The Exploratorium, founded in 1969, is an internationally renowned museum of science, art and human perception, rated the "best science museum in the world" by Scientific American. Its hundreds of hands-on exhibits are designed to promote science discovery. It has an annual attendance of about 650,000 per year and its website attracts approximately 20 million visitors annually.
The Exploratorium Teacher Institute, which was organized in 1984, brings science and math teachers from middle and high schools all over the country to workshops at the museum and will be having its 25th anniversary in 2009. About 200 teachers participate each year, and about 3,000 teachers stay in touch as alumni. The institute also includes a mentor program for beginning teachers, a leadership training program, and an online curriculum and it offers professional development credits through local universities.
The editors of the Exploratorium have created numerous popular books on science, from the original Science Snackbook to the interactive Explorabook to their latest effort: Exploratopia.