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Carnegie Museum of Natural History

One of the Four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh

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For questions about press releases or for interview requests, please contact Sloan MacRae at 412.353.4678 or MacRaeS@carnegiemuseums.org.

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September 28, 2023

For more information, contact:
Sloan MacRae
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
412.353.4678
MacRaeS@CarnegieMNH.org

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY PRESENTS LIFE IN ONE CUBIC FOOT

Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Invites Visitors to Explore the Diversity of Life on Earth and in Their Own Backyards from October 14, 2023 - January 7, 2024

Pittsburgh, September 28, 2023 — This fall and holiday season, Carnegie Museum of Natural History (CMNH) presents Life in One Cubic Foot. The exhibition follows the research of Smithsonian scientists and photographer David Liittschwager as they discover what a cubic foot of land or water—a biocube—reveals about the diversity of life on the planet. CMNH will present Life in One Cubic Foot from October 14, 2023 through January 7, 2024. The exhibition is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History.

DNA Learning Center students exploring one cubic foot of Cold Springs Harbor in New York. © David Liittschwager

A biocube—the tool at the heart of the exhibition—is a one-by-one-by-one-foot framed cube that organisms from the surrounding environment can enter and pass through. Biocubes featured in the exhibition were placed in environments across the globe to learn what forms of life, both known and unknown, could be found during a 24-hour period. In addition to exploring life through the exhibition, visitors are also invited to participate in citizen science and uncover the biodiversity in their own backyards by creating and monitoring their own biocubes. 

Life in One Cubic Foot explores life from exotic environments, like the coral reefs of French Polynesia and the alien mid-water ocean off the coast of California, to more familiar locales, like New York City’s Central Park. The exhibition features hundreds of different organisms—ranging in size from the head of a pin to the full one-cubic-foot biocubes—in collages of photographs, models, interactive elements, and exhibition videos. CMNH will include a special section of the exhibition that focuses on the biodiversity of Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania. 

A biocube in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood, near the museum. @ Matt Unger, Carnegie Museum of Natural History

Biocubes in the exhibition were not only used by scientists to explore what is already known about life on Earth but also to spotlight how much biodiversity remains for aspiring scientists to discover. Scientists estimate that there are more than one million species still unknown or unnamed by scientists. Environmental changes—like climate change and other human-made forces—affect life around the world, both discovered and yet unidentified. Global efforts to understand the impact of these changes and answer questions about how to manage the complex dynamics of wildlife and natural resources will improve as scientists fill knowledge gaps in the tree of life. 

“We hope visitors will experience wonder and curiosity about the diversity of life around the world and especially in their favorite parks and along their daily commutes,” said Gretchen Baker, the Daniel G. and Carole L. Kamin Director of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. “We encourage them to investigate life outside the walls of our museum, in their own familiar and cherished places. The better we understand life on Earth, the better we recognize its vulnerabilities and the pressing challenges it faces.” 

The exhibition is free with museum admission and runs until January 7, 2024. General museum admission costs $25 for adults, $20 for adults 65 and older, $15 for children aged 3-18 or students with valid student IDs, and $12 after 3 p.m. on weekdays. Admission is free for members and children aged 2 and younger. More information is available at CarnegieMNH.org. 

SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for more than 70 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science, and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. For exhibition description and tour schedules, visit sites.si.edu. 

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History is connecting people everywhere with Earth’s unfolding story. The museum is one of the most visited natural history museums in the world. Opened in 1910, the museum is dedicated to maintaining and preserving the world’s most extensive collection of natural history specimens and human artifacts. For more information, visit naturalhistory.si.edu.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History, one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, is among the top natural history museums in the country. It maintains, preserves, and interprets an extraordinary collection of millions of objects and scientific specimens used to broaden understanding of evolution, conservation, and biodiversity. Carnegie Museum of Natural History generates new scientific knowledge, advances science literacy, and inspires visitors of all ages to become passionate about science, nature, and world cultures. More information is available by calling 412.622.3131 or by visiting the website, www.carnegiemnh.org.

July 11, 2023

Mason Heberling standing in knotweed plants that are taller than him.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Awarded $225K Grant from Richard King Mellon Foundation to Lead Campaign Against Spread of Invasive Plant Species

Museum to Spearhead Collaborative Education and Outreach Campaign Among Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh Botanic Garden, and Other Institutions

June 5, 2023

Chirp, Chitter, Caw: Surrounded by Birdsong

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY PRESENTS SUMMER EXHIBITION CHIRP, CHITTER, CAW: SURROUNDED BY BIRD SONG

Featuring Soundtracks of Birdsong Created by The World According to Sound

April 10, 2023

Researchers Call for New Conservation Paradigm that Embraces Positive Contributions of Land Stewardship

Study Emphasizes Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s “We Are Nature” Commitment to Recognize Humans as Inextricable Part of Nature

February 16, 2023

William B. “Skip” Simmons, Jr. Wins 2022 Carnegie Mineralogical Award

Simmons Honored for Career as Pegmatology Expert and Dedicated Educator

January 24, 2023

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY PRESENTS APSÁALOOKE WOMEN AND WARRIORS FEBRUARY 4 - MAY 29, 2023

Exhibition from The Field Museum Celebrates Bravery and Artistry of the Matriarchal Apsáalooke People of the Northern Plains

May 10, 2022

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Presents Nature’s Amazing Machines, Exploring the Engineering Feats of the Natural World

A “Nuts-and-Bolts” Look at Nature at the Museum May 28, 2022 – January 2, 2023; Presented in English and Spanish

April 6, 2022

Early Placental Mammal Evolution Prioritized Brawn over Brains

Study in Prestigious Journal Science Sheds Light on the Mammalian Brain in Post-Dinosaur World

March 9, 2022

Pittsburgh Launches Spring 2022 Lights Out Program to Protect Migratory Birds

Business and conservation organizations unite to turn off lights during peak times in spring migration period

February 15, 2022

Dr. Barbara Lee receiving 2021 Carnegie Mineralogical Award

DR. BARBARA LEE DUTROW WINS THE 2021 CARNEGIE MINERALOGICAL AWARD

Champion of Diversity and Women in Mineralogy

February 1, 2022

STUDY CALLS FOR “EXCITING NEW ERA” OF INCREASED USE OF PLANT SPECIMENS AS TRAIT DATA SOURCES

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Botanist Mason Heberling Makes Case for Digitized Herbaria in Prestigious Coulter Review

December 7, 2021

Yellow oldsite blades with blue stanleyite and white szomolnokite on asphaltum.

New Mineral Named For Carnegie Museum of Natural History Scientist

Uranium Mineral "Oldsite" Honors Travis Olds, Assistant Curator of Minerals

August 9, 2021

Annie with 800000th bird, cedar waxwing

Powdermill Nature Reserve Records 800,000th Bird Banding

Milestone Bird Is a Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)

June 22, 2021

Scutosaurus replica skeleton

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY EXTENDS DINOSAUR ARMOR BY POPULAR DEMAND

World Premiere Exhibition to Run Four Additional Weeks through July 31, 2021

February 9, 2021

bird perched on a branch at night

Surprising Study Reveals that Common Potoo Bird Is Migratory

Citizen Scientist Researchers from Southern Hemisphere Make Impact

December 8, 2020

Sarah Crawford

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY ANNOUNCES NEW EXHIBITIONS DIRECTOR

Sarah Crawford brings exhibition experience from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Field Museum, and San Diego Museum of Us

November 17, 2020

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Partners with Commonwealth Press and Pfaltzgraphic to Launch New Merchandise

T-shirts and hoodies feature original designs of museum fan favorites, including dinosaur mascot “Dippy” and TikTok Star Tim Pearce

September 28, 2020

rose-breasted grosbeak gynandromorph

RESEARCHERS AT POWDERMILL NATURE RESERVE OBSERVE RARE GYNANDROMORPH BIRD CONTAINING BOTH MALE AND FEMALE CHARACTERISTICS

Rose-breasted Grosbeak Roughly Male on Right Side and Female on Left Side

July 8, 2020

Powdermill Nature Reserve Receives $1M Avian Research Grant from Richard King Mellon Foundation

Two-year grant supports construction of Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s new Powdermill Avian Research Center, enhanced research programs, and expanded public programming

June 22, 2020

dinosaur featured in dino virtual field trip

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Re-opens with World Premiere Dinosaur Armor

Exhibition coincides with public reopening June 29; Free exclusive member preview June 27 and 28

May 28, 2020

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Partners with TikTok to Create Educational Videos

The museum cultivated a following of over 148,500 and millions of views since January 2020, anchored by mollusk curator's snail jokes

April 29, 2020

GROUND-BREAKING FOSSIL FROM MADAGASCAR HAS PITTSBURGH CONNECTION

CARNEGIE SCIENTIST PROVIDES COMPARATIVE CONTEXT FOR NEW CRETACEOUS MAMMAL

April 27, 2020

butterfly

U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE PROVIDES 1.35-MILLION-DOLLAR GRANT TO CONSORTIUM BUILDING A NETWORK TO TRACK MIGRATING WILDLIFE

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Researcher Sets Covid-19 Bird Banding Protocols

April 16, 2020

Mason Heberling writing in a nature notebook

CARNEGIE MUSEUM BOTANIST WINS ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA GEORGE MERCER AWARD FOR YOUNG SCIENTISTS

Mason Heberling of Carnegie Museum of Natural History and Caitlin McDonough MacKenzie at University of Maine awarded for climate change research

April 2, 2020

Miley the Blue-Tongued Skink

CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY LAUNCHES AT-HOME SUPER SCIENCE DAYS IN APRIL

Enjoy dinosaur hatching and more egg-cellent activities from home

March 31, 2020

Martensius bromackerensis

NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF 290-MILLION-YEAR-OLD CASEID DESCRIBED BY CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCHERS AND INTERNATIONAL COLLEAGUES

Superbly preserved skeletons provide evidence that Martensius bromackerensis developed from juvenile insectivore to adult herbivore

January 27, 2020

Mason in trillium

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Awarded $200,000 NSF Grant to Study Ecological Disruptions on Trees and Wildflowers as Result of Climate Change

Collaborative Research Grant of Combined $645,000 Awarded to Carnegie Museum of Natural History, University of Pittsburgh, and Boston University

January 14, 2020

Travis Olds holding a mineral

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Welcomes Travis Olds as New Assistant Curator of Minerals

Olds brings unique research opportunities for museum’s minerals collection with focus on human impact

October 2, 2019

A sixteen-year-old giant panda inside her enclosure at the Wolong Nature Reserve.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Hosts “National Geographic: 50 Greatest Wildlife Photographs” Exhibition

Visually stunning experience reveals some of the most captivating photographs of the animal kingdom

September 25, 2019

Eric Dorfman in the exhibition Dinosaurs in Their Time

Director of Carnegie Museum of Natural History Elected to Executive Board of International Council of Museums

ICOM governing body leads global discussion of museum ethics, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, and the evolving definition of museums

September 17, 2019

Dr. Richard W. Moriarty

City of Pittsburgh to Honor Dr. Richard W. Moriarty, Creator of Mr. Yuk, on October 1, 2019

Dr. Moriarty—Lawrenceville native, retired pediatrician, former associate clinical professor of pediatrics at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and current board member of Carnegie Museum of Natural History—founded the Pittsburgh Poison Center and National Poison Center Network.

September 10, 2019

herbarium specimen with large green leaves

Carnegie Museum of Natural History Researchers Detail Innovative Uses of Museum Collections for Understanding Global Change

Plant specimens provide powerful data about life in the Anthropocene.