The Museum of Mobile Technology has recently teamed up with the Polytechnic Museum at VDNKh to present a new exhibition — "100 Gadgets That Changed the World." Stretching as far back in time as the abacus, this petite exhibition is a journey through the years when technology was first breaking into our consciousness.
Happily (or not) for Orwell, a lot seemed to happen in 1984. The first mobile phone — the Nokia Mobira Talkman — appeared. So did Tetris. And the computer keyboard. The following year one of the Soviet Union's first electronic calculators hit the shelves, a mere 30 years ago. Zooming toward the end of the decade, Nintendo's Game Boy was released to the delight of bored kids everywhere in 1989. Originals of all of these are on display.
With these gadgets in front of you, you'll be unable to resist having a go, and the organizers of the exhibition have certainly predicted this. You can ease your itching fingers by playing the classic Street Fighter game on the Sega Mega Drive, trying your hand at your own choice of games on the lesser-known Dendy games console, and by powering up the old-school arcade game Battleships.
Other highlights include the first models of Apple's most famous creations, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad. When the battery on your current incarnation of these begins to fade, you can sit under branches of cables on a specially constructed charging bench and give them a bit of juice.
The exhibition runs until Sept. 27 in the foyer of the Polytechnic Museum. 26 VDNKh Pavilion. Metro VDNKh. polymus.ru. 495-780-6027. Open Tues. to Sun. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Adults and children 250 rubles.
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