A few days later I’m flying up to Boston for the 10 Year Anniversary of Tisch College. This will be my second trip to speak at Tufts in one month and as a alumna, I’m honored to be part of the “Breakthrough Innovations” portion of the day. For the Jumbos out there, this takes place on April 9 and you can register here.
I’ve been hanging out in Boulder, Colorado, this weekend, and saw a pair of bald eagles yesterday on a hike–and a lot of these little guys at right, which were everywhere. I also saw a golden eagle in a cage, presumably being rehabilitated. Plus, I got to hang out with the Bad Astronomer–so it has been a pretty good trip so far.
And now to business: The first seminar of the year at NCAR’s Earth System Laboratory will be on communication, as befits a growing interest in the topic here. I’m the speaker, and will be talking about our “Unscientific America” and what scientists can do to better connect with the society in which they’re embedded.
Since Chris posted his upcoming talks, I’ll add mine to the mix…
Tomorrow, February 9th at 6pm, I’ll be speaking at UT-Austin’s Science Study Break. By using film and television clips as examples, I’ll describe the science behind why we kiss and there will be giveaways as well!
On Friday, February 11 at 5pm, I’ll be speaking at Science in the Pub at The Cactus Cafe, also at UT.
Today I’m at North Georgia College & State University and can already report that I’m falling in love with the town of Dahlonega–known as the gateway to the Blue Ridge Mountains and the site where the Gold Rush began in 1928. I’m here as the speaker for the university’s information literacy initiative and will be talking to students and the community about scientific illiteracy in the United States.
Tonight’s event is free and open to the public so if you’re in the area, come on by! It takes place at 7:30 in the Health & Natural Sciences Building. You can read more about this terrific initiative and my participation at The Gainesville Times…
So much to blog about and so little time. I have a great deal to say about the past few days at the Clinton Global Initiative, but must now take off for DC. I’m extremely excited about Thursday’s L’Oreal/Discover panel, yet leaving NYC is bittersweet… I have immensely enjoyed the time I’ve spent here and would love to stay through the final sessions.
CGI has been an extraordinarily inspiring experience. This meeting demonstrates that we are moving toward becoming a global community by fostering unique partnerships that continue to improve millions of peoples’ lives around the world. In troubled times, CGI gives me reason for hope. I’ll share more on that soon.
..is shaping up to be quite busy, fascinating, and a lot of fun.
On Monday I’ll fly to New York to attend the Clinton Global Initiative. Last night Bill Clinton visited The Daily Show to talk about politics, American skepticism, and suggest the least expensive and fastest way to improve the economy and decrease unemployment:
Next I’m headed to DC to moderate Thursday’s L’Oreal/Discover Capitol Hill panel on women in science. Here’s an excerpt from the press release:
Congressional briefing explores the issues and opportunities
“The contributions of female scientists are critical to U.S. advancements in science and economic growth,” said Frédéric Rozé, President and Chief Executive Officer of L’Oréal USA. “By convening this congressional briefing, L’Oréal USA hopes to renew national dialogue about breaking barriers and forging new paths for women in science.”
Panelists include:
Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary, Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education
Dr. Shirley Malcom, Head of Education and Human Resources, American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Pr. Joan Steitz, Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University
Pr. Sara Seager, Ellen Swallow Richards Professor of Planetary Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Sheril Kirshenbaum, Author of Unscientific America and Science Blogger for Discovermagazine.com (Moderator)
With travel, posting may be light at times, but I’ll be sharing details from both events here at The Intersection and via twitter (hashtag #CGI2010).
Over the past three years, I’ve blogged nearly every day at least once. Today I’m going on vacation… without a laptop!
For the month of May, The Intersection will return to its roots as Chris Mooney flies solo once again, but he’ll be in excellent company: I’ve lined up a series of terrific guest bloggers that will appear throughout the month! Readers can look forward to diverse contributions from several terrific writers and scientists and I hope you’ll welcome them here and participate in comments.
By the time I return, I’ll be 30 times round that spectacular star of ours. So see you in June!
Science Literacy, the Nature of Science and Religion
Jon Miller: The Development of Civic Scientific Literacy in the United States
Sheril Kirshenbaum: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens Our Future
Murray Peshkin: Addressing the Public About Science and Religion
Judith Scotchmoor: Increasing our understanding of how science really works
Art Hobson: Physics Literacy for All Students
Our session will be moderated by Lawrence Woolf and you can read the abstracts online. I’m really looking forward to what I’m certain will be a very interesting discussion.
Around this time last year, an unexpected trip to the hospital led to an anesthesia mistake giving me aspiration pneumonia. Although I recognized how serious the situation was, I was also very sad to miss my favorite annual science event: The 2009 AAAS meeting in Chicago–including The Science of Kissing symposium I had helped organize for Valentine’s Day.
As you can imagine, one year later I’m extremely grateful to be healthy, fully recovered, and on my way to attend the 2010 meeting with David. And I’m also delighted to be joining the AAAS program committee. Most of all, I’m looking forward to catching up with friends in science, journalism, policy–and especially, a few former Sea Grant Fellows. And CM too of course.
Blogging may be light during the conference, but expect some upcoming posts on what’s happening in San Diego…
This morning I’m back in the District to address the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) about ways to improve the communication of science. With members representing over 90 organizations including NOAA, NASA, and USGS, they work to collect, interpret, and develop applications for Earth observation information. It’s my first talk of 2010 and I’m very much looking forward to spending the day with such a neat interdisciplinary group.