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WHO ARE WE And What Can We Learn From Observation?

Collection of the National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo | Vol.01 Mammals

Stand eye-to-eye, nose-to-nose with savannah dwellers. Take a close look at your hundred million year-old relative. Compare Southern and Northern Hemisphere animals. Examine mammals separated by distance, time, and species. Inside the display unit drawers are specimens that help you see our world from a new angle. Each time you open a drawer brings a new perspective, gradually fueling your curiosity. Looking at these mounted specimens a second or third time brings a different image into view.

You begin to notice mysteries that you didn’t spot before, and realize that things may be deeper than you thought. New questions begin to seep into your mind. What does it mean to be a mammal? Or a human? Who exactly are we? You commenced by looking at taxidermy, but suddenly you begin to see the world. And begin to see yourself. The events you see are fitting in with events in the outside world. It’s biology that only speechless specimens can communicate.