Shannon Gu

Professor Naomi Sokoloff

HONORS 345

6 June 2017

MOHAI

The most famous museums in the world are massive and instantly recognizable: think of

the Louvre or the National Museum of Natural History, for example. MOHAI doesnt embody any

of those characteristicsnot that it has tobut I honestly thought it would be more obvious that

it was a museum. Ive ridden the bus past MOHAI on my way to work for the past two years, but

until this quarter, Id always thought that the large, white building tucked behind the boats and the

docks was a boathouse. MOHAI is quite unassuming on the outside, but the inside is rich with

information about Seattles history, with special emphasis on the then and now aspect.

I spent most of my time at the Bezos Center for Innovation, an exhibit on Seattles best-

known inventions and contributions to the U.S. and beyond. Some of the displays were to be

expectedAmazon, Microsoft, Starbucksbut others took me by surprise. How long has UW

been at the forefront of ocean exploration? Did UW professors really create the Sonicare

toothbrush? Since when was Costco founded in Washington? (Im from Portland, so this was news

to me.)

As I looked through the displays, I started to realize how influential Seattle was on a

national and global level. Unlike other places, though, Seattle is rather quiet about its own

accomplishments. If I hadnt gone to MOHAI, I wouldve believed that those inventions originated

in much bigger cities like LA or New York. Seattle doesnt have the same reputation as other big
cities. UW doesnt have nearly the same prestige as an Ivy League school. Yet, their achievements

are world-class, and they still have so much potential for further innovation.

In a way, MOHAI is a parallel to Seattle. Both can easily be passed over in favor of their

larger and more well-known counterparts, but there is more to them than meets the eye. Its time

to give them the recognition they deserve.