Ocean Encounter
Discovery Cube Capstone Project
Project Overview
This was a group project completed for my masters in human-computer interaction and design. The roles I provided for the team were team lead, client liaison, head of research, and head of design. We worked with a local children’s science museum named Discovery Cube, which is a highly regarded institution in Southern California.
Project Brief
To create an interactive and immersive Ocean Encounter exhibit experience that inspires deeper learning and understanding of key ocean issues while elevating visitors’ commitment to environmental stewardship
Objectives
Develop a baseline understanding of the children’s museum space including learning tactics, current trends, and technologies
Create a framework to assist in the development of additional exhibits
Develop a narrative, interactive experience for the current Ocean Encounter seasonal exhibit that addressed ocean issues and conservation
Client & Problem Space
Exploration & Discovery
Data Analysis & Synthesis
Text, Color & Accessibility
Discovery Cube
Established in 1998, Discovery Cube is a children’s science museum that is located in Santa Ana, California. Their goal is to “inspire and educate young minds through engaging science-based programs and exhibits to create a meaningful impact on the communities [they] serve”.
Ocean Encounter
An interactive aquatic wonderland where you’ll explore the zones of the ocean including Sunlight Zone, Twilight Zone, Midnight Zone, Abyss, and Trenches, each showing different aspects of ocean life and the threats they face from human activity.
This project really pushed us out of our comfort zone. I was so excited when we learned that we would be working with a children’s science museum. Growing up in San Francisco, my parents would take me to the Exploratorium and the Academy of Science.
We, as a group, had a lot to learn about the museum space and designing for it. Museums are complex spaces that are constantly evolving, especially post pandemic. We utilized a range of research techniques including literature review, competitive analysis, interviews, and in-person observation.
Exploration and Research
Literature Review
Completing the literature review was a task I took on. There was a range of topics we needed to be brought up to speed on which included: children’s education techniques, museum metrics, HCI in museums, and best practices in designing for children in the museum context. If you’re interested, read the lit review here. The three main takeaways are listed below:
Interactions for Education
Educationally, children gain the most from cause and effect interactions where they can see a direct outcome of their actions.
Experiences for Children
Developing museum experiences for children requires the use of a strong narrative, open ended learning, and adult engagement to get the most out of the experience
Interactive Tech
Interactive technologies in the museum space require ease-of-use, and intuitive interfaces to effectively enhance learning outcomes and promote visitor engagement.
Competitive Analysis
We utilized a competitive analysis to better assess what was possible within the museum space. We found a wide range of exhibits that catered to children and found that physical and tangible interactions were favored. Narrative experiences also were more frequently utilized for children’s education.
Expert Interview
I met with Dr. Lauren Vargas who is an expert in the museum sphere. She works with organizations to help them understand community, communication and collaboration strategies. She kind enough to provide us with some references regarding the measurements of museum metrics and how museums build community.
Observation
When we had enough information from research to inform us of what to look at and record, we went to Discovery Cube to conduct in-person observations. These observations included interviewing, diagramming, and note-taking. This crucial step really helped us refine both our project statement, but also where we could most benefit the exhibit.
The diagrams below show how some groups moved through the space and the first thing that people would go to upon entering the space.
We simplified what we learned into three key factors for our design work: addressing the issues with the physical space, how people were engaging with current content, and lastly the audience of Discovery Cube.
Co-Creation Session
Throughout our project, we worked alongside our clients to both better understand the museum space and what the ultimate goal of the project was. We utilized a range of activities to brainstorm and learn. Working on a FigJam file, we were able to all place notes together, remotely.
This technique was one of the most important forms of research we did. Our clients were very open in teaching us more about both museums and Discovery Cube. We had conversations we wouldn’t have had without the co-creation. Together, as a team, we were able to come up with ideas that were engaging, fun, and fit Discovery Cube’s mission.
Data Analysis
Data analysis was where we truly discovered what was great about the museum and where there was room for improvement. By processing our diagrams, notes, research, and co-creation session, we found our four key takeaways for the space.
Kiosk Experience Could Be Improved
The text-heavy displays caused most guests to skin or quickly tap through the screens. Advanced verbiage leads pertinent information to remain inaccessible to younger age groups.
Key Contributors to Educational Value
Exhibit’s most frequently visited areas that are incorporate tangible, interactive elements and opportunities for play. This highlighted the importance of hands-on experiences in enhancing learning.
Low Levels of Engagement
The existing scavenger hunt lacks a sense of wonder or urgency, and the absence of feedback or rewards within a compelling narrative diminishes engagement from all age groups.
Closing the Loop
Parents expressed that kids are “exposed to animals and the ocean” but “aren’t really learning about the ocean,” suggesting there are physical and cognitive disconnects within the exhibit, and a lack of lasting impact.
Framework and Opportunity
Now that we had a clear idea of what was wrong with the space, we further analyzed and filtered everything down into four categories that both our project would have, but also a way for Discovery Cube to further develop exhibits.
Interactive
Engages visitors by allowing them to actively participate in the experience and requires visitors to make decisions, solve problems, or manipulate objects
Physical
Tangible objects and artifacts that visitors can see, touch, or explore in a real-world setting providing a sensory-rich experience that connects visitors to the experience
Narrative
Guides visitors through a cohesive order to convey a compelling story, helping visitors to understand the context, significance, and connections between different elements of the exhibit.
Impact
Leaves a lasting impression on visitors, provoking thought, emotion, and a call to action. Aims to influence the visitor’s perception, understanding, or behavior that resonates deeply and encourages reflection or change.
Project Brief
To create an immersive Ocean Encounter experience with interactive, physical aspects that introduces a narrative to inspire deeper learning, understanding, and have an impact by presenting key ocean issues while elevating visitors’ commitment to environmental stewardship
Exhibit Development
When we finally had dialed in on the framework, we could now test it by applying it to the museums current exhibit. We started by taking the content that was nested in the kiosks placed throughout the exhibit space. We then started researching and sketching ideas of possible exhibit concepts might be. Throughout these ideation steps, we were checking in weekly with clients to ensure both that the exhibit was something they were interested in and gain the domain knowledge needed to develop the ideas further.
We used digital sketching as a way to loosen up our process and bring some of the joy of play into our work.
Exhibit
We developed four experiences that fit into a larger narrative. At the beginning of a visit, guests would pick up a postcard that became their field notes. They are given a mission to go to different stations to help their new animal friends. Once complete, they then collect their “field notes” in the shape of a stamp.
The current iteration of the Ocean Encounter is broken down into different depths of the ocean. We carried this through into our project and expanded upon it. Our goal was to introduce visitors to animals, ocean facts, and current problems the oceans face.
Top left: Garbage Patch crane game
Top right: Fishing game based in open ocean
Bottom left: Currents cause and effect in the abyss
Bottom right: Shipwreck clean-up game in the twilight and midnight zones
Twilight & Midnight Clean-up
This exhibit focuses on shipwrecks and their effect on the environment - both the positive and the negative. When ships initially crash to the bottom of the ocean, they cause huge amounts of damage to the ecosystem and release pollutants into the environment. They leak oil and contaminate the water with both the paint and potential cargo. These shipwrecks can also be a positive for the environment. They provide a habitat for fish and other marine creatures to live in. Artificial reefs have been found to host more fish than natural reefs.
The exhibit is an enclosed tank with a shipwreck. Guests help clean up the oil and debris with a magnet. Fish and other animals could be placed throughout the display for a more immersive experience.
Narrative - Eddie the Eel
Hi, I’m Eddie the eel and I live in a shipwreck. I really love living here and there are so many others that love living here too! This ship fell to the ocean floor 50 years ago and, over time, we have all moved in and called it home. We really enjoy being here and it has provided us a habitat that is beneficial to many of us, but there are some drawbacks. Stuff has been leaking from the ship and making some of us sick. Could you help us clean up the oil and paint pollution? We’d really appreciate it!
Interaction
Visitors will help “clean up” the water around the shipwreck. A magnet would be used to gather the pollution coming from the ship. The cleaning would then preserve the area and make the shipwreck a healthier place for sea life to live.
Physical Component
A magnet would help clean up the ocean. Magnetic dust would be used to simulate debris. The experience could be expanded upon by having a layer of oil that could be picked up at the surface.
Impact
Visitors can see both the positive and negative side of shipwrecks as a whole. By seeing that they provide a positive to the environment, the experience could also display some of the man made reefs that exist. This exposure could help push visitors to find out more.
Postcard & Stamp Rally
The postcard idea was inspired by book my father had given me titled “Field Notes on Science and Nature” edited by Michael R. Canfield. In it are a range of drawings like the one of the lizard to the right. This, and my childhood memories of exploring science museums and collecting stamps in a book inspired this postcard and story.
The narrative of the experience needed to allow for free-choice learning. Free-choice learning came up in a variety of documents as the best way for children’s education in the museum context. It allows for visitors to pick where they go rather than following an A to B story line.
What I had come up with was the Discovery Cube Explorer’s League. This league then assigns a task for visitors on one side of the post card with a call to action. On the card it reads, “The ocean animals need your help! Your mission is to travel to the different depths and help out the animals living there. On the back side of this card, you’ll find your field notes. Once you finish helping each animal, collect the stamp and fill out the rest of your notes. Go explore and have fun!”. This open ended choice ensured visitors had complete control over their experience.
The stamps I designed to replicate that sketch like quality of the drawings in “Field Notes”. I digitized these sketches and added labels as another layer of learning. This page could then be taken home and interacted with again by coloring in the stamps.
To ensure the concept worked, I printed a prototype and had a stamp made that was then provided to the Cube.
