Okay, this is not quite as cool as an actual Wakandan embassy coming to Oakland, but pretty damn close. Inspired by the success of their movie "Black Panther," Disney is giving $1 million to Boys and Girls Club to fund STEM learning programs around the country, including funding of a "STEM Center of Innovation" in …
A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of co-leading a series of community outreach events in the Philippines, along with my colleague Lindzy. This was part of a much larger "Verde Island Passage" scientific expedition, focused on an area of the Philippines called by some "the center of the center of marine biodiversity" …
For the past several weeks, this lovely women in science Christmas tree made of LEGO I threw together has been cheerily sitting on my desk at work. Coming in every morning and lighting it up has been a wonderful way to start each work day at the museum! Today I disassembled the tree for the …
Last week I went to a briefing on a recent Malaysian rainforest expedition that took place last fall in Penang, led by Dr. Meg Lowman. A huge undertaking, over 117 people participated in the expedition, including both CAS and Malaysian researchers and volunteers. It drew from expertise across IBSS, including arachnid, ant, bird, mosquito, fly, and fern scientists. …
I love Biographic, an online magazine featuring science-rich, emotionally engaging, and beautifully designed stories about nature and positive steps people are taking to protect it. It's a great read if you are looking for a change from the grind of the daily news and doomsday news reporting from other sources. And the photos, videos and …
What do you do when you have a bunch of women in science LEGO mini-figs, and it's December? You make a science-y holiday tree! From the women scientists and women of NASA LEGO sets.
About a month ago, LEGO released one of the hottest new toys of the season: a "Women of NASA" LEGO kit. The kit features astronomer and educator Nancy Grace Roman, computer scientist and entrepreneur Margaret Hamilton, astronaut, physicist and entrepreneur Sally Ride and astronaut, physician, engineer and jazz dancer Mae Jemison! I finally got some time to …
A little while ago, I had the opportunity to catch one of the first local screenings of the new Jane Goodall documentary "Jane" from National Geographic. Jane Goodall of course is a well-known primatologist, environmental activist and head of the Goodall Institute. One of the world's leading experts on chimpanzees, Goodall is a Dame Commander of …
I already mentioned the sessions that I was a part of at ASTC 2017. I'm really excited to talk about my work and projects. But I'm even more excited by the many other sessions that my youth programs team at the California Academy of Sciences are going to be leading at ASTC. The Expanded Learning …
I really liked this piece in Slate magazine on citizen science: “Want to Help Shape the Future?” by Darlene Cavalier and Jason Lloyd. They really hit home the idea that not only is it important for science that people everywhere contribute and participate in it, it’s also important for society and the individuals involved. The key …