Getting Real at Natural-History Museums

The columnist's child at the natural history museum asked, "Are any of these real?"
http://chronicle.com/article/Getting-Real-at-the/66061/?sid=ja&utm_source=ja&utm_medium=en

Then he goes on to say, I am a lifelong lover of museums, but my observations were those of an outsider, and I figured that exempted me from some of the constraints and subtleties that affect the observations of museum professionals. I could go on, in a curmudgeonly way, examining my pet peeves about museums ("Revisiting Natural Science," The Chronicle, December 12, 2008) and my recommendations for change ("Preserving the Future of Natural-History Museums," The Chronicle, October 30, 2009) without the slightest worry that anyone would take them seriously [below].
And then, last December, I received an invitation from Hanna Strager, head of exhibitions at the Natural History Museums of Denmark, to come to a symposium in Copenhagen to give a plenary talk that might provoke some discussion about the museums' plans for a national natural-history museum that would showcase their truly awesome collections, much of which were in storage. They knew that I was a nonexpert, but, much to my surprise, the things that I had been complaining about and some of my suggestions had been on the minds of at least a few curators in Europe, and, as I soon learned, in the United States. I wasn't exactly saying anything new, but it made a difference to hear the criticisms come from outside the community of curators—like visiting the Louvre with a caveman.

Past Coverage
Preserving the Future of the Natural-History Museum - October 30, 2009
The Decline of the Natural-History Museum - October 9, 2006
Revisiting Natural Science - December 12, 2008
Threats to Natural History and Museums - October 20, 2000
Threats to Natural History and Museums - October 20, 2000