Science more important than politics? Does he mean politics, literally, or just as a synonym for government? Without politics/government there would probably not be enough money or other support for creating those smartphones and airlines.

As we leave Cherry and her comrades still sitting around the table trying to figure out what to do with a family of kittens, at least we see that the kids on Rusty’s field trip have been promoted to full color students! Clearly, they must have absorbed some amount of knowledge and awareness on their trip. What have they really learned? Rivera’s point of this story is not really about knowledge acquisition. Then is it about looking at the outside of buildings? If so, a class slide presentation could have been cheaper and easier. 

Otherwise, what is this “National Science Museum” of which Rivera writes? Does she mean the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History? Does she mean the Smithsonian Institution museums, in general? And what is that building?