National Museum of Nuclear Science & History

If you’re looking to brush up on your Nuclear scientific history, have I got a museum for you!  The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History is a blast – pun totally intended.  

It is apart of the Smithsonian Institution but it is located in Albuquerque, NM.  The cost of $8 bucks is well worth it!  There is also free parking.

You could absolutely spend hours reading all the history about the science behind the bomb and also how the Americans portrayed the Atomic bomb as a good option for war.  And for good reason, there was a big threat of it.  

But what I found most interesting was an exhibit on propaganda.  Even today, the world is rife with it.  Companies selling the “must have” stuff you  just “need to use” every day…  From the bombardment of prescription drugs, to the kind of car you “gotta drive” or even what you “must watch on TV” – a lot of the techniques were created from this era.

The scare tactics were incredible.

My parents were even taught to duck and cover – sure there was probably a very real threat, but it created a fear within the country.  It was not uncommon to have books teaching how to turn an ordinary basement into a fallout shelter.  And many of these shelters were stocked with at least two years worth of food.

But scare tactics and propaganda aside, Nuclear Museum does have some super cool nuclear stuff, too. Who knew that your kitty litter was radio active…

…or that your crap instant coffee was freeze-dried using radiation.

And at one time they actually used a radio active machine to fit your shoes to your feet.  Seriously.  The world was a much different place back then. Yeah, totally discontinued now.  The nuclear museum is absolutely a must see.  If you’re a brain, or into the social side, or just completely unaware of stuff, this place will pretty much explain why Breaking Bad was in fact based in New Mexico.  

Aren’t following?  Now you gotta go check it out for the answer!