Fri, May 30, 2003
 STATE MUSEUM, OPENS SAT Renovated Pine Ridge Diorama Opens at NU State Museum If one were lucky enough to have a cabin at Fort Robinson in Nebraska's Pine Ridge, and were looking out the cabin's window on an overcast early winter afternoon, one might see Mule Deer and White-winged Juncos as part of the landscape. Now, one can experience that event in Lincoln in a newly renovated Pine Ridge diorama at the University of Nebraska State Museum.
The original Pine Ridge diorama was completed in 1959. The next 44 years took its toll on the exhibit, as harsh lighting faded the deer fur and the acrylic paint in the background deteriorated. In addition, the museum's philosophy in presenting dioramas has changed and the new exhibit incorporates that thinking. Dioramas, according to Judy Diamond, the museum's associate director for public programs, showcase wildlife in their natural environments. While that approach remains, the museum's staff has changed the way that visitors interact with the dioramas and also has enhanced the content of the dioramas with new materials that highlight biodiversity. "We try to involve the visitor to experience the habitat group by surrounding the visitor with the diorama," Diamond said. "Our new emphasis is to make the visitors paramount and to communicate with them to enhance their learning experience." The Pine Ridge diorama was designed to recreate the landscape outside a Pine Ridge cabin setting. Two mule deer, an antlered buck and a doe, step amid brown grasses and small ridges of snow. The doe's gaze appears focused on a bird in the foreground. Behind the pair rises the Pine Ridge escarpment. Other parts of the exhibit include mounts of two bucks who were found near death with locked antlers, and a pair of skulls - one from a mule deer and the other from a white-tailed deer, allowing viewers to compare the two. New signage explains the habitat and life cycles of the wildlife. Diamond said dioramas depict a moment in time; the Pine Ridge diorama showcases an early winter scene from the late 1950s. Thus, said Freeman, there are no insects and the dormant brown grasses would not be grazed down. Part of the educational materials for the diorama explain what the animals eat during the winter, she said. Diorama renovations are costly, Diamond said. Depending on the scope and size of the project, each diorama can cost between $10,000 and $60,000. Private donations pay for the renovations. STATE MUSEUM |
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Huskers Host Track Regional
Nebraska is coming off a trip to the Big 12 Championships in Austin, Texas, where the Huskers claimed eight individual titles but came up short of both team titles, with the women taking silver and the men taking bronze. Texas captured both team titles on its home turf and the Longhorns will likely be the favorites coming into the regional championships. Fifty individuals have qualified for the regional meet for 62 event entries, as well athletes who qualified on relay teams. NU has 24 athletes currently ranked in the top 10 in the region in their respective events and 16 rank in the top five. In order to make the NCAA Outdoor Championships, athletes must finish in the top five of their event or in the top three in the relay events. The NCAA will also use the national descending order list to fill the rest of the NCAA Championships field. TRACK & FIELD Huskers Host Baseball Regional
The Huskers (44-16) will be looking for their fourth straight regional title and a chance to play the winner of the NCAA Auburn Regional, which features top-seeded Auburn (40-19), which is also the No. 4 national seed, along with No. 2 Clemson (38-20), No. 3 Ohio State (41-19) and No. 4 Princeton (27-21). BASEBALL | TOURNAMENT BRACKETS (PDF) |
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