My Visit To The Smithsonian Museum Of Natural History

'In the end, we only regret the chances we didn't take.'

So a few weeks ago I went to Washington D.C. for a few days. It was amazing, and, since it was my first time going there, I was super excited to go to one of the museums I had heard so much about; The Smithsonian Museum Of Natural History.

Right when we got there I wanted to go straight to the ocean exhibits, and so we made our way there. I had never really been to a museum before except for one about art in Atlanta, Georgia. And so we wandered around the gigantic room filled with everything from the ocean imaginable, and I literally stopped and read everything from giant squid to polar bears.

So here's some of a ton of awesome information that I learned while there:

• Fun Fact: Coral reefs support more species per square meter than any other ecosystem in the ocean!

• More than half of the world's population depends on the ocean as a primary food source.

Large scale commercial fishing technologies often catch marine animals other than the ones they are meant to target. In many cases, the amount of this bycatch can be larger than the wanted catch and is simply thrown dead or dying back into the sea.

In the past, humans fished in shallow, coastal waters now modern fishing gear stretches across the ocean's surface and plumbs its depths - allowing us to take more than ever before.

• Many marine animals  use light to get the attention of potential mates, distract predators, blend into their surroundings, or lure prey.

The ability to produce light evolved separately in different organisms at different times. So, not everything that glows does it the same way. Bioluminescent animals can be divided into two broad categories. One group makes its own light, usually using special organs called photophores.

The second group doesn't actually make light. Instead, the animals in this group host light-producing bacteria. the bacteria generally are cultured in special sacs or separate organs.

Bioluminescent creatures produce light with chemicals. Energy released in a chemical reaction causes the glow.

• Dinosaurs are the most famous victims of the extinction at the end of the Cretaceous, 65 million years ago. But they weren't alone. Nearly half of Earth's species disappeared - including almost 75% of ocean species.

Evidence indicates an astroid was to blame. Dust and smoke from the impact blocked sunlight, disrupted photosynthesis and altered Earth's climate.

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This is a picture of me in front of the skeleton of a, if I remember correctly; baleen whale.

    This is a picture of me behind the jaws and teeth of a giant great white shark, which is prehistoric.

    This is a lion in the African exhibit.

I hope you all liked this post and are now inspired to, if you have not already, go to the Smithsonian Museum Of Natural History and experience it for yourself, because it's definitely worth visiting!

All information from this post if from the Smithsonian Museum Of Natural History, and all pictures were taken by Molly Irani.