Molecularium™ is the result of an unprecedented collaboration between scientists and artists, educators and entertainers. The first show of its kind, Molecularium: Riding Snowflakes presents accurate molecular simulations within a musical cartoon adventure. The production crew of Molecularium drew from the talents of over 100 people from a wide range of disciplines: scientists, molecular simulators, computer animators, story and song writers, character creators, singers, actors, musicians, teachers, students, software developers, audio and video engineers, and many more.

The Molecularium Project concept as a whole is in good measure the idea of Linda S. Schadler, Ph.D., a professor of materials science and engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a career-long interest in educational outreach programs for primary and secondary-school students.

Looking for new methods of introducing kids to molecular science, Schadler began pondering ways to adapt the planetarium concept for her own field about five years ago, while keeping a central question in mind. “If you can go to the stars, why can’t you go down to the molecular level?” Schadler asks.

The Molecularium project is the flagship effort of the educational and outreach program of Rensselaer’s National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC) for Directed Assembly of Nanostructures. The NSEC is directed by Richard W. Siegel, the Robert W. Hunt Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Rensselaer.

Shekhar Garde, Ph.D., professor of chemical and biological engineering, led the simulation team that brought scientific accuracy to the show. Garde thinks the Molecularium project is a long-overdue way of bringing excitement to the study of atoms and molecules.

“Galaxies, to me, are too far away and I don’t think about them every day,” says Garde. “I drink water every day. Wouldn't it be fun to jump into it at the molecular level and see what it looks like?”

Other like-minded Rensselaer faculty members joined in the project. Daniel Gall and Pawel Keblinski, assistant and associate professors, respectively, of materials science and engineering, acted as scientific consultants.

Rensselaer engaged V Owen Bush of the production company Nanotoon to produce and direct the Molecularium shows. Bush worked with his co-writer and producer, Kurt Przybilla; creative director, Chris Harvey; and a crew numbering more than 50 people, including animators, artists, composers, and engineers, bringing atoms and molecules to life on screen.

Rensselaer faculty and students developed the scientific content for the show and created advanced computer simulations to translate virtual molecular models into digital animations. Teachers and students from the Troy Public Schools also participated in the development of the show by providing educational feedback and commentary during production. The resulting collaboration is a unique hybrid of scientific simulation, cinematic vision, and informal education.