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Poison gets its due at the Natural History Museum of Utah, with a new exhibit that provides a lively appreciation of chemicals that can kill you.

The exhibit, "The Power of Poison," takes museumgoers through the science, history and culture of toxic substances, to show "how poison really permeates our lives," said Sarah George, the museum's executive director.

The traveling exhibit, curated by New York's American Museum of Natural History, opens to the public Saturday, and will run through April 16.

After opening a door with the sign "Please enter if you dare," the visitors first walk through a simulation of the Chocó rainforest in Colombia. This forest, said exhibit developer Lisa Thompson, is home to an "evolutionary arms race" of plants and animals that have developed increasingly toxic ways to fend off each other.

In one display case are four golden poison frogs, inch-long yellow critters whose poison is so deadly that one frog's excretions could kill 10 humans or bring down an elephant. The frogs don't produce the poison themselves, Thompson said, but accumulate it from the beetles they eat. Where the beetles get the poison, and why the frogs don't die from eating them, are mysteries scientists are still working to unravel.

The exhibit includes several live creatures, including those frogs, a gila monster and a rose tarantula. These live specimens do not travel with the exhibit, George said, and the museum has to acquire them locally. George said this is the first time a museum outside New York has collected specimens of all the exhibit's poisonous creatures.

Another species of live creatures — actors — are employed in another centerpiece of the exhibit: A one-person multimedia show that explains the origins of toxicology. The show will be staged between 10:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on most weeks the exhibit is open.

Nine actors, most of them from the University of Utah's theater department, will take turns performing the show, said Paulmichael Mansfield, the museum's public programs coordinator.

The show, which details a real-life murder mystery that was solved using forensic science, is a great example of "using art to tell a science story," Mansfield said.

Elsewhere, the exhibit examines poison's role in history and culture.

It begins with two historic cases of mercury poisoning: Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China in the 3rd century BCE, who died from ingesting mercury pills that he thought would make him immortal; and the instances of mercury poisoning causing neurological disorders among 19th century hat-makers — which gave rise to the phrase "mad as a hatter" and inspired the Mad Hatter of Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

The exhibit also highlights poison's cultural impact, from Egyptian and Indian mythology through Shakespeare, Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie and "Harry Potter." There also is a gallery of historical figures — from Cleopatra to Lucrezia Borgia — who, legend has it, either gave or received poison.

One interactive feature allows museumgoers to read a touch-activated "book" about poisons, in which animation is projected onto the pages. Another feature lets people play detective in three scenarios of poisonings.

The exhibit ends with a look at poisons being put to good uses, and how researchers use toxins to develop the ingredients for life-saving drugs.

"The difference between poison and medicine is a very fine line," George said. "It's a matter of the dose."

Twitter: @moviecricket —

'The Power of Poison'

The traveling exhibit "The Power of Poison."

Where • Natural History Museum of Utah, 301 Wakara Way, University of Utah campus, Salt Lake City

When • Opens Saturday and runs through April 16.

Hours • 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, open until 9 p.m. Wednesdays. (Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.)

Admission • $14.95 for adults; $12.95 for young adults (13 to 24) and seniors (65 and over); $9.95 for children (3 to 12); free for children 2 and under, museum members, and University of Utah students, faculty and staff (with valid ID). —

'Haunted Night at the Museum'

Families can enjoy some pre-Halloween fun at the Natural History Museum of Utah, with the first "Haunted Night at the Museum" event.

The event is set for Saturday, Oct. 22, from 6 to 10 p.m. at the museum, 301 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City.

The party will included a museum gallery scavenger hunt, a dance-off, a photo booth, hands-on activities, storytelling and refreshments.

Tickets are $8 for adults and seniors, $5 for children (3 to 12), and free for children under 3. Museum members get a 10 percent discount. For information, go to the museum's website, nhmu.utah.edu, or call 810-581-4303.