We reached the Sony Wonder Technology Lab at Madison Ave, NY. I was completely thrilled and surprised about what I was about to see inside this beautiful free four-level museum. Sony had built this state-of-the-art museum showcasing interactive exhibits which explore the awe’s of modern day communication and technology. Entry is completely free and for children, this is the most enjoyable place all around the New York.
As soon as we entered the building, we were directed to the fourth floor. This museum is completely unique including its floor plan. The museum begins from the fourth floor and ends in the first floor. As soon as we came out of the elevator, there was a wall made of “Sensi-tile”, it combines some technology and lighting effects. When Alex touched the wall, the wall reflected back for his touch responses. After the wall, there was the Sony Wonder Technology Lab (SWTL) Log-In machine. In the machine, we typed our name, we pictured ourselves and recorded our voices. Initially, I was puzzled. But, later one attendant came to me and clarified me that it will generate a digital profile for me and my son and this digital information will be transmitted throughout the museum.
Next to that there was a community diagram, which showed a 3D representation of the entire lab with me and fellow visitors in a large picture. Behind that, there was an “Internet Map”, which clearly depicts how data is being transferred through the internet around the world. I was able to explain Alex about how Internet works.
After that, we were shown about all the digital devices Sony has ever made and how it works. There was a 3D X-ray image of the PSP; when Alex rushed to touch the image, it spread into different layers showing what is inside those devices and how it works. It gave me a completely different perspective of all of the modern electronic devices. After that, we passed through the timeline of all kind of communication devices and technologies right from the beginning to till date. It was just a timeline representation of how modern technology evolved.
In the third floor, there was a large section of area portraying about nanotechnology. They showed what nanotechnology really is and it displayed the applications of it in various industries ranging from medicine to fashion. Nanotechnology just blew my mind. Previously, I had no idea about the power of nanotechnology. After that, there was a section about surgeries through virtual imaging. It showed a demonstration of how operations can be done through virtual imaging and how it helps doctors to diagnose patients.
After that, we moved onto animation studio, it showed the basic principles and techniques to create animation characters and scenes. We got our hands-on and did our own animation works. Next we saw one thing which cannot be simply explained by words, it was the show stealer. That was an interactive dance floor, which captured our moves and transformed it with one of the Sony animated creatures. Due to height restrictions, Alex was not able to perform this. Next, we went into an HD studio and theater which screened 4K videos.
Next we came to the second floor, it was Alex’s favourite floor. It was fully dedicated to gaming-related technologies. There was an immersive PlayStation which had surround music system and vibrating floor, they called it “In the Game”.
Next there were game builders, music mixers and movie makers. With its super intuitive and interactive screens, I was able to do high-end editing and mixing with ease. It gave me a little insight on movie post production works.
That was the end of our tour. We gently logged out and moved away. SWTL is an enjoyable place for children and informative museum for tech lovers. We had a great day with the Sony Wonder Technology Lab.