Californian Academy of Sciences
Earthquakes are a simple fact of life in California and San Franciscans - like all Californians - have simply learned how to live in spite of them. When earthquake damage demanded the closure of the California Academy of Sciences, the city simply moved the exhibits to a 6-floor facility downtown. The temporary location (the Golden Gate Park site is scheduled to be reopened in a brand new building in 2008) is allowing the museum all the advantages that comes with downtown convenience.

The Academy is actually 3 museums in one, since it houses the Natural History Museum, the Steinhart Aquarium and the Morrison Planetarium. Most of the features of the museum are still on display in their temporary quarters. Over 5000 species of exotic fish and marine life are on display in the aquarium, and the Natural History Museum features a wide variety of exhibits of interest to all ages. Special exhibitions include Dinosaurs, the African Experience and Earth Sciences, which is particularly important in a city that lives with the company of earthquakes.