This article is a translation of a French article. The original article is a report of a local event, published in a student’s Journal.
Thursday, the 20th of October, from 7pm to 11pm, Nantes’ students have been able to discover through the Night at the Museum the Natural History Museum. Built over two floors, the museum welcomes among other things mineralogy, paleontology, taxonomy collections. To show that science is not only visual, the museum invites visitors to touch crystals to grow aware of their texture.
Moreover, the night had a theme for red line : Oceans. To dive into this theme, students had been able to explore the temporary exhibition. Those biomes had been described under all angles, from the history of maritime exploration to ecology, covering ocean biology as well. The exhibition was punctuated by games, interactive devices and Jules Verne’s passages, to accompany the visitor to discover those biomes who cover 70% of Earth’s surface. The exhibition was available until the 8th of January, 2024.
However, the theme wasn’t limited to the exhibition : Students have been able to see that the Ocean is a muse for artists. Poetry, Painting, Drama, Music, and even Gastronomy have been highlighted following call for projects. Yet, the Ocean is a place of challenges! This was the topic for one of the two conferences which punctuated the night, organized by the Marine. The second conferences described the daily life and career of a skipper, a sailor.
Hence, from Art to Science, covering sport and geopolitics as well, students have been able to grasp every glints of the Ocean. Like Jules Verne said through the Captain Nemo, “Sea is everything”.
This edition of the Night at the Museum is the third one, revival after COVID interruption. The night at the museum is an co-initiative between the École Centrale and Audencia, making it an event for students by students. According to the vice-director of 1the museum, this night is an opportunity to show the museum to this part of the demography, a minority among the visitors. For the students, it is an opportunity to discover it, freely, under the night’s peculiar setup, and for their eyes only!
The staff, built around 50 members, provided guided visits for, surveillance of and help for visitors. In yellow were decorated the guides, in red the referents, and in white, the other staff members. The staff has been coordinated and the night planned by ### and ###, who students can warmly thank!
Overall, only 250 visitors can access the night at once, but during the night, the museum has greeted more than 500 students. This night is hence a pleasure for the students and a success for the teams of Audencia and of the École Centrale!