Shake Hands with Sue

Chicago's Field Museum paid $8.4 million for a 90 percent complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton — imagine what it would have cost if Sue Hendrickson had found the other bits. Still, dinosaurs are one of our most valuable natural resources, and the nine-tenths that make up Sue — the fossilized skeleton is named for her discoverer — are the most complete remains of the terrible lizard extant, and therefore worth every penny, scientifically speaking. The Field Museum scientists made a complete replica of the skeleton, and it is this fully articulated model you can visit at the new display, A T. Rex Named Sue. Housed in the Exploradome at the Saint Louis Science Center (5050 Oakland Avenue; 314-289-4400 or www.slsc.org) through Sunday, February 12, Sue will impress you with her great height (twelve feet tall at the hips) and her itty-bitty arms. You can also dig for remains in the Dino Dig area, and experience the world as dinosaurs did thanks to interactive sensory machines. Admission for this prehistoric experience is $3 to $6.
Jan. 16-Feb. 12, 2009