outbreak - WKTV Journal

Go Baby Shower Shopping!

So they have been a little busy at the John Ball Zoo with a lot of new arrivals. To celebrate, the Zoo is hosting a baby shower. The Anthony Poison arrow frog is looking for a new aquarium and some plants while the Goeldi’s monkeys (pictured above) are hoping for some toys and a flat screen TV (great for stimulation on those cold winter days.) For a complete list of gifts, visit https://www.jbzoo.org/babyshower. Also on Aug. 18. there will be fun baby shower activities at the zoo. For more information, visit www.jbzoo.org.

Check out Outbreak

The Grand Rapids Public Museum is currently hosting the Smithsonian exhibit, “Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World.” The exhibit features informative panels and videos that cover outbreaks such as Zika, Ebola, Influenza and new information pertaining to COVID-19. It also will include video from the Museum’s own COVID-19 collection. For more information, visit grpm.org.

Two for the Price of One

By the way, if you have a membership to the John Ball Zoo, you can get into the Grand Rapids Art Museum for free during the entire month of August. (It is the same for GRAM members who can get into the John Ball Zoo for free for August.) And this Saturday is Family Day at the GRAM from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be lots of family activities and docent tours. For more information, visit artmuseumgr.org.

Fun Fact: Hot Dog!

According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, Americans consume more than 150 million hot dogs on July 4 which if laid from end-to-end would stretch from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles five times. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, Americans consume 7 billion hot dogs or about 818 hot dogs every second. That’s a lot of dogs!

The Grand Rapids Public Museum will feature the Smithsonian exhibit “Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World” Aug. 1 – Sept. 27. (Supplied)

The Grand Rapids Public Museum (GRPM) is thrilled to announce a new exhibition is coming to the Museum from the Smithsonian, Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World, beginning Saturday, Aug. 1. The exhibit highlights how pathogens can spread to people from wildlife and livestock, why some outbreaks become epidemics and how human, animal and environmental health are all connected.

“As an educational institution, it’s important for the Museum to host an exhibit that’s relevant to today’s events,” said Dr. Cory Redman, the GRPM’s Science Curator. “Through an informative and immersive exhibit experience, information related to the COVID-19 pandemic will be shared, along with stories submitted from the West Michigan community about how this current health crisis has affected daily lives.”

Outbreak features informative panels and videos that cover outbreaks such as Zika, Ebola, Influenza and new information pertaining to COVID-19. Visitors will learn about the vaccination process, stigmas associated with certain infectious diseases, different roles community members and international partnerships assume to help stop outbreaks from becoming epidemics and more. The Museum also is including a section related to its community documentation project of daily life during COVID-19.

Detail of a MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) virus. (Supplied)

“We want people in all countries and settings to have effective communication tools about infectious diseases and health,” said Sabrina Sholts, lead curator of the exhibition and curator in the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History. “We see this as an extraordinary opportunity to raise awareness about pandemic risks and make everyone safer in our connected world.”

Outbreak will be located on the second floor of the GRPM, and is free with general admission to the Museum. The exhibition is presented in English and Spanish. Outbreak will be on display Aug. 1 through Oct. 18.

The GRPM is open and welcoming visitors to explore the three floors of core exhibitions, along with Bodies Revealed – extended through Sept. 27. Limited capacity; advance ticketing is required. For additional details about the new GRPM visitor experience, visit grpm.org.