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By COLLETTE CAPRARA

For THE FREE LANCE-STAR

An entire family is shrieking and jumping up and down on a giant tongue, surrounded by a row of teeth.

A scene from the latest scary flick? No, just one of a host of displays in the newest traveling exhibit at the Science Museum of Virginia--Jelly Belly presents Candy Unwrapped, which opens Saturday.

In the enormous tongue display, dubbed the Taste Bud Tango, lights flash when visitors hop on a taste bud, registering the sensory sensation that they would be experiencing.

Interestingly, the display depicts the most current research that debunks past theories that entire sections of the tongue are devoted to one specific taste sensation. As tongue tango-ers will learn, buds for the spectrum of tastes are located throughout.

"Many of the exhibits are hands-on--and even 'bodies-on' experiences," said Patricia Sacchetti, a project consultant from the Ontario Science Centre, who helped create the event.

Visitors will explore the scientific principles in play during the simple act of tasting food, discover how the brain is affected by different scents, and pedal a stationary bike to determine how much exercise it takes to burn just one cube of sugar.

"The jelly bean taste test will be a real startler," said Ken Doyle, OSC project manager, who notes that both aromas and tastes combine to make flavors. "If you hold your nose while chewing on a piece of candy, you really won't be able to identify the flavor until you breathe in."

Visitors are in for another surprise when they register their preference for a lunch menu at the Delectable Delights fast-food counter. They will learn of astonishing "taste matches," in which, for example, taste substitutes for dishes like scrambled eggs and bacon or peanut butter sandwiches may be grubs and fried flying ants. (No need to get queasy. This is an informational display and involves no actual eating.)

One display that is sure to generate some laughter is Pucker Up. At this stop, visitors can sample candy with a super-sour taste--in front of a camera that will project their expressions on a wide screen for all to see.

The exhibit also explores the role of sweets throughout time and in different countries. At It's a Tasty World, visitors can check out display windows that show what tastes appeal to people of different cultures.