Theoretical reflections and practical exploration of the integration of science and culture in science and technology exhibitions: A case study of the Chinese shadow puppetry exhibition at the China Science and Technology Museum

In recent years, China has actively guided the development of the cultural industry through national policies and promoted the natural integration of science and technology with the cultural industry. Such a trend has not only inspired a large number of new forms of scientific and cultural products but also provided new grounds for science and technology museums and popular-science museums to develop content based on cultural heritage. Relying on the content and exhibit resources of the China Science and Technology Museum and taking the intangible cultural heritage project ‘Chinese shadow puppetry’ as a research case, this paper analyses the traditional cultural factors and scientific elements of the case, elaborates on the theoretical logic of integrating scientific and traditional cultures in science exhibitions, summarizes from a practical perspective the exhibition principles and exhibition and education models featuring the integration of scientific and traditional cultures, and explores viable paths for integrating traditional culture into science exhibitions.