Immediate (May 26, 2006)

Collin Parker
Fletcher Allen Health Care
Public Relations & Marketing
802-847-2886

Vermont Children's Hospital Partners with ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center for "Grossology" Exhibit

(BURLINGTON, VT) -- Sometimes it's stinky; sometimes it's crusty; and sometimes it's slimy. Explore why our bodies produce mushy, oozy, scaly and smelly gunk at "Grossology: The (Impolite) Science of the Human Body" during its summer appearance at ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center.

Based on the best-selling book, Grossology features giant, interactive animatronics and outrageous exhibits and games to tell the good, the bad, and the yucky about runny noses, body odor and much more. Grossology is sponsored by Vermont Children's Hospital at Fletcher Allen Health Care, and it will be at ECHO from May 27 through September 4.

Exhibition highlights include:

Nine-foot-tall "Nigel Nose-it-All": Learn everything you always wanted to know about the critical role of snot.

• "Y U Stink": Smell your way through the world of body odor.
• The "Skin Climbing Wall": Use warts, hairs, and wounds as hand- and footholds, while learning about pimples, blisters, and bruises.
• "The Vomit Center": Answers the timeless question, "Why do we throw up?"
• "Toot Toot": Create an orchestral arrangement of not-so-classy gassy sounds.
• "Urine: The Game": A virtual reality tour of the kidneys.
• "Burp Man": Pump enough soda pop into this huge cartoon character, and the acid indigestion builds to his releasing a humongous belch.

"Grossology is the most 'poop-ular' traveling exhibition in the entire country, and it promises to be a real gas," joked Phelan Fretz, ECHO's Executive Director. "Look for Grossology-related activities in our daily ECHO Encounters, special guest appearances from the dynamic staff of Vermont Children's Hospital, and surprises galore throughout the whole summer!"

As a teacher, writer, curriculum designer and microbiologist, Grossology author Sylvia Branzei explains the concept of Grossology as a learning tool: "This is science in disguise. If we teach students in their own words, they'll understand better and actually learn something."

For more information on this special ECHO exhibition, visit http://www.echovermont.org or call Toll-Free 1-877-ECHOFUN ext. 100.