FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: Becky Mayad 214-352-1881

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: Becky Mayad 214-352-1881 [email protected]

NORTH TEXAS’ INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED PEROT MUSEUM OF NATURE AND SCIENCE CAPTIVATES AND INSPIRES VISITORS OF ALL AGES TO “AMAZE THEIR BRAINS”

Since December 2012 opening, more than 5 million visitors from across the globe have experienced everything from dinosaurs to DNA, gigantic gems and wacky weather, to virtual sports and adventures through space

DALLAS (May 19, 2017) – Race a Tyrannosaurus rex, experience an earthquake and see the universe in 3D. Participate in a robot competition, use brain waves to launch a Ping-Pong ball and climb the Dallas skyline. Ride in a 54-foot glass-enclosed escalator, see newly discovered dinosaur species, and soar the skies like a bird in a full-body flight simulation. These are just a sampling of the exhilarating “amaze your brain” experiences found at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, located near Downtown Dallas in Victory Park. Since its December 2012 debut, the Museum has become the top cultural attraction in the Dallas/Fort Worth region with more than 5 million visitors experiencing the Museum and its programs.

With award-winning architecture created by 2005 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate Thom Mayne and his firm Morphosis Architects, the stunning, 180,000-square-foot museum features 11 permanent exhibit halls spanning five floors, plus a 3D theater with 4K digital projection, family-friendly Café managed by Wolfgang Puck, children’s museum, traveling exhibition hall and Museum Shop. Other amenities include a playful 1-acre Urban Forest filled with Texas native plants and the Nicole G. Small Science Park complete with a musical forest, lime green leap-frog forest and cascading stream; outdoor plaza with seating; and a large Education Wing. Architecture Tours are available for a $5 surcharge for groups of 1-20 with advance purchase.

EXHIBIT HALLS AND CHILDREN’S MUSEUM. On the Lower Level in the Moody Family Children’s Museum, kids 5 and under (and their adult companions) can climb the Dallas skyline, shop and explore at the Dallas Farmer’s Market, play at the water station, partake in crafts at the Art Lab, get hands-on at the outdoor dino dig and more. The Lamar Hunt Family Sports Hall offers a scientifically engaging way to get active – from racing a cheetah, T. rex and top athletes on the 55-foot Run Wall, to passing a basketball, kicking a football or pirouetting in front of a high-speed camera to compare form with those of famous athletes and dancers. An exciting new “reaction time” exhibit measures hand-eye coordination and reaction speed using a light board set with a timer.

Located next door is the Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones Exhibition Hall, currently showcasing Maya: Hidden Worlds Revealed, the largest traveling exhibition about the Maya ever to tour the U.S. Presented by Highland Capital Management, the exhibition brings together nearly 250 authentic artifacts and immersive environments to explore the astonishing accomplishments of one of the most powerful indigenous Mesoamerican civilizations. Through hands-on activity stations, guests of all ages can decipher hieroglyphs, learn cultural and architectural techniques, and explore an underworld cave, ancient burial site, mural room and more. The bilingual exhibition, presented in English and Spanish, requires a surcharge for members and non-members. Members always enjoy free general admission and get up to half-off on tickets to Maya: Hidden Worlds Revealed. The exhibition runs through Sept. 4.

Up on Level 2 tinkerers, hackers and engineers-at-heart will find a play-space paradise in the Being Human Hall and Texas Instruments Engineering and Innovation Hall. Guests can use their brain waves to launch Ping- Pong balls, conduct real-time DNA experiments or use a thermal camera to identify hot and cool points of their bodies in the Being Human Hall. The newly updated Early Man section features eerily lifelike models of primitive humans and, across the way, five Nobel Prize medals on loan to the Museum are displayed. In the Texas Instruments Engineering and Innovation Hall, brainiacs can design a better building, engage in live science trivia, make music, and build a robot to race through a maze. The Discovering Life Hall features fossils, taxidermy specimens, 3D animations, interactive games, an “underground” crawl space and various dioramas where one can even smell the many aromas of Texas’ diverse ecosystems.

Level 3 is home to “Ellie May,” the nearly intact and pristine Columbian mammoth discovered in a gravel pit in next-door Ellis County in May 2014. Nearby in The Rees-Jones Foundation Dynamic Earth Hall, weather enthusiasts can touch a tornado, experience an earthquake or report the weather in front of a green screen. A breathtaking array of vibrantly colored and unusually shaped natural masterpieces can be found in the Lyda Hill Gems and Mineral Hall, where guests can crank open a 5-foot “grape jelly” geode and marvel at a brilliant crystallized gold collection. From natural gas to solar, geothermal and wind, every source of energy is fueled by science. Explore these topics and take a virtual expedition deep underground in the Tom Hunt Energy Hall.

Jaw-dropping Level 4 features an 85-foot Alamosaurus (the world’s first installation) in the T. Boone Pickens Life Then and Now Hall. Other exclusive paleo highlights include the skull cast of Nanuqsaurus hoglundi, a pint- sized cousin of the ferocious Tyrannosaurus rex, discovered by the Perot Museum’s Dr. Anthony Fiorillo and Dr. Ron Tykoski, and the new species Pachyrhinosaurus perotorum also discovered by Dr. Fiorillo. Fly up to the mezzanine to discover the astonishing links between dinosaurs and modern-day birds. Experience a full- body flight simulation as a bird avatar, browse books from the renowned Edmund W. Mudge, Jr., Library of Ornithology, create and name a virtual species of bird and more in the Rose Hall of Birds. In the Expanding Universe Hall, guests can glide through space on a journey through the solar system, get “hands on” with an interactive game about the asteroid belt, and snap a selfie beneath a floating astronaut.

Other don’t-miss attractions include The Hoglund Foundation Theater, a National Geographic Experience, where 3D and 2D films explore an array of scientific phenomena – from wild weather and space, to prehistoric life, tiny giants and Earth’s extraordinary nature. Located on Level 1, the 297-seat multi-media cinema features state-of-the-art 4K digital projection with daily matinees.

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES. The building itself is used as a teaching tool that provides “living” examples of engineering, sustainability and technology at work. A remarkable feat, the Perot Museum has achieved three environmental certifications – Green Globes® highest possible ranking for sustainable building design, a LEED Gold rating from the U.S. Green Building Council, and certification from the Sustainable Sites Initiative, which emphasizes landscape and site design.

HOURS. General hours of operation for the Perot Museum are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. From Memorial Day through Labor Day, the Museum offers extended hours until 6 p.m. The Perot Museum operates year round with the exception of Thanksgiving (closed), Christmas Eve (closed at 3 p.m.), Christmas (closed), New Year’s Eve (closed at 5 p.m.) and a few select dates in September and November. Please check perotmuseum.org for additional hours and unexpected closings.

TICKETS. Museum general admission is $20 for adults (18-64), $13 for youth (2-17) and $14 for seniors (65+). Traveling and temporary exhibitions require a surcharge. Admission to the theater is $6 for a short film (20 minutes) and $8 for a long film (40 minutes). Films and general admission for children under 2 are free. Visitors are strongly encouraged to purchase tickets online in advance.

Snag a CityPASS! A Dallas CityPASS provides Perot Museum general admission along with a 3D film plus admission to three other popular attractions. A CityPASS adult ticket is $48 (a $79 value) and a CityPASS child ticket is $32 (a $53 value) – a 40% savings! Find the link to purchase online at perotmuseum.org or go to the Museum Box Office.

The Perot Museum is located at 2201 N. Field Street in Dallas, Texas. For parking information and other details, visit perotmuseum.org or call 214-428-5555.

NOTE: To obtain the news release, Perot Museum fact sheet, photos, b-roll and film trailers, please go to perotmuseum.org/press.

About the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. The top cultural attraction in Dallas/Fort Worth and a Michelin Green Guide three-star destination, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is a nonprofit educational organization located in the heart of Dallas, Texas, with campuses in Victory Park and Fair Park. With a mission to inspire minds through nature and science, the Perot Museum delivers exciting, engaging and innovative visitor and outreach experiences through its education, exhibition, and research and collections programming for children, students, teachers, families and life-long learners. The 180,000-square-foot facility in Victory Park opened in December 2012 and is now recognized as the symbolic gateway to the Dallas Arts District. Future scientists, mathematicians and engineers will find inspiration and enlightenment through 11 permanent exhibit halls on five floors of public space; a children’s museum; a state-of-the art traveling exhibition hall; and The Hoglund Foundation Theater, a National Geographic Experience. Designed by 2005 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate Thom Mayne and his firm Morphosis Architects, the Victory Park museum has been lauded for its artistry and sustainability. To learn more, please visit perotmuseum.org