For Immediate Release PR Contact: 312.665.7100 or media@fieldmuseum.org The Field Museum Launches Groundbreaking Exhibition: The Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice DNA Discovery Center DNA is the thread that connects all life on Earth—from microscopic bacteria, to mushrooms, to humans...but not all humans are aware of that fact. A brand new and permanent Field Museum exhibition is answering basic and complex questions about DNA and how DNA research is changing the way scientists view world around us. Explore this state-of-the-art laboratory that is also the first molecular systematics facility in the country open to public viewing. The Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice DNA Discovery Center is ahead of its time. Only a few museums in America have recognized DNA research facilities inside their institutions and The Field Museum’s lab is the only one in the country the public can observe up-close. Through an expanse of windows, curious Field Museum goers can now see first-hand how DNA is extracted from specimens, sequenced, and then analyzed. A DNA educator/researcher will be on hand an hour everyday to answer questions and describe work being conducted in the lab. In addition to the viewable lab, the 1,850-square-foot exhibition includes hands-on interactives and engaging displays. William Petersen, star of the popular television program CSI: Crime Scene Investigation narrates a video about the basics of genetics.  Todd Tubutis, The Field Museum's project manager for the DNA Discovery Center, is particularly excited about one touch-screen kiosk.  "Visitors will be able to point to locations on a globe and learn about active research projects taking place that help us understand Earth's incredible biodiversity.  It is the only display at the Museum that can be updated daily and features researchers and their findings.  With this interactive, the public will be in the know all the time." The research done in the DNA Discovery Center is forever changing. One day scientists could be sequencing DNA from an East African frog, the next, comparing DNA of lichens from Antarctica. “A lot of people associate The Field Museum with dinosaurs and mummies; they have no idea that we use DNA to study the diversity of life on Earth. In the DNA Discovery Center, the public can learn about the location and structure of DNA, that every plant and animal has DNA, and how The Field Museum scientists use DNA in their research,” said Kevin Feldheim, PhD, manager of the Museum’s Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution and co-curator of the DNA Discovery Center. Dr. Feldheim analyzes DNA from Bahamian lemon sharks to study their reproductive patterns—information crucial to protecting these threatened creatures. Shannon Hackett, PhD, associate curator of birds at The Field Museum and co-curator of the DNA Discovery Center says “visitors will have an opportunity to experience life behind the scenes of a natural history museum, including the incredible diversity of our collections not on display and the rich human resources at the center of our excellent research programs. This is the real thing.” Dr. Hackett is excited to include high-school students in the lab. The lab staff has hand-picked several Chicago-area students for a DNA Residency! program. These teenagers will assist, as well as conduct research, that will be used in long term DNA studies. The Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice DNA Discovery Center is the public face of the Pritzker Laboratory, which was established at The Field Museum in 1974 for genetic research and to study and help preserve the world’s biodiversity. In the last decade alone, over 100 scientists from 25 countries have trained at the Pritzker Laboratory, studying everything from sharks to fungi. Dr. Hackett points out “in this lab we are tracing genealogy—‘why do I look like my mom, where does my family come from?’ We are doing just this kind of research, but on non-human organisms.” The DNA Discovery Center is located on The Field Museum’s upper floor overlooking Stanley Field Hall. This exhibition is generously supported by The Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Foundation.  The Field Museum gratefully acknowledges The Pritzker Foundation’s generous support of the Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution.  The Field Museum expresses its appreciation to Misty and Lewis Gruber for establishing an endowment in support of research in the Pritzker Laboratory. << Return to the Press Room