CSI Experience: You're the Investigator

Price
$30 Adults
$23 Kids (ages 4-11)
$75 Family Pack (2 adults + 2 kids 4-11)
Pricing includes service fee and tax.

Operation
Daily from 10AM-10PM
(Last admission at 9PM)

Enter at anytime between 10AM and 9PM with your E-Ticket/s ready.

Tour lasts approximately 45-60 minutes.

Details
Imagine entering a crime scene and being the one responsible for noticing and collecting every trace of evidence. The pressure is on: you know the analysis of your evidence must be scientifically sound to crack the case.

You've seen the hit television crime drama, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on CBS. Now, there's a forensic science exhibit related to the TV show.

This experience is a completely immersive exhibit that invites visitors to enter "crime" scenes where they identify and record evidence. It takes them inside "laboratories" for scientific testing and to "autopsy" rooms for pathology analysis. Then it returns them to the "office" to build their case, based on the scientific evidence. The exhibit brings to life real scientific principles and the most advanced scientific techniques used today by crime scene investigators and forensic scientists.

From DNA and firearms analysis to forensic anthropology and toxicology, visitors will be immersed in hands-on science in an exciting multi-media environment with dazzling special effects direct from the CSI TV series. Cast members from the TV show welcome guests into the exhibit from a large video monitor, lead them through the experience, and praise them for a job well done at the end. The exhibit is geared toward adults and youth age 12 and above. Imagine entering a crime scene and being the one responsible for noticing and collecting every trace of evidence. The pressure is on: you know the analysis of your evidence must be scientifically sound to crack the case.

This CSI experience immerses guests in hands-on science while leading them through the challenge of solving a crime mystery. The hands-on exhibit brings to life fundamental scientific principles, numerous scientific disciplines, and the most advanced technology and techniques used today by crime scene investigators and forensic scientists. Through hands-on activities featuring real equipment and multimedia presentations, guests will sample the following science fields and understand the significance of each in cracking crimes.

Scientific Objectives for Exhibit Guests:
1. Visitors will use the process of scientific inquiry to:

• Identify evidence at the crime scene and determine which clues need more detailed analyses.
• Analyze evidence in a multidisciplinary crime lab with the help of forensic specialists.
• Formulate a hypothesis about the crime based on their analyses.
• Validate and communicate the results of their investigation based on the scientific evidence.

2. Guests will use Scientific Inquiry in the Following Fields:

• DNA identification: understanding the fundamental applications of genetic biology and discoveries in DNA profiling that have greatly advanced forensic science;
• Toxicology: identifying the presence of drugs or poisons in body tissues, fluids and organs;
• Forensic anthropology: examining skeletal remains for forensic purposes;
• Forensic entomology: studying the presence of insects and or insect eggs in dead bodies to help determine the time or location of the death;
• Forensic pathology: looking for trauma or anomalies in the body’s systems that explain sickness or death;
• Forensic art: using an understanding of anatomy and physiology to create images;
• Firearm and toolmark identification: understanding the basic physics behind ballistics, and using observation skills to match patterns;
• Information technology: understanding the use of national databases, cell phones, cameras, e-mails and other digital technologies to track and investigate crimes.
• Latent prints: using chemistry to reveal fingerprints or handprints that are not visible to the naked eye.
• Blood spatter analysis: studying blood patterns to determine movement, speed, direction, location, which all to help identify what took place at the crime scene.

Tools and technologies in the exhibit:

• Video monitors with scenes from CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and real-life scientists talking about their areas of expertise
• Microscopes
• Magnifiers, templates
• Computer databases
• Personal computers with touch-screen technology
• UV light sources
• Cell phone seizure kit
• Chemistry equipment, reagents
• DNA instrument systems
• Ballistics identification systems and bullet trap

About the Exhibit
Developed by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and Bob Weis Design Island Associates with support from CBS Consumer Products, the cast and crew of the television show, and the National Science Foundation, this CSI experience is an immersive, interactive forensic science exhibit related to the hit TV series that invites people to use real science to solve hypothetical crimes in an exciting multimedia environment.

Visitors will participate in forensic investigations and use scientific inquiry to solve crimes.

Goals for the Exhibit:
To advance critical thinking skills through forensic investigation, scientific inquiry, and technology.
To promote public awareness of modern advances in forensic science.

Our Educational Goals for Exhibit Visitors:
1. Visitors will understand the principles underlying the following areas of forensic science:

• DNA identification
• Toxicology
• Forensic anthropology
• Forensic entomology
• Forensic pathology
• Forensic art
• Firearm and toolmark identification
• Information technology
• Latent prints
• Blood spatter analysis

2. Visitors will use information technology in their investigations to:

• Simulate the analyses of clues using database technology.
• Comprehend the role of human judgment, even when using advanced technology.
• Compare historical methods of crime scene investigations with today’s advanced forensic sciences.

Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is CSI: The Experience ?
CSI: The Experience is an interactive exhibit providing visitors with a hands-on, exploratory, multi-sensory experience in the world of crime scene investigation. It is designed to educate the public about forensic processes, procedures and technologies. At the exhibit, visitors will investigate a “real” crime scene and interact via video with favorite characters from the hit television show as well as real-life forensic experts.

Q: What is the purpose of the exhibit?
• To advance critical thinking skills through forensic investigation, scientific inquiry, and technology.
• To promote public awareness of modern advances in forensic science.

Q: Do you provide accompanying educational materials for this exhibit?
Yes, additional educational materials (Family Guide and Educator's Resource Guide) may be downloaded here.

Q: Who should attend CSI: The Experience ?
Anyone interested in learning about investigative forensic science. Adults of all ages and children age 12 and over will find the material fascinating and informative.

Q: Is this exhibit appropriate for children?
This exhibit is most effective for visitors from age 12 to adult. Parents, guardians, and educators should view the interactive preview and exercise judgment to determine whether the exhibit is right for your individual children or students. The preview includes facts to help you make a well-informed decision about the appropriateness for younger audiences.

Q: I’ve seen all the CSI television shows. Are the exhibit scenes and video footage unique to the demonstration?
Yes, our exhibit features never-before-seen footage of your favorite CSI characters as well as footage from real-life crime scene investigators and forensic analysts. By combining the show’s education and entertainment with real-life expert teaching, we provide an engaging format for learning the processes of investigative forensic technology.

Q: Can I learn just as much from the television show?
While the television show explains many forensic concepts, the exhibit gives you the experience of entering a crime scene and determining the clues for yourself. More brain processes are involved as you employ inductive reasoning, deductive logic, and trial and error to solve the mysteries and crack the case.

Q: What will visitors do as they walk through the exhibit?
Upon entering, you will be briefed via video and then directed to one of three staged crime scenes. Once on the scene, you will use your investigator’s notebook to examine the evidence and determine what you believe to be the important clues. After you complete your crime scene investigation, you will compare your clues with those of a real crime scene investigators and determine which clues need further analysis.

Then, you will proceed to the labs to investigate your findings. You will also visit the medical examiner for your autopsy report and note the important medical evidence. CSI characters and real-life experts are “working” via video in our virtual labs to explain tire track comparison, blood spatter analysis, firearms technology comparison, and much more; use the data they provide to help you examine your specific crime scene clues in the lab. You may be asked to compare tire tracks, pollen fibers, DNA, or shell casings. Finally, you will submit your report and conclusions at the end of your investigation and learn whether you have correctly solved the case.

Q: What are the differences between the three crime scenes?
Each crime scene is a different scenario with a separate story line and unique clues, but they are all equally engaging and challenging to solve. Each mystery involves a visit to the medical examiner and various crime labs. Your group will be assigned one of the three scenes when you arrive at the exhibit.

Q: Which kind of analyzing and testing I could do?
Investigation: A House Collided
"A House Collided" investigators will compare fingerprints of the victim to the evidence, examine blood spatter patterns, observe the shoes of the victim and tracks found in the room, compare fibers on the victim's clothes with fibers in the room, analyze the victim's blood-alcohol level, compare DNA of the victim with evidence and eventually discover the cause of death.

Investigation: Who Got Served?
For "Who Got Served?" the investigation will include reviewing evidence within a cell phone, examining the contents of the handbag, inspecting the purse and headshot for fingerprints, establishing the time of death, reviewing DNA samples, testing powder from the handbag at the scene, and discovering the cause of death.

Investigation: No Bones About It!
Sleuths working on "No Bones About It!" will analyze the bullet from the found skull, analyze hairs found with the body, examine a seed found in a the pocket of a coat, study a DNA sample from a tooth, test the DNA of an animal's hair, examine a femur bone to establish the height of the victim, compare dental records to the victim and discover the cause of death.

Q: Can I choose the scene I want?
If the crowd patterns are light enough, most venues will be able to accommodate requests.

Q: To whom do I report?
At the end of the exhibit, present your findings in a recreation of the office of Gil Grissom—the enigmatic CSI head investigator. You will answer a series of multiple choice questions, based on your scientific findings, on touch screens located in this area. After completing these questions, a case summary is generated and you'll match your results to those of expert crime scene investigators! At the very end, you enter your data and you will receive your personal CSI: Diploma.

Q: Is there an audio tour?
CSI: The Experience is unlike most typical museum tours. The multimedia is an integral part of the exhibit and will be used by each participant as they proceed through the learning environment. You will access the media at each station, rather than carry a guided museum audio commentary with you.

Q: How long can I stay inside the exhibit?
Once you enter the exhibit, you may investigate as long as you wish. Average time in each crime scene is approximately 10 minutes. Most guest spend 50 minutes to 1 hour in the exhibit overall.

Q: Can I take my own pictures in the exhibit?
Sorry, no photography and video cameras are allowed.

Q: Are food and drinks permitted in the exhibit?
Food and drinks must be consumed or disposed of prior to exhibit entry.