An item on display in 'The Secret Lives of Objects'
An item on display at Chicago History Museum’s The Secret Lives of Objects exhibition Photo: Phil Velasquez/Chicago Tribune

ADLER PLANETARIUM

Through 2017 What Is a Planet? Pity Pluto, the underdog planetoid stripped of full planet status in 2006. In this temporary exhibit, Adler feeds the debate while asking what it really means to be a planet. $8–$12. 1300 S. Lake Shore. adlerplanetarium.org

CHICAGO HISTORY MUSEUM

Through 2016 Chicago Authored. This multimedia exhibition in a new café-style reading room examines the city’s rich literary history.
Through 2016 The Secret Lives of Objects. Get a glimpse of Ann Landers’s typewriter, Charlie Chaplin’s bamboo cane, and other historical paraphernalia.
$12–$14. 1601 N. Clark. chicagohistory.org

DUSABLE MUSEUM

Through 2017 DuSable’s Masterworks: Paintings. The first in a series intended to stoke Chicago’s enthusiasm for DuSable’s art collection, this exhibit highlights the work of African American artists. $2–$10. 740 E. 56th. dusablemuseum.org

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY

Through 2017 Brick by Brick. More than a dozen giant Lego structures showcase the talents of Chicago native and Lego-certified professional Adam Reed Tucker. $18–$29.
Through 2018 The Art of the Bicycle. See the evolution of bicycle engineering, including a replica of the 1818 Draisine “walking machine.” $11–$18.
5700 S. Lake Shore. msichicago.org

SHEDD AQUARIUM

Through 2017 Amphibians. Explore three rooms of salamanders, newts, frogs, caecilians, and more. $22–$36. 1200 S. Lake Shore. sheddaquarium.org