To Mark its 10th Anniversary, the Montréal Science Centre Has a Gift for the
Public

Free admission on Sunday, October 10, 2010

MONTREAL, Oct 6 /CNW Telbec/ - The Montréal Science Centre (MSC) is celebrating its first decade this year and is inviting everyone to come out and help it celebrate this anniversary. This coming Sunday, on the 10th day of the 10th month in 2010, starting at 10 a.m., all day long until closing, admission to all its exhibition rooms will be free*, along with all kinds of special on-site activities.

"In the past 10 years, the Montréal Science Centre has welcomed more than seven million visitors, including 1.2 million Quebec schoolchildren," says Claude Benoit, President and CEO of the Old Port of Montréal Corporation. "This success shows the extent to which it has made a difference in people's lives, especially for young people. It has become one of Montréal's leading, well-known institutions."

Ten extraordinary years
The Montréal Science Centre (MSC) opened on May 1, 2000. It had been planned during the 1990s in conjunction with preparations for the new millennium, thanks to $29 million in contributions from the federal government and $12 million in private-sector funding.

Right from the start, the MSC attracted large numbers of visitors. It received the Ulysses award from Tourisme Montréal in 2001 in the 100,000 or more visitors category. Two of its most successful exhibitions have been Autopsy of a Murder, an original creation by the MSC team, and Body Worlds 2, by Gunther von Hagens, which brought the science of plastination to Quebec. That exhibition drew over 372,000 visitors in just three months in summer 2007, making it the biggest blockbuster in the short history of the MSC. The MSC has won a total of eleven prestigious distinctions, including three exhibition excellence awards from the Société des musées québécois, and two Cascade awards from the Canadian Association of Science Centres.

Along with its permanent exhibition spaces, which were entirely updated in 2007 thanks to the Montréal Science Centre Foundation, the MSC organizes more than 50 scientific events for the general public every year, focussing on current concerns and issues. For instance, young people and their families have always looked forward to Robofollies, held during March break every year from 2002 to 2008, followed by Technofollies since 2009. In June, the Eureka! Festival is a great way to top off the school year, with 3 days of science activities and events on the Quays of the Old Port. In 10 years, the MSC has hosted many different science competitions, organized lectures and symposia on a broad range of topics and welcomed thousands of school groups for science-theme days in a creative, interactive setting.

"Since it opened in 2000, the Centre has strived to bring together intelligent thinking and cutting-edge technology as a way of interesting young people in careers in science and technology," says Benoit Légaré, the Montréal Science Centre's Director. "Visitors' enthusiastic response encourages us to continue to come up with programming that addresses the major issues facing our society in the 21st century."

The Montréal Science Centre in figures
The Montréal Science Centre, the first institution dedicated to scientific literacy in Quebec, opened on May 1, 2000 and is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2010. Since it opened, it has welcomed over 7 million visitors, including more than 1.2 million elementary and secondary students for its educational programs. In 10 years it has presented over 40 exhibitions, 70 films at the IMAX®TELUS theatre and more than 50 thematic events on a wide variety of topics in line with current issues and concerns. To date, the MSC has won 11 eleven prestigious awards of excellence, most of them for the quality of its exhibitions. 

The Montréal Science Centre wishes to thank its main partner, the Government of Canada, and its presenting partners, TELUS and HYDRO-QUÉBEC.

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM), one of the Centre's partners, invites you to use public transit and take advantage of its Family Outings program. Under the program, an adult with a valid transit fare may travel with a maximum of 5 children under age 12 on the STM network, on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Other program partners, including the Montréal Science Centre, also offer discounts on family activities.

About the Old Port of Montréal Corporation
The Old Port of Montréal Corporation is a business corporation created by the Government of Canada in November 1981. As the manager of the Quays of the Old Port of Montréal and the Montréal Science Centre, the Old Port of Montréal Corporation participates actively in Montréal's economic development by creating high-quality culture, tourism and recreation products.

*Except for the IMAX®TELUS Theater.

Photos of the Montreal Science Centre and its activities can be downloaded from here: http://www.box.net/shared/uqmngzhftc

For further information:

Jean-David Pelletier
Media Relations
Old Port of Montréal Corporation
T. [phone]
[email protected]