Eco-friendly advancements are being made in building design and construction—think sustainable materials, efficiency of resources, and energy-reducing wiring and appliances. If this topic interests you, the new Smart Home: Green + Wired exhibit, opening tomorrow at the Museum of Science and Industry, is a neat opportunity to learn more about green buildings. The exhibit is a real, fully functional, 2,500 square foot home squatting on the museum’s east lawn, demonstrating how landscaping, design, and technology......

Happy Leap Day! While it hasn't officially become Pizza Party USA day, there are plenty of ways to celebrate. The MSI is free today, and the Shedd is two for one if you print out this page. The James Hotel is running a deal today where if you book today for any 2008 holiday weekend, it's $179 per night, and there will be fireworks over the river downtown at 6:30. It's going to be......

The Museum of Science and Industry is raising its prices. Adult Chicago residents will now pay $12 (up from $10), adult non-Chicagoans $13 (from $11), Chicago children $8.50 ($6.25), non-Chicago children $9 ($7), Chicago seniors $11 ($8.75), and non-Chicago seniors $12 ($9.50). But fear not, oh ye of little funds. The MSI is free the rest of January, as well as February 29 (Hotcha! Leap year! Ahem, celebratory performance of the Pirates of Penzance...); June......

The Museum of Science and Industry announced today that a fully-functional, three-story "green" home will be built just east of the museum on its Jackson Park grounds in Hyde Park this spring. The foundation is currently being laid, and it will be open to the public from May 8, 2008 through January 4, 2009. The 2,500-square-foot home will exhibit some of the latest environmentally-friendly technologies and offer a primer on incorporating these innovations into......