A U-M neuroscience student explains the power of qPCR and the far-reaching technology behind COVID-19 tests. Plus get acquainted with your immune system with the popular science animation channel Kurzgesagt.

Museum@Home is issued twice a month. The Family Edition is issued on the first Wednesday of the month, and the Adult Edition on the third Wednesday. 

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Undergraduate Science Showcase

Meet undergraduate students and learn about their research.

Pulling the Curtain Back on qPCR

Audience: Teens and Adults
Grades: 9+
Duration: ~9 minutes

Many of us have received a PCR test for COVID-19, but how do those tests work? Discover what goes on in the lab when performing quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) as it relates to COVID-19 tests as well as other uses, such as researching abnormal bone formation in the face.

Sher Khehra is a Neuroscience major and undergraduate researcher in the Mishina Lab with Dr. Yuji Mishina and Dr. Hiroki Ueharu. He created this video as part of a summer science communication workshop, run by museum staff, for MCDB Horizons summer research interns and Michigan Research and Discovery Scholars (MRADS).

More to Explore

Staff favorite science resources from around the web.

How The Immune System ACTUALLY Works

Audience: Teens and Adults
Grades: 6+
Duration: ~11 minutes

From COVID-19 to a cut on your finger, your immune system works hard to ward off micro-sized invaders. But how does it all work? This video by Kurzgesagt explains: “The human immune system is the most complex biological system we know, after the human brain, and yet, most of us never learn how it works. Or what it is. Your immune system consists of hundreds of tiny and two large organs, and it has its own transport network spread throughout your body. Every day, it makes hundreds of billions of fresh cells. It is not some sort of abstract entity. Your immune system is YOU.”

Seeking science in another language? Explore the Kurzgesagt German Channel or Spanish Channel!

Check out Museum@Home for more science fun!

Planetarium & Dome Theater

Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays

Through May 29, 2022

11:30 a.m.  Sea Monsters

12:30 p.m. Sky Tonight

1:30 p.m.  Big Astronomy

2:30 p.m. Sky Tonight

Planetarium & Dome Theater Shows

Tickets: $8 adults, seniors, and children ages 3 & up. Babies without tickets may be required to sit on an adult's lap. Tickets are available the day of the show. Schedule subject to change.

The planetarium is operating at less than 50% capacity to maximize distance between viewers. As with all University of Michigan buildings, masks optional.