Science Education
sciencewoman | October 12, 2009It's Earth Science Week, and this year's theme is Understanding Climate. So it's the perfect time to share some cool videos of women earth scientists and how they are working to improve the diversity and representation of women in atmospheric science. Hat tip to Erika Marin-Spiotta for sharing these videos.
The first three-minute video is about the GRASP program, which gives undergraduate students a chance to do research at Storm Peak Lab in Colorado.
The second ten-minute video is on the ASCENT workshops, that aimed to develop vertical mentoring and lateral networking among women…
gregladen | October 9, 2009An item from the NCSE:
A special issue of the Journal of Effective Teaching, a peer-reviewed electronic journal devoted to the discussion of teaching excellence in colleges and universities, is devoted to the topic of teaching evolution in the college classroom. Featured are Randy Moore, Sehoya Cotner, and Alex Bates's "The Influence of Religion and High School Biology Courses on Students' Knowledge of Evolution When They Enter College"; Katherine E. Bruce, Jennifer E. Horan, Patricia H. Kelley, and Mark Galizio's "Teaching Evolution in the Galapagos"; Patricia H. Kelley's "A College Honors…
gregladen | October 9, 2009This just in from the NCSE:
Will a Massachusetts bill entitled "An Act Relative to Protecting the Religious Freedom of Students" encourage the discussion of creationism in public school science classes? That's what a cosponsor of the bill, Representative Elizabeth Poirier (R-14th Bristol), told the Cape Cod Times (October 7, 2009). The bill, House No. 376, received a hearing on October 6, 2009, at which, according to the Times, "No one testified against the bill, which has bipartisan support and is expected to pass favorably through the Joint Committee on Education."
Evolution is in fact not…
sciencewoman | October 9, 2009A few nights ago, Minnow was in the mood to make videos of some of her favorite books - almost any books, except ones with an overt scientific bent. Right now, she wants books with a storyline, and I'm afraid that some of the sciencey books I'd lined up for this month are not story-driven enough for her tastes.
But among the books she picked out, was a Little Golden Book called "Little Cottontail" by Carl Membling and illustrated by Lilian Obligado. As we read the book, it occurred to me that while on the surface this was a heart-warming book about a little rabbit's coming of age, if we dug…
clock | October 8, 2009This was a very busy day. I went to five science-related places/events today (and one yesterday).
The first three, this morning, were part of an education school trip with my daughter's class and her science teacher.
First we visited the OWASA Water Treatment Plant which provides tap water for about 80,000 people in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, NC, followed by a tour of their Wastewater Treatment Plant. Last time I visited a water treatment plant was about 30 years ago, in Belgrade (which has 2 million people using the water), so it was exciting to see how technology has evolved over the years…
gregladen | October 8, 2009This just in: Eugenie Scott, Executive Director of the NCSE, has won the California Academy of Sciences Fellows Medal.
This is somewhere between an Oscar and a Nobel. Congratulations Genie!!!
Details...
DARWIN DEFENDER TAKES TOP PRIZE
California Academy of Sciences honors Dr. Eugenie C. Scott
OAKLAND, CA October 8, 2009
It's better than an Oscar. The NCSE's Dr. Eugenie Scott has received the California Academy of Sciences' highest honor: the Fellows Medal. The Medal recognizes Dr. Scott's "...many important contributions to science, education, and evolution, and for her tireless efforts…
clock | October 7, 2009Next Periodic Tables, a Durham, NC version of Science Cafe, will happen on October 13, 2009 at 7pm at the Broad Street Café:
Science on Tap: The Chemistry of Beer
Join us as we tap into the science of brewing beer and discover how a few simple ingredients (yeast, water, hops and grains) can make a variety of brews. We'll also discuss the importance of sterilization and the microbiology of yeast culturing.
Speakers: Triangle Brewing Company and Brew Master Store
clock | October 7, 2009From Sigma Xi:
We'll reconvene at noon, Tuesday, Oct. 20, at Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society, with a peek at one of the many ways technology helped our species survive and prosper long ago.
Steven Churchill, an associate professor of evolutionary anthropology at Duke University, will discuss the origins of projectile weaponry, and how that fit with the emergence of other aspects of modern human behavior. He'll talk about his fascinating forensics work exploring ways our ancestors may have used weapons against evolutionary cousins who no longer roam this planet.
American Scientist…
sciencewoman | October 7, 2009We're a week into our 2009 DonorsChoose challenge, and as of 11 am EDT, we've raised $250 for science education of high poverty students around the country. In 2007, we raised $1104, and last year: "Forty-two Sciencewomen readers contributed a total of $1863 to help 917 needy kids learn about science and engineering." If we're going to get anywhere near that number this year, we need to pick up the pace a bit. I understand that money is tight for all of us, this year more than ever, but money is tighter than ever for public school teachers, who spend an average of $500 to $700 per year out of…
sciencewoman | October 5, 2009Remember this summer when I was working on the course design for my new prep on Experimental Design and Data Analysis? We're now a month into the class, and while it has had its rough moments, I think it will ultimately be quite useful to the students enrolled in it.
I'm currently avoiding grading, so I thought I'd take a moment to show the results of an exercise we did the first week. I gave groups of students two sheets of paper. On one I asked them to diagram the scientific method as they understood it. On the other, I asked them to diagram their experience with how scientific research is…
clock | October 4, 2009Bats in Peril?
October 28, 2009
8:30 -10:00 am with discussion beginning at 9, followed by Q&A
Location: The Acro Cafe - 4th Floor of the Museum of Natural Sciences
Have you ever seen a bat flying around your house on a summer evening? Did you know that there are 17 different species of bats that live in North Carolina? Come to our…
clock | October 3, 2009Crossing the Line? Biomedical Technology in Sports
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
6:30-8:30 pm with discussion beginning at 7:00 followed by Q&A
Location: Tir Na Nog 218 South Blount Street, Raleigh, 833-7795
In the end, it was a split second rather than an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) ruling that kept double-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius from competing in the Beijing Summer Olympics. He didn't hit the 400-meter qualifying time of 45.55 seconds, despite running a personal best 46.25 on his carbon-fiber prosthetic legs at a track meet in Lucerne, Switzerland. In…
gregladen | October 2, 2009The Medieval Religious State of Saudi Arabia has a school called King Abdullah's University of Science and Technology, which is co-ed (that is an extraordinarily progressive idea for Teh Kingdom) and very science oriented. The idea, obviously, is for Saudi Arabia to maintain it's old patriarchal relgious-oligarchic ways but at the same time not get mushed by the modern world by including some rational thinking and stuff. But a senior Saudi cleric has called for a vetting of the university's curriculum in order to remove "alien ideologies."
Evolution is an alien ideology, apparently.
"…
sciencewoman | October 2, 2009In support of our on-going DonorsChoose challenge, this month Minnow and I will be exploring science-related books for SciWo's storytime.
I have to admit, I'm enjoying the challenge of finding sciencey books appropriate for a 2.5 year old's attention span. There seem to be a plethora of books for the 4-8 year old set, but fewer for the younger crowd. Well, that's not true. There are an awful lot of books about animals, especially farm animals, but Minnow has got her animals down pat, and we all know there is more to science than zoology.
I'm also discovering that it is easier to keep Minnow…
clock | October 1, 2009As regular readers of Scienceblogs.com already know, October is the month when a bunch of us raises challenges to fund science, math and technology projects in schools.
Several of my Sciblings have already set up their challenges and a few more will add theirs soon, I know. There will be a healthy competition with some other blogging networks, of course ;-)
You can find my challenges at Classroom Science Around The Clock, look at the projects - all coming from 'High Poverty' schools in North Carolina - and donate whatever you can. If many people pitch in a little bit each, these projects will…
sciencewoman | September 30, 2009It's October, one the busiest months of the year. It's the month with Earth Science Week, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Domestic Violence Awareness Month...but one of the happiest features of October is the annual DonorsChoose Social Media Challenge, when we bloggers and tweeters get to exhort our readers to support public school students throughout the US, Alice and I are both going to be busy off-line over the coming weeks, but we're never too busy to give a bit of time and money to help the next generation of scientists and engineers.
This year we are focusing on efforts of bringing…
gregladen | September 25, 2009"At least once a week, if not once a day, we might each ponder what cosmic truths lie undiscovered before us, perhaps awaiting the arrival of a clever thinker, an ingenious experiment, or an innovative space mission to reveal them. We might further ponder how those discoveries may one day transform life on Earth."
~Neil Tyson
sporte | September 22, 2009This morning I attended the Fifth Annual WBBA Governor's Life Sciences Summit. The breakfast was great; the talks were okay.
I do enjoy the stories about people who's lives were saved because of biotechnology and I agree that the focus of the summit, research and discovery are important, but I can't help thinking about the missing piece.
For the past ten years, I've been involved in a national experiment to help build an educated workforce for biotechnology. Through that time, I've learned about one glaring area where Washington state is missing out.
There's one word for the missing piece.…