Members and staff of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council will participate in the following events during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, to take place from Feb. 17 to 21 in Washington, D.C.
Tribute to Stephen H. Schneider
Feb. 18, noon to 2 p.m., Renaissance East (Renaissance Downtown)
Stephen Schneider, a renowned climate scientist at the vanguard of climate change research for four decades, died on July 19, 2010. Schneider was a member of the National Academy of Sciences. REMARKS BY: Ralph Cicerone, president of NAS, Robert Dickinson, Peter Gleick, John Holdren, Alice Huang, Alan Robock, Terry Root, and others. Open to the public.
Engaging Students in Undergraduate STEM Education With a Focus on Global Stewardship
Feb. 18, 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., 102B (Washington Convention Center)
This symposium will explore emerging evidence that inquiry-based approaches to learning in undergraduate courses improve student engagement. ORGANIZER: Jay Labov, National Research Council. SPEAKERS: Melvin George, University of Missouri; William Kirwan, University System of Maryland; Susan Singer, Carleton College; Catherine Middlecamp, University of Wisconsin; and Judith Ramaley, Winona State University.
Plenary Lecture -- Policy for Science, Technology, and Innovation in the Obama Administration: A Mid-Course Update
Feb. 18, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., East Salon (Washington Convention Center)
John P. Holdren, assistant to the president for science and technology, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and member of the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering, will discuss science policy.
Invisible Men? Addressing the Participation of Minority Males in Science and Engineering
Feb. 19, 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., 102B (Washington Convention Center)
During this session, speakers will share the latest research on declining participation of underrepresented minority males (African American, Hispanic, and Native American) in science and engineering at the K-16 levels. ORGANIZER: Catherine Didion, National Academy of Engineering. SPEAKERS: Norman Fortenberry, National Academy of Engineering; Eric Jolly, Science Museum of Minnesota; Florence Bonner, Howard University; and Carlos Rodriguez, American Institutes for Research.
TV Meteorologists Communicating Climate Change
Feb. 19, 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., 156 (Washington Convention Center)
This symposium focuses on a series of NSF-funded studies on TV weathercasters and their views and communication of climate change science. Speakers will discuss what motivates certain TV meteorologists to communicate climate change science and the match between their best practices and a National Academy of Sciences report on effective informal science education. SPEAKERS: Bud Ward, Yale Forum on Climate Change and the Media; Ronald A. Yaros, University of Maryland; Bob Ryan, WJLA-TV ABC 7; Edward Maibach, George Mason University; Kris Wilson, University of Texas; and Katherine Rowan, George Mason University.
Plenary Lecture -- Design and Evolution: Engineering Biology in the 21st Century
Feb. 19, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., East Salon (Washington Convention Center)
Frances Arnold, a pioneer in using laboratory evolution methods to generate novel and useful enzymes and organisms for applications in medicine and alternative energy, will speak about engineering biology in this century. The Dick and Barbara Dickinson Professor of Chemical Engineering and Biochemistry at California Institute of Technology, Arnold is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine.
Exploring the Planet Mercury: The MESSENGER
Feb. 20, noon to 12:45 p.m., 207A (Washington Convention Center)
Mercury is one of the last frontiers of the inner solar system. The MESSENGER spacecraft, developed under NASA's Discovery Program, is the first space probe to visit Mercury in more than 30 years. It will enter the planet's orbit in March 2011 and observe it for one Earth year. SPEAKER: Sean C. Solomon, director, department of terrestrial magnetism, Carnegie Institution for Science, and member, National Academy of Sciences.
We Live in Different Taste Worlds: How Do We Know and What Does It Mean?
Feb. 20, noon to12:45 p.m., 146B (Washington Convention Center)
Linda Bartoshuk, Bushnell Professor of Community Dentistry and Behavioral Science, University of Florida, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences, will talk about her research on how variation in taste and other oral sensation can impact health.
How to Use a Fellowship Program to Jumpstart Your Career
Feb. 20, 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., 144B (Washington Convention Center)
This workshop will focus on practical advice and shared experiences from a variety of fellowship programs, including the National Academies' Mirzayan Fellowship Program. A panel of previous fellows will share lessons they learned as fellows and how their experiences affected their career pathways. COORDINATOR: Catherine Didion, National Academy of Engineering. SPEAKERS: Simil Raghavan, National Academy of Engineering; Andrea Stith, Graduate School of Education, Shanghai Jiaotong University; and Pardis Sabeti, Harvard University.
Aiming for Scientific Literacy by Teaching the Process, Nature, and Limits of Science
Feb. 20, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., 102A (Washington Convention Center)
This symposium will examine the importance of integrating the nature and process of science into the content of undergraduate science courses to increase the potential for attaining a more scientifically literate U.S. society -- one that looks to science to inform policy and to improve personal decision-making. SPEAKERS: Jay Labov, National Research Council; Eugenie Scott, National Center for Science Education; Jon Miller, Michigan State University; Norman Lederman, Illinois Institute of Technology; Karen Oates, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Judy Scotchmoor, University of California Museum of Paleontology; and Mark Stefanski, Marin Academy.
The Practice of Science Diplomacy in the Earth Sciences
Feb. 20, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., 143AB (Washington Convention Center)
Speakers at this symposium will describe several case studies of successful international science program activities and see how those activities have contributed to improved international cooperation and interaction. ORGANIZERS: Thomas Casadevall, USGS; Ester Sztein, National Research Council; and Melody Brown Burkins, University of Vermont. SPEAKERS: Bruce Alberts, AAAS/Science; Eric Calais, Purdue University; Julie Kunen, U.S. Agency for International Development; Jeff Doebrich, USGS; Pedro Sánchez, The Earth Institute, Columbia University; John Pallister, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory; and Jonathan Overpeck, University of Arizona.