After a week of online voting, the public has chosen a 24-year-old Chicago woman as the winner of the Museum of Science and Industry's "Month at the Museum" contest.
Kate McGroarty, a teacher and writer from the Andersonville neighborhood, was one of the top five finalists chosen from over 1,500 people who were hoping the Museum of Science and Industry would be their temporary home.
The finalists didn't know who had won until they showed up for the announcement and conducted a chemistry experiment, reported the Chicago Tribune. Only the winner would see a reaction when they mixed two liquids; McGroarty's concoction bubbled and oozed.
It's "amazing," McGroarty told the Tribune. "My head is probably going to explode."
As the winner of the "Month at the Museum" contest, McGroarty will live in the museum for 30 straight days, from October 20 to November 18. During her month stay in the museum she will blog about what is it like to interact with visitors and be part of a living experiment and exhibit.
At the end of her stay she will take home $10,000 and a technology package.
"Moving into a museum for an entire month and sharing that journey with the public sounds like one of the biggest adventures I could have in my lifetime," McGroarty wrote in her application essay.