessarily of music, just him saying stuff. Maybe with some light piano.

[@lillithdv8]

A place of endless wander and discovery. A place of dialog, a place of remembrance and reflexion. How we came to define the world and ourselves . That place that might have started with one question and got miles upon miles of answers strewn across shelves and exhibits

[@laughteronhersleev]

I'd love to see more museum studies-y stuff like this in the BrainScoop! I like the science stuff too but as a Historic Preservation student I LOVE this kind of video!

[@ReasonMakes]

2:08 THAT RADIO VOICE O.O

[@toyotaprius79]

I just finished watching the IFLS convention video. It's nice how this new video came along.

[@PontusWelin]

I never thought of it before. So a museum is a place to not only see science of the past, but to see science in action. mind blown

[@SerendipitousSky]

I really liked the definition the lady with the bright blue hair gave; she was so passionate about it.

[@SallaKanerva]

I love Emily's expression when she's interviewing the kid :D So happy!

[@Onychoprion27]

I've only ever been to public display museums, so I'll say this: A museum is a place where a bunch or really smart people have gathered together a bunch of really cool things and they have displayed these really cool things in a way that allows the commoner (me) to see them in such a way that I can learn more about the world. A museum is a place that takes us on a journey of discovery. A museum is awesome.

[@ZobiWanKenobi96]

The Brain Scoop makes me so happy; they've come SO far in such a short amount of time and it's wonderful. They deserve all the success they get! ^,^

[@mehtalks]

I love absolutely everything about this. Beautifully done and masterfully edited. I might be tearing up.... Maybe....

[@KitKazoo]

To me, a museum is a place to go to take inspiration from, After years of studying art, I have found that the only place I can go to draw that isn't a stuffy classroom is the (very small) museum in my city. I have never been in a better anatomical drawing class than one where the model cannot move. They bring out a side of people that just makes them think and learn in the best ways they know how.

[@AaronGRandall]

To me, a museum is a place that collectively gathers information (both new and old) and allows it to be displayed for the general public to view and learn what others have learned. It's a great way to grow understanding of our world, the past, the present, and gives us ideas and predictions of our future. :)

[@DarkkestNite]

I'll have to agree with the guy in the dino head. To me, a museum is a place where you go to experience wonder. That place you go for a weekend and see the amazing things and learn the important lessons that stick with you for years to come. The place where you find the thing that leaves you speechless with awe. It's even more amazing when you think about not only how museums preserve the past, but also how they help science move into the future.

[@ItsRadishTime]

This was an awesome video, but to whoever is editing these (is it still Michael? Hi Michael!) is there something you can do to make sure all the audio levels are all the same? I found myself having to turn the volume up and down all throughout the video. Thanks for making cool stuff!

[@juggleboy720]

The look on your face while you're talking with the "place with bones" kid, is fantastic :)

[@beegum1]

I was thinking about this earlier when I was visiting museums with my kids. Museums are also places with curators who tend to know ridiculously in depth information on a set of obscure topics. This occurs other places like state and national parks and world heritage sites as well. There may be a 'no metal detectors' sign, that really means if you want to use a metal detector contact us and do it right.

[@anozir]

A museum is a place where we can feel the wonder of child through the lens of our experiences.

[@MUSHROOMZZXD]

A museum, to me, is a showcase of research, old, current, and new. ^-^ Without a doubt, a magical show!

[@OperationCaitlin]

Such an awesome video! Loved hearing everyone's answers. Thank you for including my segments :)

[@Waterflame]

A museum is a place full of wonder, intrigue, and history.

[@jacoboblanco1555]

Museums are places where humanity stores and studies a growing sample of basically everything around us. And they also have gift shops.

[@martinzhang5676]

I think a museum is a place of inspiration and discovery, where the past, present and future could coexist and where people could find new stuff out of old stuff.

[@tarantino712]

The Brain Scoop theme never fails to make me smile

[@serblett]

A museum is a collection of artifacts, but is also in itself an artifact. By choosing and arranging objects as best they can how to show the world as we understand it to be, curators give us a glimpse into who we understand ourselves to be, our place in the universe of "nature" and "culture."

[@suemoro]

It's a place of wonder and amazement from which we can expand our knowledge about the world we live in.

[@miloshpetrik]

A museum is a place of learning and inspiration.

[@Ramones1234100]

I love the thrill in Emily's face when she's talking to the kid in the Phineas and Ferb shirt.

[@keriloveschocolate]

A museum is a collection of things that are of significant importance to both our past and our future

[@xloppielx]

A Museum is a location that has countless amounts of items stored or displayed with the general purpose to keep safe in order to educate others about the history of said items. The Best Museum's display their inventory in awesome exhibits that are open to the public that both entertain and educate at the same time.

[@kolakross]

A museum is a place of wonder. A place to look at, think about, research and study.

[@mariavolk1418]

I watch every episode of Brainscoop till the very end to hear Emily say "It still has brains on it".

[@realspacemodels]

A museum is a place where artifacts are kept in collection and studied and preserved. Museums collect items of natural history, art, technology, culture and other specific subjects which allow the public to gain understanding of that subject and allows the subject matter to be held in trust for posterity.

[@Cuix]

A museum is a building or collection of buildings which stores various items, exhibits, and media that are curated with the intent to facilitate learning through exposure to the aforementioned.

[@jzepher8319]

A museum is a place where items that are considered to have historical or cultural significance are held/stored/displayed. These items are then accessible by the community for "whatever". When researching historical items it never fails to amaze me that we can all personally access priceless historical documents.. When I was investigating Sir Charles Kingsford Smith I couldn't believe I had access to all his diaries and planning notes... I was easily able to match his handwriting to my sample.

[@Xerxees144]

Your immense enjoyment showed on your face when you were asking the boy with the Agent P T-shirt, with good reason. XD

[@megglian]

I suppose to me a museum is not just about discovering and investigating the past but also giving insight into what's going on presently, and that information will be there for future generations. It's about creating understanding and allowing knowledge to be accessible to anyone who cares to discover it. Ultimately decreasing world suck and spreading awesomeness. :)

[@rubinsmyers1400]

A museum is a place that holds a collection of things for the purpose of gaining and preserving knowledge from said collection.

[@hpekristiansen]

A museum is defined by its goal; to give the audience a good experience, by showing them spectacular objects. If time travel were possible, I would love to go to a museum displaying things from the future.

[@DunkRyan]

I noticed only Bill and one other person (someone associated with the museum) correctly noted an important feature of a museum which is its research component. My advisor and my mentor just wrote a letter published in Science about this: "Museums' role: Increasing knowledge", pp. 1148-1149 of the 8 March 2013 issue. They include a quote from Smithson (whom the Smithsonian is named for) that a museum exists for “the increase and diffusion of knowledge”, which I agree sums it up very nicely.

[@tuseroni]

maybe i'm old fashioned but i think of a museum as a place for people to come together and muse about subjects of science, art, and philosophy. a place of research, discovery, and learning.

[@JohnWSheldon]

Keep up the great work! I hope we'll see some more behind-the-scenes process work soon, even though that isn't your full-time job anymore.

[@JeremyToma]

I really like your answer. Your answer could not be shattered by modern art or schools. A Museum is not necessarily a place to view old things, and it is not definable as a place to learn.

[@atomikjames]

Love the mic. I love this channel.

[@TheAAMoy]

Emily smiles, I smile. Emily asks a question, I think HARD to make sure I give a good and true answer. Emily could pull a lot of kids up to a high learning average.

[@catarinafernandesrodrigues3646]

Um museu é um lugar onde se guarda informações sobre diversos tópicos, onde se guarda diversos objetos dependendo do tipo de museu e onde se pode ir visitar para os descobrir.

[@GGotts]

To me, a museum is kinda like a closet for knowledge. It holds a ton of info that is either relevant or irrelevant to your every day life. It's fun to look through it, and see what is in it, and even wonder how it got there. And you learn a lot about your life, and the lives of others when you pick through all of it.

[@krimzonvillain]

A museum is a place you can go to feel alive when you're feeling dead, cause everything in there is deader than you and still beautiful and useful.

[@TechLaboratories]

A museum is where we preserve the humanity of the past for the humanity of the future.

[@tumtumtreee]

I think a museum is us deciding something is important enough to preserve. Interestingly, possibly my favourite museum is almost "a museum of a museum" on this definition- at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, they keep and display some of the past labels of old exhibits. In a funny way, the museum is an exhibit itself.

[@n3rdslife1864]

a place of appreciation, study, and discovery.

[@izzieluv]

:59 Emily's face is saying "You are the cutest."

[@lindsayrigby707]

You always hear "a picture's worth a thousand words." To me, a museum is like an enormous library but instead of words, it is made of objects and researchers and photographs and written explanations that create the story of humanity and of our planet.

[@SchizoFish]

In my hometown, a museum is a place where the employees roleplay as people from whatever year in time they're representing, and then people can walk around and feel like they are actually stepping in to that time. It might sound weird, but it's honestly really cool. All the buildings and clothes match the time it's portraying - and me, working in the year 1895, get to walk around bragging about the fact that we have electricity in our house. We cool.

[@HighKingTurgon]

My roommate just spent a semester (her first in the MA program) investigating that question. I got asked for a lot of feedback :)

[@froladee]

A museum is the happiest place on earth.

[@themusicmoonkey]

A museum is a place of learning, wonder and amazement. It can contain past, present and sometimes what the future might be. You can pay to go there or they may be free. You may even have a museum in your house and you won't even realise it.

[@puddingball]

Emily, will you still be doing 'field work'? I mean things like skinning the wolf, finding a bear skull, an insider's view essentially. Not to say I didn't like these kind of episodes, and maybe you just need time to settle down after moving, but I don't really know where the show is going right now. Thanks, and please continue making videos, they're awesome :3

[@konakonaXD]

A museum is a place hat represents different fields, ideas and passions. Where they can be shared and studies

[@starpasta]

That little boy in the Perry the Platypus shirt and the guy with the dinosaur mask were my two favorite people in this video. :) Also, I think a museum is a place where you go to learn about the past and how it affects the future.

[@evergirl1231]

I think of art museums and it's a place where we celebrate humanity Also the dude's voice at 1:07 and 2:20 is epic

[@SomeoneBeginingWithI]

A museum is a place where we store interesting things, so that when people want to learn more about them they can.

[@catherine_404]

Museums are natural extension of human tendency to collect, to explore, to organize and to seek knowledge. We also like to keep our collections safe and make them lasting. Public education it's fun and useful. Scientists also understand the need of research collections. I think museums are quite natural for humans to create ) My mom has a collection of sea shells numbering a few hundreds of specimens. Every one is labeled, it has a number, it's latin name, we know some information about each. If she opened it for public viewing (even if limited), it would make a private museum. My colleague collects elephants. Her collection is also in low hundreds. She has elephant museum: those elephant figurines, cups, salt shakers, bells, jewelry, toys etc. sit on spare shelves in the room where she works and everyone is welcome to visit and to contribute. Personally I'm inclined to call it a museum, if it's not just a storehouse, but it includes an exhibition of at least a part of the collection. Even if viewing is restricted. It has to have some organisation and labeling, otherwise it's just a curiosity cabinet.

[@lucianagostinho]

I've once believed that a museum was just a collection of old things and that the purpose of it was to amuse people. When I've discovered (many years ago) that a museum was a place of science and discovers, then it became a cooler place in my mind. The sad thing is we don't have many museums in Brazil. And we lack the culture to appreciate and support them.

[@balletshoesRsexy]

Museums are places that document life on earth and beyond through the study of history, science, art, etc we can go to these museums to understand our own place in the universe a little better.

[@Zepheriah]

A museum contains the physical evidence of the nature of the world. Objects that are seen as representative of something bigger than themselves. I always find it fascinating that you go to museums to see 'rare' objects in person, but what matters (as opposed to in galleries, for example) isn't really the things IN the museum, but the stories around them; what those things tell us about the world as a whole.

[@MollyBlueDawn]

One of the best places to spend a day, or a lifetime!

[@AJarOfYams]

On the surface, a museum is a gallary of the known past. A collection of collections. A window to the past; history, biology and archaeology (and perhaps technology).

[@Alex-Lay]

A museum is a place that stores and catalogues artefacts relevant to aspects of times that have passed, and will have passed (so they take in new stuff for when it's old) But that is with having sees this video and thought it over for a few minutes.

[@L0STH1K3R]

Museums are places education and learning disguised in the form of fascinating exhibits about everything past and present, natural, cultural, and scientific.

[@IamThePOND]

I think a museum provides context. You might read in a book that younger specimen of that fish are greener, but in a museum they hold one up against the other and say LOOK. Context is everything.

[@jklocport]

Thinking about the word itself, museum, means palace or temple of the Muses. Muses [literally thinking-beings] are usually deities or their servants who recorded history and shared it with the people, or inspired the great artists and thinkers. I think the word is a pretty apt name.

[@PokemonDiamondUS]

A Museum is where little floating psychic Pokemon go to observe things. A MewSeeEm.

[@JeffreyNee]

To me, a museum is a public access point for self discovery and self education. Much different from a classroom or an educational movie where someone presents you certain knowledge at a certain time and you take it in or not, a museum is the democratization of science and history, where the visitor decides for him/herself what is or is not interesting and worth knowing, like an internet precursor. They also can create a real and tangible connection between the visitor and ideas/knowledge.

[@saffordl1]

I still get proximity excitement from seeing Emily working at the FIELD MUSEUM!!

[@Punkundead17]

i wanna work at a museum when im out of school, your channel is making me interested in Zoology other than archaeology and anthropology :D thanks for the influence!