Rio constructs $100M museum devoted to the future

World Today

A new $100 million Museum of Tomorrow which will educate people about future possibilities is currently in the works in Rio De Janerio, on the very spot where the city was founded 450 years ago. Stephen Gibbs reported this story from Rio de Janeiro.

The museum’s curator is an astrophysicist who has the formidable task of trying to select exhibits about humankind’s uncertain future.

“The main challenge is that the only certainty we have about the future is that the unexpected will take place,” Curator Luiz Alberto Oliveira said. “So we have to rely on what science today tells us about the trends that shall shape the future. So the museum is always looking 50 years ahead. We look at these trends, these big transformations that shall take place, and within this range we shall make our choices.”

Supporters said that the museum will be a global example of a new generation of science museums. But some critics have suggested that the price tag is too high and a reflection of Brazil’s tendency to not examine its history.

The building’s design incorporates sustainable elements such as wing-like solar panels on the roof and pumps that draw deep sea-water from the surrounding bay to cool the interior.

While the plans are grand, construction is already behind schedule, with a completion goal date of March 2015.