While in DC, I visited NAS’s Koshland Science Museum, a new(ish) science museum for the older crowd, and gentle plug for the work of the Academies. Their current exhibits focus on climate change and DNA, and I think do an ok job of presenting a basic, skin-deep understanding of some of the science in those fields. Unfortunately, I can’t really tell what the take home message is, except maybe an unsurprising “science is great” spirit. The exhibits seem to skip any hint of values conflicts or political problems, suggesting that DNA testing catches bad guys and not mentioning the possibility of cancelled insurance policies… Not that I’d really expect the NAS to market potential problems, but I do wonder how much the museum can really contribute.