September 2003
Motion Notions
What has four legs, two wheels (sometimes more), can fly, stays afloat and likes to blow off steam? Get in your car or on your bike, take the train or hoof it to “Move on! Der bewegte Mensch,” a special exhibition put on by the SiemensForum München, where exploring the theme of “transportation” tracks our progress from horse-drawn carriages to high-speed trains, airplanes and wind and solar-powered vehicles. Learn about records of mobility, such as the longest suspension bridge (1826), at 176 m, constructed from 17,942 chain links, or the first nonstop flight over the Atlantic by Charles Lindbergh (1927) and the
St.-Gotthard-Pass—the most direct route through the Swiss Alps—site of the longest train tunnel in the world, at 15,002 km (1881), as well as the longest tunnel built for automobiles, at 16,322 km (1980). Early bicycles and motorcycles, such as the rare 1920s “Mabeco” by Siemens, automobiles, model ships and trains, early films and what is being created today in design studios for the future are all part of the exploration of our drive to get farther, faster, safer and more comfortably. Make tracks to “Move on! Der bewegte Mensch,” which is open Mon.–Fri. and on Sunday 9 am–5 pm and on the first Tuesday of each month 9 am–9 pm through November 2. Siemens Forum, Oskar-von-Miller-Ring 20 (near Odeonsplatz), Tel. (089) 636 326 60. Admission is free.
