Most fun for the adults: Seeing models of older planes and space shuttles, some that never made it to production and some that helped forge our history.

Most fun for the kids: Looking at the model planes.

Best ages for this attraction: 6 and older.

Price per tickets: Included in the admission price of the museum, $10.

Aerospace Design: The Art of NASA's Aeronautical Research is on exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago through February 8, 2004. I guess when I read the title of this Exhibit, "NASA" stuck out. I was expecting pictures from space or something like that. When we walked into the exhibit and saw engines and other objects and mention of wind tunnels, I thought "uh oh, this is a guy's exhibit." I had no idea what I was looking at for the first few minutes. But as I stared to read the information, I became quite intrigued.

The curator's notes on the wall explained that all aircraft (and anything else that moves against wind such as trucks, cars, trains, etc.) are all tested in a wind tunnel to ensure that the design is geared for high-performance. To test, they make a scaled down version of the aircraft and run all sorts of test on it. This exhibit is comprised of several of these models.

A wide variety of aircraft and space shuttles throughout the past 100 years are one display. Wind tunnel models and flight artifacts are also included. The exhibition commemorates the centennial of powered, controlled flight that began with the landmark take off of the Wright brothers on December 17, 1903.

Objects included in the exhibition date back to NASA's predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), founded in 1915. Created out of that agency at the beginning of the space race in 1958, NASA has a wealth of often unexhibited and unpublished artifacts that not only document technological advances in flight over the past century but are also aesthetically striking.

Beyond the historic dimension, the exhibition showcases some of the latest research being done for aircrafts with "morphing" wings, self-healing vehicle "skins" and biologically inspired sensors-elements that NASA hopes will make future air travel accident free, environmentally friendly, and affordable and accessible. In all, the project presents the history of aeronautically engineered forms in relation to architecture and design. Visitors are shown another example of how aviation design is as beautiful as it can be functional.

No photographs of this special exhibit are permitted. Unfortunately, there are not post cards or items from this exhibit for sale in the gift shop either.