Rlyeh_Dispatcher

Thanks for doing this AMA, Dr. Johnson. I visited the Smithsonian a few months ago and was completely blown away by just how cutting edge the curation and design of the Deep Time gallery is. Can you briefly describe the creative process behind creating an exhibition like the Deep Time exhibit? How did you and your team formulate a narrative for telling natural history and translate early ideas into reality? Was there anything interesting that got left on the cutting room floor?

Second, do you have any advice for anyone who wants to go into museum curation (in any field)?

While I agree that modernization theory is a myth, I disagree about attributing the lack of democracy in China or Vietnam to Confucian values. After all, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong are Confucian societies that have robust democratic and/or accountability institutions (less so for Hong Kong, but that's not for lack of public demand).