Diving deep into the ‘OceanXperience’
Plus: Top news of the week — Uptown crime on the rise; Charlotte area's growth outpaces old estimates; American Airlines' shares fall; Hornets win championship; New Teen Talk!
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Review: Discovery Place Science’s ‘OceanXperience’ immerses visitors in marine exploration through interactive exhibits and cutting-edge technology
Visitors can explore the interactive underwater world of the OceanXperience exhibit at Discovery Place Science through Sept. 7. (Courtesy of Flying Fish Exhibits)
by Lawrence Toppman
If you inhale charts and statistics the way a bee sucks nectar, “OceanXperience” at Discovery Place Science will be your kettle of fish. If you like to stare at footage of sea creatures floating by on an endless loop over eight huge screens, it will transfix you. And if you’re somewhere in between those extremes of awareness, as I was, you’ll find small surprises throughout the exhibit, which stays at the uptown museum through Sept. 7.
That exhibit borrows its name from OceanXplorer, billed as the world’s most advanced filmmaking and research vessel. The ship belongs to OceanX, a nonprofit initiative launched in 2016 by American hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio and his son, Mark. (If you’ve watched the BBC nature series “Blue Planet II,” you’ve seen footage shot by OceanXplorer’s team.)
At Discovery Place, you’re given a wristband that identifies you as a researcher, and you pick a special interest: orcas, humpback whales or giant hammerheads. That choice doesn’t limit your participation, but kiosks will recognize you and address you by name.
You get the illusion of riding on water at the first station, as you try to tag orcas who zoom beneath. You’re supposed to use the end of a long boom to tap them gently at a particular spot on their backs during the half-second they shoot past; I failed multiple times before managing to tag one. The kids who followed me soon quit trying and started a game of Whack-a-Whale.
Luckily, their cacophony dimmed as I popped into the bridge, with its feeling of a “Star Trek” control room, and the dry lab. There, the genetic sequencer and projection microscope reminded me of the countless species we have yet to meet; as the exhibit reminds us, seas cover 70% of our planet, and 92% of that remains uncharted. These scientists can gather environmental DNA (eDNA) shed into the water – including snot from a whale’s blowhole – to identify individuals or even a new species.
I stopped a minute to study the photos and profiles of the real OceanXplorer crew, all of them smiling folks with master’s degrees in science or doctorates. Then I noticed Aldo Kane, the marine expedition leader, a grim-faced guy who was an elite commando sniper with the Royal Marine Commandos. (He’s also part of the Marvel Comics Cinema Universe.)
His somber presence, along with a rescue beacon and emergency flasher, reminds us these expeditions can be perilous. The ship’s tiny yellow submersible, a one-seater with a mobile media studio in it, would be rocked any time a playful or ill-tempered orca got too frisky.
You needn’t be a STEM student to appreciate the agility of Remotely Operated Vehicles or the undersea maps drawn by the technique of bathymetry. But if you are a technophile, you may stay longest in the hologram room; there you don an augmented reality headset that lets you watch the OceanXplorer sail around a table, as 3D projections of whales and sharks float by, and a Discovery Place docent provides fun facts. Alas, cutting-edge technology sometimes cuts out, and the headsets cooperated only intermittently during my visit.
Exhibit designers gracefully slipped increasingly bad news about our oceans into displays without seeming like doomsters. We learn of corals damaged by global warming and reef destruction and species trying to adapt to waters they’ve never occupied; we find out that only 8% of the world’s oceans have been protected. I was most troubled by a dissected mahi-mahi full of microfibers and especially microplastics. (Of course, human bodies are too, including our brains.)
Overall, though, the mood is beneficent, never more so than in the long corridor where you sit on benches and enjoy soundless film of manta rays, sharks, humpbacks and schools of fish. (Wait for the Turtle-Cam, where you watch things from the viewpoint of what I think is a leatherback.) This is the ecologically sound way to see Antarctica or the depths of the ocean, through the camera of a submersible that can go down 3,300 feet.
If I had to pick a favorite spot in OceanXperience, it would be the small, stand-alone kiosk whose screen reads, “Dive in. Explore more.” It offers six videos – all optionally captioned, a welcome rarity for us old folks – that run about three minutes each.
I went deep diving on a scuba tour in the remote paradise of Aldabra and deeper diving in search of cephalopods such as the whiplash squid, a creature whose dangling tentacles act like flypaper to seize prey. I saw a white Dumbo octopus, so described because its big “ears” (actually fins on the side of its head) propel it like oars.
“So cool!” exclaimed a scientist in the video about the rarely seen octopus. It’s good to know that people who spend their lives crisscrossing the sea and analyzing its inhabitants retain the same sense of wonder as we landlubbers.
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If You’re Going
“OceanXperience” is included in the price of admission to Discovery Place Science, 168 W. Sixth St. The museum is open 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
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Lawrence Toppman covered the arts for 40 years at The Charlotte Observer before retiring in 2020. Now, he’s back in the critic’s chair for The Charlotte Ledger — look for his reviews several times each month.
Today’s supporting sponsor is VIA Health Partners. VIA Health Partners delivers compassionate and comprehensive care to patients with serious illnesses. As the Carolinas' largest independent non-profit hospice and palliative care provider, we serve over 5,000 patients daily, spanning 38 counties.
Teen Talk: If you don’t know this term, you might be an ‘unc’
Impress and delight the young people in your life by using the words they use. The Ledger shows you how in this occasional Saturday feature.
Term: Unc
Pronunciation: uh-nk (short for Uncle)
Definition: an Unc is a lightly mocking term for a person who is too old to understand modern references or who has outgrown the situation. It usually makes fun of a person for no longer being with the times and implies a disconnect between the person’s behavior and their actual age.
Examples:
“This concert is going to be so lit!” “Dude, no one says that word anymore. You’re such an unc.”
“What are you doing still hanging out with high schoolers as a college kid? You’re an unc.”
“I realized I was an unc when I noticed none of my friends were old enough to vote in the 2024 election.”
Or, an alternative term: Washed
Definition: Similar to an “unc,” a person who is “washed” is past his prime or phased out of a part of his life, either mentally, socially, or physically. Similar to a shirt that has been washed too many times and lost its color, the person has outgrown a particular moment and resigned himself to this realization.
Examples:
“Every time I see a group of freshmen laughing with their huge friend groups, I just feel so washed. How are we already seniors?”
“I don’t think I can go to campus parties since I graduated. I’d feel so washed and out of place.”
“Don’t mind me, I’m just the washed employee who’s been working here for 20 years with no promotion or raise.”
—Caroline Mecia, age 22
This week in Charlotte: Queens names new acting CEO; GOP takes control of county elections board; Parks department tests new security camera; ‘Top Chef’ coming to Charlotte
On Saturdays, The Ledger sifts through the local news of the week and links to the top articles — even if they appeared somewhere else. We’ll help you get caught up. That’s what Saturdays are for.
Education
600 Duke employees take buyouts: (News & Observer) Nearly 600 Duke University employees have taken voluntary buyouts, but the school will still implement involuntary layoffs in August due to major federal funding threats and budget cuts.
Superintendent’s key advisor backs school board candidates: (Ledger) A top Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools advisor’s wife got a contract raise with CMS amid his political backing of two candidates challenging board members who opposed the contract, sparking concerns about influence and transparency.
New acting CEO of Queens: (Queen City News) Queens University of Charlotte has named Jesse Cureton Jr. as acting president after Dan Lugo’s departure, the Board of Trustees announced.
State settles with family of slain UNC professor: (News & Observer, subscriber-only) North Carolina will pay $750,000 to the family of Zijie Yan, a UNC Chapel Hill professor who was shot and killed in his campus office in 2023 by a graduate student.
Politics
Republicans take control of Mecklenburg elections board: (Observer, subscriber-only) North Carolina lawmakers have restructured the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, flipping it to a 3–2 Republican majority and appointing attorney Michael Peretz as the new chair ahead of the 2025 election season.
City hires outside attorney amid corruption claims: (WFAE) Charlotte City Council has retained Patrick Flanagan at $300 an hour to investigate allegations of unethical conduct related to a secret settlement involving Police Chief Johnny Jennings.
County to hold meeting on tax referendum: The Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners will hold a special meeting on July 30 to discuss a resolution calling for an advisory referendum on whether a 1% local sales and use tax may be levied, potentially to appear on the Nov. 4 ballot. A public hearing is scheduled for Aug. 6, after which the board will vote on whether to move forward with the referendum. The meeting can be viewed here.
Local news
More people moving to Charlotte: (Ledger 🔒) The Charlotte region is now gaining about 157 new residents a day – far more than the previously cited 117 – according to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance.
Uptown crime rises as citywide rates fall: (Axios) While overall crime in Charlotte is down 8% this year, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s Central Division, which covers uptown, reports a 2.4% increase.
‘Top Chef’ coming to Charlotte: (Axios) The hit cooking competition show “Top Chef” will shoot its 23rd season in Charlotte and Greenville, S.C., marking the show's first time filming in the Carolinas.
Business
American Airlines’ shares fall 10%: (Ledger 🔒) American Airlines’ shares dropped nearly 10% after it lowered full-year earnings guidance amid slow domestic bookings – especially impacting its Charlotte hub where traffic is down 10%.
CPI wins appeal against rival Vivint: A federal appeals court has upheld a $189.7 million verdict in favor of Charlotte-based CPI Security, N.C. Tribune reported in its newsletter, rejecting Vivint Smart Home’s bid to overturn the award. CPI sued in 2020, alleging Vivint sales reps lied to customers to steal business — a case The Ledger first covered in 2022.
Charlotte cidery to close after nearly a decade: (Charlotte Business Journal, subscriber-only) Red Clay Ciderworks will shut its Lower South End taproom in August after almost 10 years in business.
Sports
Hornets win championship: The Charlotte Hornets won the championship of the NBA’s summer league, in which teams play their new draft picks and other younger players. The Hornets defeated the Sacramento Kings 83-78 in Las Vegas on Sunday night to finish 6-0 in the summer league.
From the Ledger family of newsletters
Monday
Superintendent’s key advisor is backing school board candidates. Plus: Catholic Diocese downgrades cathedral plans; Journalist Tommy Tomlinson on taking a buyout from WFAE; Business Alliance plans $3M transit push; Hornets win championship
Wednesday (🔒)
Security camera trailers are being tested to fight crime in parks. Plus: More people per day moving to the Charlotte region; Expired IDs can be used to buy alcohol, state says; UNC Charlotte tears down 56-year-old dorm; Civil rights attorney James Ferguson dies
Friday (🔒)
Foster parents push to end long delays. Plus: Medical office sector stays hot; Charlotte in the running for 6 major job expansions; Big new South End tenant?; American Airlines stock falls on earnings outlook; Shipwreck podcast episode
Real Estate Whispers (🔒)
Trends in Charlotte’s medical office sector. Plus: Details on big office prospects Charlotte is courting; Is 110 East about to sign a large banking tenant? and more!
Fútbol Friday
Charlotte FC’s 21-year-old defender Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, who is one of 14 siblings from Toronto, has quickly adapted to life on and off the field in Charlotte, impressing as a versatile starter on loan while remaining grounded by his family roots and determination to perform.
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