Bringing research to life:Recreating a 3D stone Archaeopteryx fossil as a digital interactive;where cutting edge science can be released through touch

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As a University Museum we actively engage our visitors with the work and research of academics at Manchester University through public events, such as Big Saturdays and temporary and permanent exhibitions related to our diverse collections. The development of digital technologies has made it easier to deliver a wide range of information inside and outside of a visit to the museum. This new type of touch sensitive replica allows the complex research to be placed directly onto an accurate replica of an important object so that the visitor can physically engage through touch to learn facts in a facilitated or self-guided exploration. This is especially important to our visually and physically impaired visitors and is also an aspect of a museum visit that many visitor's find rewarding. The research on fossils such as the Archaeoptryx and the revelations that have been discovered recently about its feathers helps our visitors understand that one of the reasons we preserve collections it to act as a resource for scientists to draw upon. The museum object can act as a conduit for the science which in itself can be obscure to some visitors.The stone touch-sensitive replica can be used either as part of an organised event or placed on the gallery for visitors to interact with. The information relating to the research can be tailored to the audience as more than one narrative can be added to the sensors and can be updated as new research comes to be published.Conservation concerns normally preclude the handling of rare and fragile fossils, especially with the advancement of ever more powerful analytical techniques, where the loss of any surface material may affect future research. So hands on is always hard in palaeontology, especially with fragile and expensive fossils. At the same time, most children and adults are unimpressed by "fake fossils" (casts). This project will allow us to revamp the cast. The combination of a very accurate physical representation of the specimen (derived from a high resolution 3D scan of the original) combined with digital touch technology and digital information relating to results and research, located precisely on the surface of the replica fossil makes it a great tool in making palaeontology and more importantly,chemistry,to the general public.