Universum
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, Cto. Centro Cultural de, C.U., Coyoacán, 04510 Ciudad de México, CDMX
55 5622 7260
http://www.universum.unam.mx
If you’re passionate about science make sure to visit Universum on the campus of UNAM, the largest university in Mexico City. Universum is the first museum of its kind in Latin America, situated in a 10 hectare landscaped setting in the southern part of the campus, in the Pedregal de San Ángel Ecological Reserve, the museum has a surface area of 25,000 m² of which half of it is dedicated to permanent exhibits. The museum’s main purpose is to educate the local population, and tourists, about science and technology. It’s a wonderful place to spend time with the kids, as many of its exhibits have interactive presentations designed to educate the little ones about the wonders of science, it also has a fun play area if your kids just want to be kids for a while.
The staff at Universum is known to be extremely helpful and to teach a thing or two about the exhibits along the way, there are 13 gallery and exhibition spaces for you to wander around. Temporary exhibits feature international institutions and attract students from all over the city, and even the rest of the country. Prices are very affordable, as entrance costs $90 pesos for adults and $80 for children. Universum has received 11 million visitors since it opened in 1992 and has worked to open extensions of the museum in other parts of the country, such as the Museo de Ciencia y Tecnología in the southern state of Chiapas.
Universum has interesting exhibits presented in a simple language in order to engage children in the scientific topics that it covers. There’s, for example, “Matematízate” (something like “Mathematize yourself”), an interactive exposition designed to explain why math is important and not just a bunch of numbers; “Science and Art”, which teaches the visitor to explore the similarities in two apparently very different areas: science and art. Other permanent installations within Universum are the Jose de la Herrán Planetarium, the Parákata Butterfly Exhibit, and the Patli exhibit on medicinal plants.
The museum offers a good variety of options that can educate children on somewhat difficult matters to explain for the first time, such as sexuality, or how the human brain works; at the same time instilling in them the value of precious resources like our water and the quality of our air. The museum is in the middle of the campus and surrounded by other cultural places that are also worth a visit. There’s no direct Metro station that accesses the museum, even though you can reach the campus via Metro station “Universidad” and then take the Pumabus (the bus system that services the campus), and ask to be dropped off at the Universum museum; but a taxi or Uber ride might be the best option to consider.
