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Wayne, hi!

I certainly told you my 90 second rule of thumb;  we had discussions
about it and the need to duplicate exhibits - you just forgot!  It's a 
measure of your great responsibilities these days.

It's the most engaging exhibits that people generally want to have 
a turn at, and this is where the potential for frustration is greatest.  I
still
am convinced that we should have multiples of these very engaging 
exhibits that have experiences lasting more than 90 seconds - tho'
I am open to argument about whether 90 seconds is exactly the right
unit of time, for these decisions.

Several other suggestions made in this e-discussion are good, too.
And by designing exhibits so that others can see what is going on, 
affoirds some vicarious sharing.

You may recall that we did research on the Pittsburgh train and the 
Chicago coal mine - for both of these, families would queue for two
hours and even more, for a 15 - 20 minute experience in the exhibit.
But we concluded that these were "icon" exhibits, which had been 
there for 30 - 50 years.  It seemed that generations of parents were 
sharing their own childhood experiences with their children.  For more
normal exhibits, we must be aware of the potential for frustration in 
much shorter times.

In The Tech's fine study of what led to satisfactory visits, factor number 
4 was "access to the exhibits."

Congratulations on the ground breaking!

All best,  Peter 

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