It’s being called the heartbeat of Philadelphia.
Anybody who has ever visited The Franklin Institute knows all about the giant, walk-through heart. While the science museum is filled with plenty of exhibits, it’s the giant heart that elicits the most memories.
Well, The Franklin Institute, which is celebrating its 200th birthday with the reopened and re-imagined “Body Odyssey” is making sure the heart stays in the forefront and, well, you might just learn a few new things along the way.
“Right before COVID, we repainted and did a complete renovation of the heart,” said Abby Bysshe, the institute’s chief experience and strategy officer. “Since that was done, we didn’t have a lot of cosmetic work to do. So, now it’s more about the interactives and the synching of the heartbeats.”
One of the new interactive ways to experience the heart is visitors can synch their own heartbeat with the ambient sounds around the giant heart. Enhanced with sensory technology, the Giant Heart will now offer visitors the opportunity to synchronize their own heartbeats with the Heart, transforming the space into a pulsating display of light and sound that mirrors human rhythm.
“There’s an overlay experience where you get your heart rate and that kind of gets fed into the Giant Heart and your heart rate becomes the giant heart’s beat,” Bysshe said. “So, this giant heart beat is going to be like the whole community of Philadelphia.”
While the heart is the obvious centerpiece, the “Body Odyssey” overall is more about health and how the body reacts. The $8.5 million exhibit is an 8,500-square-foot exploration of the human body’s complexities and its quest for balance and well-being.
Through interactive environments, new technology and full-body simulations, guests will dive into the complex workings of the human body by discovering the profound connection between mental and physical health.
There is also the chance to experience the latest advances in medical and sports technology. Experiences include a full-body avatar to visualize our body systems’ harmony, a multiplayer white blood cell vs. virus game, and sensory challenges that track the eye’s response to light and test hearing for age.
“ ‘The Body Odyssey’ is a journey through our human body and how it responds to the physical, social and emotional environments around us,” said Dr. Jayatri Das, the chief bioscientist and director of science content at the institute. “This exhibit is about understanding how the body works.”
“Body Odyssey” showcases the latest medical and sports technologies through hands-on experiences, such as operating a prosthetic hand, performing robotic surgery simulations, and experimenting with AI-driven diagnostic tools. Holistic wellness is explored through stations focusing on art therapy, sleep health and mindfulness, all within a dynamic gallery that changes its ambiance in real time based on the collective emotional energy of its visitors.
Meanwhile, another famous exhibit in The Franklin Institute has also been redone.
The 350-ton Baldwin 60000 Locomotive is at the center of the new Hamilton Collections Gallery. The train, which no longer takes visitors on the short ride back and forth in the building, sits atop a new custom cutaway floor that reveals the steel and concrete bridge structures supporting this engineering marvel.
Surrounding the locomotive, newly designed visible storage bays rise from a new collections center on the foundation level, offering a rare glimpse into artifacts never before on public display,
“The unveiling of the ‘Body Odyssey’ and the Hamilton Collections Gallery is a powerful step forward in our multi-year transformation to re-imagine The Franklin Institute experience for our guests,” said Larry Dubinski, the institute’s president and CEO. “These exhibits are not only about showcasing artifacts, but teaching science. They are about creating deeply immersive experiences that resonate with people of all ages, backgrounds and interests.”
The Hamilton Collections Gallery’s inaugural exhibit, “200 Stories for 200 Years,” showcases a curated selection of objects on display to celebrate the museum’s 200th anniversary. The exhibit features interactive components to dive deeper into the innovation and ingenuity of the selected objects and discover unexpected connections.
Of the 200 objects on display, 13 artifacts, such as an original wooden Philadelphia water main, a printing press from Franklin’s company, and early wax cylinder music recordings, are paired with video vignettes of people who share a modern connection to these artifacts.
“These imaginative exhibits invite us to look inward at the complexity of the human body and outward, at the ingenuity of scientific innovation,” Dubinski said. “They exemplify our commitment to sparking curiosity and inspiring discovery, ensuring that The Franklin Institute continues to be a place of wonder for generations to come.”
