[MarkusQ]

Where the adults get to act like kids and drink.

They don't add substance to the exhibits, they don't attempt to educate, they just attempt to tap an adjacent market for the same dumbed down slop.

(Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of the _idea_, just a huge critic of the _implementation_.)

[OkayPhysicist]

The Exploratorium had a few speakers at the adult night that I went to. It was definitely on the pop-sci end of the spectrum, but it was definitely not dumbed down to kid levels. Heck, even during normal operations, I'd say the Exploratorium walks a fair line between "approachable to children" and "teaching more science topics than we expect most adults to know".

[parpfish]

Agreed. They make it into a space for adults by simply removing kids and adding beer. It’s good for a casual date, but you don’t actually get adult level content.

I want the actual exhibits and content to be able to teach things to adults and not just signs with “wacky trivia” meant to engage kids for two seconds while they sprint to the next thing that has a button for them to push (e.g., one of the worst genre of “wacky facts” are stupid size comparisons about how things are bigger than X football fields or Y school busses).

Tl;dr You could get drunk while you’re watching Zoboomafoo, but that doesn’t suddenly make it it for adults the way that an Attenborough documentary is.

[dcminter]

I do recall a "late" at the London Science Museum where you could collect wristbands with the names of STDs to win prizes. Ok, still not very educational, but it was quite amusing to hear people trading gonorrhea for genital lice etc.

On a more serious note they do or did offer free lectures that were much more in-depth; one of the things I rather miss now that I live abroad.

[MarkusQ]

In depth science lectures would definitely be a step in the right direction. I think those are gone though:

"Our evening events cover everything from cult film screenings and live performances to gripping panel discussions and exclusive premieres—we’ve got something for everyone."

https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/see-and-do/halloween-lates

[cogman10]

What you need if you really want an education is a tour by a curator that can dive into the exhibits in age appropriate levels (and maybe even answer some questions).

It often seems like these adult themed exhibits are generally just a bunch of signs which are copy/pasted from wikipedia.

[kridsdale1]

I really soured on the whole “wow can you believe this crazy science fact” targeted for adults kind of media when Instagram and Subreddits like “I Fucking Love Science” got massively popular. Which of course led to them enshitifying, then being worthwhile conduits for propaganda.

“SCIENCE FACT! Republican voters are known to be morons who don’t want to learn anything! Like and subscribe!”

[cogman10]

I soured on science media when I learned just how terrible the "journalists" and editors are.

"Scientists find super duper magic unobtanium which does mystical things that will revolutionize the world!" Click through and "Bob found a conductor with slightly lower resistance than a previous material. It's created by a 500 step process which results in an organic chain that breaks down in temps above -40C."

The issue with the medium is every day needs an exciting headline. So they make them up rather than waiting for them to come.

[watwut]

Sounds correct about republican voters tho. And everyone suffers because of it.

[bluGill]

Everyone suffers because you believe that stereotype instead of getting to know republicans and discovering it is false - many of them love science (who you vote for is a compromise - nobody will support everything you want them to)

[watwut]

I do know republicans, I am from more of conservative environment. I still semi regularly read conservative journals. It is currently what it is. Trying to idealise that word serves no one.

They dont like science. They used to like cosplay liking science, when it felt more manly or when they thought it sticks it to feminists. That interest ends long before any real science starts and have nothing to do with it.

They dont think much of actual scientists.

[gecko6]

Individual republicans may well love science, but the Republican party is and has been anti-science for a long time, and aggressively so.