Now you too can take a peek inside one of the greatest human minds ever.

This is one of four such exhibits touring the world right now. A permanent exhibit is on display in Florence, Italy, near the famous green-and-white cathedral known as the Duomo.

I had a chance to spend some time in the exhibit last Wednesday, a couple of days before it opened. It was great.

The intricate replicas that make up most of the exhibit are made of wood. Many have working parts and some can be manipulated by those attending the exhibit. Some are actual size, others are small, but to scale.

It gives you a chance to have a hands-on experience with the flywheel and ball bearings as they were envisioned by da Vinci. There is even an interpretation of the bicycle as envisioned by the artist-sculptor-inventor.

Several exhibits are dedicated to his fascination with human flight. All are displayed next to reproductions of da Vinci's drawings upon which the devices are based.

Apparently da Vinci was thinking all the time, and he committed his thoughts to paper as drawings, so he was drawing all the time, too. And he thought about everything.

The flight exhibits, for example, take you through the process da Vinci followed to perfect his fixed-wing gliders.

Nobody knows how many of the drawings were made into working devices during his lifetime, but seeing the drawing come to life is the appeal of this exhibit.

Many of these devices couldn't have been built in da Vinci's time. The bicycle, for example, could not have been built as da Vinci imagined it when he was alive. For one thing, no one at the time could make a chain that would work. The fact that he was able to see past the limitations of his world is part of his genius.

But the wooden model of the bicycle envisioned by his drawings and created for the exhibit does, in fact, work. At least the gears work. The fact that the reproduction has wooden wheels and the handlebars that don't turn would make it difficult to ride.

Still, seeing da Vinci's drawing and then the wooden model brings his work to life with unexpected force.

In addition to flight, da Vinci was focused on war, and several of the devices are war machines that were well ahead of their time, including a "tank" and a wagon that would have literally mowed down enemy soldiers when it was drawn through the field of battle by a team of horses.

You can even step inside the Chamber of Mirrors -- envisioned by da Vinci as a way for an artist to get a complete view of an object or person being painted.

Reproductions of 11 of da Vinci's most famous paintings are also on display, including a replica of the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper.

The exhibit is something brand new for the Woodbury Art Museum, which was installed in the mall when it was remodeled a few years ago as an effort by Woodbury Corp. to support UVSC's art program. It is mostly used for modest art shows and student exhibits.

Now it's reaching out to a larger audience.

The museum will host the da Vinci Experience from now until Oct. 4, and organizers are hoping for 30,000 to 50,000 visitors. For most, it will be their first time in the museum, which is one of the University Mall's best kept secrets.

Marcus Vincent, director of the museum, said ticket prices have been kept relatively low to entice adults and families to visit the exhibit.

It will be the exhibit's only visit to Utah, and is the kind of opportunity that doesn't come through often. It shouldn't be missed.

For more information, visit /www.davinciexperience.info/.