ASHLAND, Neb., Sept. 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- MathAlive!^®, a highly interactive traveling exhibition that has drawn record-breaking attendance across the United States by inviting visitors to experience math in action, opens Saturday, Sept. 21, at the Strategic Air & Space Museum in Ashland, Neb. Presented nationally by Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), this featured exhibition will run through Jan. 5, 2014.

The 5,000 square-foot MathAlive! exhibition is composed of 40 unique and interactive experiences across six themed galleries that take math into the applied worlds of design, engineering, technology and science. In each gallery, high-tech, mechanical and multimedia interactive experiences provide challenges that use various types of mathematics as tools to help visitors compete, design, build and play.

"Raytheon is committed to inspiring the next generation of innovators," said Pamela Erickson, vice president of Corporate Affairs for Raytheon. "We're excited to partner with the Strategic Air & Space Museum to show students how math and science drive the world around them."

MathAlive! is Raytheon's latest response to the national imperative to improve students' math proficiency. Leaders in business, government and academia have expressed concern over the nation's ability to develop tomorrow's technical talent, required to fuel innovation, assure American competitiveness and drive economic growth.

To secure the pipeline of future technologists and innovators, students must be shown the relevance of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to their everyday lives and future careers.

"This innovative exhibit responds to the national movement toward greater focus on STEM development and STEM career awareness," said Scott Tarry, president and chief executive officer of the Strategic Air & Space Museum. "By engaging kids in fun, math-based activities, the content can inspire students to make math a priority, reaching them in that window of vulnerability when math gets more challenging and kids begin to lose interest. I'm confident that the exhibit and related hands-on activities will ignite the thrill of innovation and discovery for all those who visit the museum."

At MathAlive! visitors can:

• Design and play their own video games.
• Take the controls to "master-engineer" various aspects of a modern city.
• Race in a Boardercross challenge.
• Compete in a mountain-bike race.
• Capture their image in a 360-degree freeze action photo.
• Control a simulated Mars rover.

Throughout the exhibition, videos and graphic displays feature professionals, celebrities and visionaries who explain how they use math in their respective fields. Along the way, animated character guides help visitors tackle the challenges, explaining the math involved, prompting and encouraging answers, and jumping in if visitors get stuck. 

MathAlive! is the largest scale initiative to date of Raytheon's MathMovesU^® national program to inspire students to embrace mathematics as a key to their future. The exhibition, produced by Evergreen Exhibitions, debuted at the Smithsonian in 2012, where it enjoyed record-breaking traveling exhibit attendance levels. MathAlive! went on to visit Phoenix, Ariz.; Huntsville, Ala.; Houston, Texas; and Hartford, Conn., before coming to Ashland. The exhibition is on a multi-year tour to science centers and museums in U.S. and international cities, and is projected to draw four million visitors in the process.

Institutional collaborators for MathAlive! include NASA, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the National Society of Professional Engineers, the National Engineers Week Foundation, the Society of Women Engineers and MATHCOUNTS^®.

The exhibition is sponsored locally by Mutual of Omaha; First National Bank; Valmont Industries, Inc.; WOWT Channel 6-Omaha; the Dixon Family Foundation; Robert H. Storz Foundation; BNSF; Omaha Public Power District; Gallup; Allstate; HDR; Embassy Suites Omaha-La Vista; and US Bank.

MathAlive! is included with general admission to the Strategic Air & Space Museum and is designed to appeal to visitors of all ages and levels of math ability, with particular relevance to students in grades 3-8.

About MathMovesU
Raytheon's MathMovesU^® program is an initiative committed to increasing middle and elementary school students' interest in math and science education by engaging them in hands-on, interactive activities. The innovative programs of MathMovesU include the traveling interactive experience MathAlive!^®; Raytheon's Sum of all Thrills™ experience at INNOVENTIONS at Epcot^®, which showcases math in action as students design and experience their own thrill ride using math fundamentals; the "In the Numbers" game, a partnership with the New England Patriots on display at The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon; the company's ongoing sponsorship of the MATHCOUNTS^® National Competition; and the MathMovesU scholarship and grant program. Follow MathMovesU and other Raytheon community outreach programs on Facebook and on Twitter @MathMovesU.

About the Strategic Air & Space Museum
Located between Lincoln and Omaha near Interstate 80, it utilizes over 300,000 square feet of exhibit, education, and event space to ignite the thrill of discovery and innovation in guests of all ages. Organized in 1959, the original mission of the museum was to commemorate the contributions of the Strategic Air Command, which until 1992 was headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base. The museum moved to its current location in 1998 upon completion of a new indoor facility. The museum houses an impressive collection of military aircraft and space artifacts, many of which have been restored in the museum's on-site restoration facility. To better serve the community, the museum has recently established a partnership with the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Office of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Education to provide cutting-edge educational opportunities for students, teachers, families, and adult learners. Traveling exhibits, permanent exhibits, and a variety of special events provide additional unique experiences for the museum's members and guests.

About Raytheon
Raytheon Company, with 2012 sales of $24 billion and 68,000 employees worldwide, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, security and civil markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 91 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems; as well as a broad range of mission support services. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Mass. For more about Raytheon, visit us at www.raytheon.com and follow us on Twitter @Raytheon.

Media Contact
Tina Martineau
+1.781.522.6490

corporatepr@raytheon.com

SOURCE Raytheon Company