50 years of hair-raising fun and science at the Bakken Museum

A staple in Minnesota’s science innovation and education has hit a major milestone. The Bakken Museum in Minneapolis is celebrating 50 years of bringing electricity and scientific education to life.

The museum has become a hub for scientific research, exhibition and archiving, including a rare book and instrument collection, as well as exhibits about electricity, architecture and more.

“I think there’s just a profound love of learning and exploring and discovery at this organization,” the museum’s vice president of programs Anika Taylor said. “I absolutely adore opportunities to work with visitors who are here exploring something and to see them make a connection or make a discovery, or have a moment of sort of lighting up.”

Earl Bakken, famous for co-founding Medtronic and creating the first external wearable battery-powered pacemaker, founded the museum in 1975 in hopes of becoming a research center focused on “Electricity in Life.” It now also includes exhibits about plants, medicine and even Mary Shelley and her book “Frankenstein,” a special inspiration of Bakken’s.

As a child, Bakken spent his time building and taking apart different electronic devices. When he saw the movie version of “Frankenstein,” he knew he wanted to pursue…