Science Cheerleader

…and, together, we kick off the World Science Festival, this morning at Columbia University during a world-class Science Summit. Really, no joke! I’m included among the “125 leaders from science, business, government, media, and academia who will explore how today’s scientific discoveries will shape tomorrow.” (Columbia’s homepage news.)

(I did have to squirrel my way into this invitation. Finally, the old cheerleading uniform came in handy.)

“The 21st century will be shaped by science,” said Brian Greene, co-founder of the World Science Festival and professor of physics and mathematics at Columbia University. “From the enormous challenges we face and opportunities we have available, science will be the critical driver. To make informed decisions, we need a general public that is not put off by science; rather, the public needs to be excited by science and prepared to engage with its implications for the future.”

The Festival seeks to transform the public perception of science by producing high caliber, entertaining and thought-provoking programs–for five days throughout New York City–that make science exciting, accessible, compelling, and inspirational. That’s Brian’s stated goal for the World Science Festival. A terrific goal and one we should all support.  

I hope I have an opportunity to share some thoughts with Brian and the 123 other leaders in the room. Engaging the public in science is critical and helps us make better decisions, particularly when it comes to science policy decisions. But we need authentic opportunities to inject our values and opinions into important discussions of science and science policy.  Let the public, us, displace the lobbyists. Scientists and policy makers can and should do more to trust the public’s desire and capacity to participate in real science activities and discussions. I’ll bring the empirical data with me just in case they don’t believe me.

Speaking of trust, if they haven’t already yanked the mic from my hands, I might suggest that we need more reasons to trust science in spite of the recent abuses by government and industry–and some scientists–covered in this book which I’ve read, and this new one I have yet to read, among many other publications. Depressing stuff, really.

Let’s move back to the happier, more optimistic approach, shall we? The World Science Festival!

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I just watched the movie Iron Man, for the second time. Entertaining, albeit sobering, reminder that our own nation’s superior advances in technology–in this case, weapons technology–can be hijacked by friends or foes and, eventually, used against us. Keeping our weapons out of enemy hands is a problem for the Department of Defense to worry about. I’ve got my own “technology trust issues” I’d like to vent about.

Let me start with my  touch screen cell phone. Formerly known as my trusted companion. Keeper of my diary, confider of private discussions. My personal assistant for goodness sake. For no good reason, “it” has turned against me. Randomly dialing people, exposing my conversations for all the world to listen in on. Sneaky thing does this when I least expect it. Like when I’m damning to hell the speeding cab driver, talking to myself, or whispering my sins to Father Mark in the confessional box. 

My phone has more commands and function buttons than my ridiculously over-engineered cable TV remote control. Still I have yet to locate what must be a simple “lock” or “please do not call anyone without my permission” request. Working on it.

Technological applications have the ability to betray insects, too, as it turns out.  Even the smartest of bugs: cockroaches. This New ScientistTech article explains how a matchbox-sized robot can “infiltrate a pack of cockroaches and influence their collective behavior.” The robot can “persuade a group of cockroaches to venture out into the light despite their normal preference for the dark, for example.” 

(Note to self: borrow that little robot to march the menacing mice out of my house and into an open flame.)
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It’s Sunday, May 11th (Happy Mother’s Day!) and I am very excited because my opinion piece on the proposed presidential science debate (”Science Debate 2008“) was just published in the Philadelphia Inquirer and already picked up by the University of Pennsylvania’s Newsweek.com feed and the National Basketball Association’s newsfeed.

Here’s the published version. Posted in its entirety below.   Let me know what you think. I’d like your opinions on my opinions.  Cheers!

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