The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology will host its biennial open house as a virtual event March 26-27. Those interested are asked to register, and 350 registrants will receive a Beckman Institute jigsaw puzzle. Registrants can also sign up to play a virtual escape room set inside the Beckman Institute.

The open house will go live at 12 a.m. March 26. Among the attractions:

• Interactive exhibits created by labs within the Beckman Institute, including a few that show what it’s like to be a research participant
• Live Zoom sessions featuring Bugscope, a kid-friendly look at insect specimens on Beckman’s environmental scanning electron microscope. They're scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon both Friday and Saturday. Please register in advance for your preferred section
• A guessing game that features actual MRI scans of 30 different fruits and vegetables
• Information about the Illinois MRI Exhibit, which shares the incredible history of how Illinois research made magnetic resonance imaging possible
• Virtual tours of Beckman and its research facilities
• A science theater full of award-winning videos about the institute and its research, including an interview between current Director Jeff Moore and Founding Director Ted Brown. Brown gives a behind-the-scenes look at what it was like to create the Beckman Institute in the 1980s. The theater will also have a limited-time showing of “The Instrumental Chemist,” which tells the story of Arnold O. Beckman, a successful inventor, businessman, and Illinois alumnus. Beckman and his wife, Mabel, donated $40 million more than 30 years ago to create the Beckman Institute