The following paper traces important decision processes
connected with initiating and constructing a coastal environmental
facility. There is a brief review of the early history and
summaries of the preliminary studies completed as of April 1986.
Particular focus is placed on the Oregon State University/Oregon
Coast Aquarium cooperative study. Finally,...
In recent years, zoos and aquariums have become prominent centers for environmental education and have focused much of their organizational efforts towards conservation and inspiring conservation action among visitors. However, there is little research available to support the efficacy of these efforts, especially in relation to the behavioral outcomes associated...
Zoos and aquariums are among the best informal education avenues for individuals to further develop conservation beliefs and values. Research documented the presence of conservation messages at aquariums, that visitors expect such messages, and staff and volunteers at conservation organizations increase their conservation-related knowledge and behaviors. This research often focuses...
Visitor behavior research has become an essential
component to many museum programs. Since its opening to the
public in 1965, Oregon State University's Mark O. Hatfield
Marine Science Center Aquarium in Newport, it has been
visited by millions of people. A clear understanding of who
this audience was and what...
Although many science educators and researchers believe that emotion is an important part of the learning process, few researchers have dealt with the topic in a systematic fashion. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of emotion in the learning process, particularly in the learning of science...
Ocean observing groups are currently making efforts to work with well-defined end-user groups, like boaters and fishermen, to provide meaningful and effective real-time data (RTD) products and visualizations. However, providing meaningful data products for undefined groups such as the general public is not straightforward. In Oregon, several industry, science, and...
Museums, aquariums, and technology centers are informal learning environments that facilitate the understanding of scientific phenomena while supporting self-motivated learning. Families are a social group that frequently visits these sites. There are multiple opportunities for adults and children to engage in independent sense-making and collective discussion about their experiences with...
As a prelude to tagging studies on pink shrimp (Pandalus jordani) or other laboratory studies, basic information was needed to establish criteria necessary to hold shrimp in aquariums with minimum mortality. A one-year study was conducted at the Fish Commission Laboratory in Newport to obtain data on these requirements. The...
In the summer of 2001 the Oregon Coast Aquarium opened a new exhibit on sharks entitled, "Great White Mystery: What Happened to Surfer Bob?" For the purposes of this study, a survey was designed to determine whether visitors to the new exhibit learned factual information or left with changed attitudes...
Education programs at zoos and aquariums provide opportunities for visitors to learn and garner information on animal natural history and, hopefully, conservation messaging. Fee-based programs (programs with an additional fee on top of admission prices), which are commonly employed by zoos and aquariums to foster learning opportunities for visitors, are...