WASHINGTON and AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 18,
2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A new virtual reality (VR) experience
designed to explore a clean energy future will be unveiled at the
Smithsonian's groundbreaking new experience "FUTURES" opening
Saturday, November 20th at the
historic Arts and Industries Building (AIB). Created by Oracle in
collaboration with curators, 'Future of Energy,' aims to help
visitors better understand how they use energy, ways to conserve
it, and their role in building a clean energy future. Time
traveling from 1850 to 2050, the goal year for many climate change
initiatives, the exhibit invites visitors of all ages to play games
and take simple actions to explore how the energy landscape is
changing and the steps they can take every day to use less energy
and reduce their carbon emissions.
"While energy is one of society's most critical resources, its
future has never been more in question as we look for ways to
promote a cleaner tomorrow," said Smithsonian AIB curator
Ashley Molese. "This project helps
inspire a critical exploration of what's possible by illuminating
how increased renewable energy usage can create a sustainable
energy future, and how collectively changing our behaviors can make
a meaningful net-zero impact by 2050."
On view through July 6, 2022,
"FUTURES" is the Smithsonian's first major building-wide
exploration of the future and will temporarily reopen the
Smithsonian's oldest museum for the first time in nearly two
decades. The part-exhibition, part-festival will celebrate the
Smithsonian's 175th anniversary with more than 150 awe-inspiring
objects, ideas, prototypes, and installations that fuse art,
technology, design, and history to help visitors imagine many
possible futures on the horizon. Many of the exhibits will have a
focus on how we can collectively create and imagine a more
equitable, peaceful, and sustainable world.
Unlocking the energy of everyone
It will take people
all over the world acting in unison—governments, businesses, and
individuals—to reduce harmful carbon emissions. Changes
in human behavior—when done on a large scale—can have a
tremendous impact. In fact, new research shows that by 2040,
individuals' actions can be twice as impactful as current clean
energy supply policies in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
As visitors take a tour through the past, present, and future of
energy through immersive virtual reality experiences, they will be
able to see how taking actions (even small ones), at the right
times, can support a clean energy future. This could include
adjusting a thermostat a few degrees, washing laundry in cold
water, or unplugging devices when they're not in
use.
Individuals will step inside a virtual home and explore
different areas where their actions can help reduce their energy
consumption, their greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), and their energy
bills. The experience will help demonstrate the quantifiable impact
of better energy choices in and outside the home. Sample insights
and interactions include:
- Weatherizing a leaky window
- Adjusting thermostat settings
- Upgrading old appliances with newer Energy Star rated
machines
- Swapping out inefficient light bulbs
- Replacing old heaters, furnaces, or boilers with a heat
pump
- Switching off devices in sleep mode (phantom load). This
experience also includes a game to rid your devices of
"phantoms"
- Making drink choices based on the relative GHG emissions for a
single serving of each beverage
- Walking or biking for short trips instead of driving a
vehicle
Visitors will start their journey in 1850, and travel through
time to the year 2050 to explore how their choices can affect the
future of energy.
"Small actions today can have a big impact on tomorrow, and a
sustainable energy future requires eliminating carbon emissions
from our global energy system," said Hillary Martin, vice president, Oracle
Utilities. "Countries around the world have committed to
achieving aggressive decarbonization or net-zero carbon emissions
by 2050. The electrification of transportation and transition to
more renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar, will help us
achieve these goals. But we also need the power of people changing
their habits. This interactive is designed to show that
everyday actions can be part of the climate change
solution."
About "FUTURES"
Designed by architect David Rockwell and his award-winning firm
Rockwell Group, "FUTURES" will fill the historic Arts and
Industries Building with 32,000 square feet of new artworks,
interactives, prototypes, inventions, and "artifacts of the
future," as well as historic objects and discoveries from 23 of the
Smithsonian's museums and research centers. It will showcase
stories of future-makers who are working tirelessly towards a more
equitable, peaceful and sustainable world—inventors and creators,
activists and organizers—with a special focus on communities who
may not have always had a voice in future-making. Visitors will be
able to glimpse how past visions have shaped where we are today, as
a way to imagine their own version of humanity's next chapter. A
digital "FUTURES" Guide by award-winning firm Goodby Silverstein
& Partners will launch in early 2022.
"FUTURES" is made possible by a select group of sponsors and
supporters: Amazon Web Services, Autodesk, Bell Textron
Inc., Jacqueline B. Mars,
John and Adrienne Mars, the Embassy
of the State of Qatar,
David M. Rubenstein, and SoftBank
Group. Major support is also provided
by the Annenberg Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies,
Kevin S. Bright and Claudia W.
Bright, and Robert Kogod. Additional funding is provided
by Accenture, John Brock III, Events DC, First
Solar, Ford Motor Company, Wendy Dayton, Charlie
and Nancy Hogan, the Suzanne Nora Johnson and David
Johnson Foundation, Lyda Hill
Philanthropies, MedWand Solutions, National Football
League, the National Football Players Association, and
Oracle.
About the Arts and Industries Building
The Arts and
Industries Building (AIB) is a home for the future-curious. The
Smithsonian's second-oldest building opened in 1881 as America's
first National Museum, an architectural icon in the heart of the
National Mall. Its soaring halls introduced millions to wonders
about to change the world—Edison's lightbulb, the first telephone,
Apollo rockets. Dubbed "Palace of Wonders" and "Mother of Museums,"
AIB incubated new Smithsonian museums for over 120 years before
finally closing to the public in 2004. "FUTURES" is a
milestone first step in the long-term plan to renovate and
permanently reopen this landmark space. For more information,
visit aib.si.edu. Follow the museum
on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
About Oracle
Oracle offers integrated suites of
applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the
Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL),
please visit us at oracle.com.
To date, Oracle Utilities Opower behavioral energy
efficiency programs have eliminated 15.2 million metric tons
of carbon emissions in the United
States alone. That is equivalent to two years' worth of
greenhouse gas emissions for Washington,
D.C. To understand how you can be part of the
solution or learn more visit this report.
Trademarks
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trademarks of Oracle Corporation. Other names may be trademarks of
their respective owners.
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