Cité des Sciences et de I'Industrie

75019 Paris, France (Île-de-France)

Permanent exhibition see museum website.

cite-sciences.fr/en/explore/temporary-exhibitions/tech-through-time-1-the-transistor-radio:
Temporary exhibition
Tech through time #1: The transistor radio
From 6 May 2025

Tech through time arrives to Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, a brand-new concept that presents a series of exhibitions. What to expect? A journey through time, and an original sound immersion around an object that has been key in our everyday lives. We begin the series with the radio! Prepare to dive into the past and gain a fresh perspective on a chapter in the history of science and technology.

We’re starting in 2025. What transformations has the radio undergone during the past six decades? How has mobility changed our listening habits? What role did the transistor play in all this?

Thanks to a clever mix of texts, graphics, statistics, objects, and historical and sociopolitical references, the exhibition provides key insights into how the radio started a true sound revolution. Then, everyday scenes are brought to life for your eyes and ears! Through spatial sound immersion, relive scenes from May ’68, a time when the portable transistor radio, embraced by the youth, could be carried and listened to anywhere.

Tech through time - A series of exhibitions at the heart of the history of science and technology

Explore the history of communication objects with the Tech through time exhibitions. The radio kicks off the series, followed by the typewriter and the autochrome (the first industrial process for colour photography). Each exhibition will be presented for several months, reminding us that every object has a history shaped by experimentation, luck and interruptions. They offer a return to the past, showing the complex links between technical advancements and sociopolitical contexts. 

A Journey Back in Time
Presented as a reverse chronological timeline, a series of five murals and related objects leads you from contemporary radio back to the rise of the transistor. Along the way, pick up explanations, insights and anecdotes to help you understand the difference between native podcasts and radio replays, the battle for frequencies, the mutual influence of television and radio and the "free radio" movement. Fancy a bit of window shopping? Discover a selection of objects showcasing changing trends in listening habits and audio formats over time.

Sound Immersion
Step into a sound immersion experience and explore a fresh museographic approach using spatialised audio and light effects! A sound diorama, dramatised scenes and dialogues plunge you into a three-act street scene from 1968. This unique narrative experience shows how the radio transistor became a symbol of mobility and youth empowerment, playing a key role during a turbulent chapter of French history.

cite-sciences.fr/en/explore/temporary-exhibitions/tech-through-time-1-the-transistor-radio:
Expo temporaire
Machine arrière #1 : le radio-transistor
À partir du 6 mai 2025

Machine arrière s'installe à la Cité des sciences et de l’industrie ! Un concept inédit qui propose une série d’expositions. Au programme de chacune d'entre elles, un voyage temporel et une immersion sonore originale autour d’un objet ayant marqué notre quotidien. Aux avant-postes, c’est la radio qui prend les commandes ! Préparez-vous à plonger dans le passé et porter un regard nouveau sur un chapitre de l’histoire des sciences et des techniques.

2025, point de départ de votre périple temporel. Quelles transformations la radio a-t-elle connues au cours des six dernières décennies ? Comment la mobilité a-t-elle changé nos pratiques d’écoute ? Quel rôle a joué le transistor dans cette histoire ? 

Grâce à un savant mélange de textes, graphiques, données statistiques, objets, repères historiques et sociopolitiques, l’exposition livre d'abord des clés pour comprendre comment la radio a entraîné une véritable révolution sonore. Puis des mises en scène s’offrent à vos yeux… et vos oreilles ! Dans une immersion en son spatialisé, revivez des scènes de mai 68, époque à laquelle le radio-transistor, plébiscité par la jeunesse, s’emporte et s’écoute partout.

Machine arrière, une série d’expositions au cœur de l’histoire des sciences et techniques

Explorez l’histoire d’un objet du domaine de la communication avec les expositions Machine arrière. Le radio-transistor ouvre le bal, puis laissera la place à la machine à écrire et l’autochrome, premier procédé industriel de photographie couleur. Chaque exposition, présentée pendant plusieurs mois, rappelle que cette histoire s’est construite à partir de tâtonnements, hasards et interruptions. Elles proposent un retour dans le temps, qui met en évidence les liens complexes entre évolutions techniques et contextes sociopolitiques. 

A Journey Back in Time
Presented as a reverse chronological timeline, a series of five murals and related objects leads you from contemporary radio back to the rise of the transistor. Along the way, pick up explanations, insights and anecdotes to help you understand the difference between native podcasts and radio replays, the battle for frequencies, the mutual influence of television and radio and the "free radio" movement. Fancy a bit of window shopping? Discover a selection of objects showcasing changing trends in listening habits and audio formats over

Sound Immersion
Step into a sound immersion experience and explore a fresh museographic approach using spatialised audio and light effects! A sound diorama, dramatised scenes and dialogues plunge you into a three-act street scene from 1968. This unique narrative experience shows how the radio transistor became a symbol of mobility and youth empowerment, playing a key role during a turbulent chapter of French history.

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