MOSES LAKE — An exhibit opening next week at the Moses Lake Museum & Art Center will take a closer look at what it means to be human. 

“Exploring Human Origins: What Does It Mean To Be Human?” will open Jan. 10, according to Gallery Director Veronica Talbot. It’s a traveling exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution, she said. 

“Our human traits evolved over 6 million years as our ancestors struggled to survive during times of dramatic climate change,” the museum wrote in its announcement of the exhibit. “This exhibition examines the scientific evidence of our species' origins and explores our human family tree, all while asking visitors to consider what it means to be human.” 

A version of the exhibit made a national tour in 2015-18, according to the Smithsonian’s website.  

The exhibition coming to Moses Lake will consist of 42 display panels, showing various aspects of how the human race formed. 

“One panel is ‘How Are You Related to Other Living Things,’” Talbot said. “(Others are) ‘Our Heritage,’ ‘One Tree, Many Branches,’ ‘The Benefits and Cost of Evolution.’ The panels explain the timeline of our species, (how) humans changed the world.” 

Visitors will have a chance to chip in their own thoughts about the subject matter, Talbot said. 

“We will have a board that goes along with it asking our visitors things like, what does it mean to be human?” she said. “(We’ll put out) a piece of paper and a pen, and people can write their answers and post it onto the board.” 

“Exploring Human Origin” was developed in partnership with the American Library Association and made possible by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation and support from the Smithsonian's Peter Buck Human Origins Fund, according to the museum’s announcement. The panels are provided in English, Spanish and Japanese. 

The museum tries to get a natural history exhibit every year, Talbot said. Unlike most of the museum’s exhibitions, “Exploring Human Origins” won’t have an opening reception, she added. 

“Exploring Human Origins: What Does It Mean To Be Human?” 

Jan 10-Feb. 28 

Moses Lake Museum & Art Center 

401 S. Balsam St., Moses Lake 

www.moseslakemuseum.com  

    “Exploring Human Origins: What Does It Mean To Be Human?” is a traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. It consists of 42 panel displays exploring the origins and evolution of the human species, particularly during times of great change.