Overall, the visualization table had
a positive effect on the display of Gebelein Man and the gallery as a whole.
It increased the attention-grabbing
power of the display by 24% over surveys before table installation. Our
visitor interviews revealed that the
Inside Explorer visualization table
had contributed to visitors’ understanding of the mummy, with many
returning to observe it after having
discovered information on his age,
preservation, and cause of death. The
Inside Explorer table also appears to
have had a positive effect on the other
physical displays and cases in the gallery. Based on these conclusions, the
British Museum decided to turn the
temporary installation into a permanent exhibit.
Even though these lessons learned
are described primarily in the context
of our work with the British Museum,
we see similar results in many other
installations worldwide and regard our
work as only the beginning of the exciting possibilities promised by interactive visualization at public venues.
The Future of Science
Visualizations at Public Venues
The Inside Explorer visualization table
described here is an example of an
ongoing trend that is fundamentally
changing the visitor experience in museums and science centers.
4 Instead
of passively absorbing information
and studying static objects or subjects
on display, visitors are allowed to engage with digital objects and explore
the secrets hidden within an object in
a manner similar to the way researchers would process and explore the real
object and its digital representation.
We curated and annotated the datasets
and provided additional information
to furnish a complete story for the user
experience with the table.
Based on the work presented here,
we now intend to take another step,
aiming to develop a solution that ad-
dresses the bottlenecks in the process
to enable rapid and efficient conversion
of a scanned subject into a compelling
visitor experience. The first bottleneck
is in the deeper initial exploration of
scans of the subject to facilitate discov-
ery. Deep technical knowledge of the
process should not be required, as it
is today, making it possible to address
a schematic of the adopted workflow.
The iterative approach was based on
frequent videoconferencing, as well as
regular on-site meetings and design
reviews, leading to refinement of the
software, as well as the physical exhibit
design, to improve aspects of the inter-
active public experience (such as acces-
sibility to visitors in wheelchairs).
The final Gebelein Man exhibit in
the Early Egypt Gallery at the British
Museum was subject to an evaluation by the museum’s Interpretation
Department prior to, as well as after,
installation of the Inside Explorer visualization table to determine its contribution to the visitor experience.
1 In the
pre-table evaluation, we tracked 114
visitors and interviewed more than 50
of them. In the post-table evaluation,
we tracked 133 visitors and interviewed
95 of them. Here are some of the main
findings:
Time spent in the gallery. Prior to table installation, the median time spent
in the gallery was two minutes. After
table installation, visitor dwell time
in the gallery increased by 40%, and
visitors made an average of three stops
(instead of two) in the gallery. An important finding was that the fraction of
visitors stopping to view other displays
in the gallery increased from 3% to 20%;
Visitor attention to original display.
We were initially concerned that the
virtual visual exploration table would
divert interest from the physical artifacts and mummy in the gallery, but
the opposite occurred, where the fraction of visitors viewing the physical
display increased from 59% to 83%.
The total visitor attention time given
to Gebelein Man was shared between
the table and the mummy, leading to
a decrease in time spent observing the
physical subject alone; and
Interaction with the table. The table
saw heavy visitor interaction and was in
use 95% of the evaluation time. Of the
visitors to the gallery, 83% stopped at
the Gebelein Man display, 59% stopped
at the Inside Explorer table, and 36%
engaged with the table. The average
interaction time was two minutes, nine
seconds. In our interviews, the display
was scored nine out of 10 on average
for ease of use and enjoyment and an
average of 8. 5 for informativeness. Approximately 60% of table users discovered the cause of death.
The amulet of
Neswaiu, still
present within
the mummy
wrappings and
behind glass, can
now be physically
reproduced in
high-resolution
detail through a
process of digital
virtual extraction.