Meet the Expert: Dr. Padma Venkatraman, oceanographer and author Dr. Padma Venkatraman is the author of BORN BEHIND BARS (Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Random House) as well as THE BRIDGE HOME, A TIME TO DANCE, ISLAND’S END and CLIMBING THE STAIRS. She is the winner of a WNDB Walter Dean Myers Award, Golden Kite Award, Crystal Kite Award,… Continue Reading Episode 76: How Can We Study Pollution in the Ocean?
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Slender Tower Challenge: You need 10 sheets of paper, scissors, and a roll of tape. Your challenge is to build the tallest tower you can with the smallest base (or footprint). Share your observations– or your picture– with us by LEAVING A COMMENT BELOW about your experience of designing an exhibit or share with us… Continue Reading Episode 74: How Do Structures Stand Up?
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Meet the Expert: Danielle Schroeder, Civil Engineer Danielle Schroeder is a Bridge Engineer in Pennsylvania. She graduated from Drexel University in 2017 with both her bachelor’s and master’s in Civil Engineering and is the first engineer in her family. As an advocate for STEM outreach, she frequently leads and volunteers at outreach events focused on… Continue Reading Episode 74: How Do Structures Stand Up?
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Challenge: How would you design an exhibit for two animals. One of the animals that you might not like, and one for an animal that you do like. Share your observations with us by LEAVING A COMMENT BELOW about your experience of designing an exhibit or share with us on our Twitter , Instagram or Facebook page and… Continue Reading Episode 73: How Do You Keep Zoo Animals Happy?
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Meet the Expert: Susan Summers, Zookeeper and Wildlife Biologist Susan has had a career as a zookeeper, wildlife biologist, and environmental educator. Science and nature have always been part of her life. She worked as a zookeeper for the Ecotarium (formerly known as the Worcester Science Center), the Franklin Park Zoo, and the Virginia Living… Continue Reading Episode 73: How Do You Keep Zoo Animals Happy?
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Meet the Expert: Gabriel-Phillip Santos, paleontologist and cosplay science educator Gabriel Santos is a paleontologist and educator at the Alf Museum of Paleontology in Los Angeles, California. He received his B.Sc. in biology at University of California-Irvine, and his M.Sc. in geology at California State University-Fullerton. His previous research interests focused on the Eocene vertebrate… Continue Reading Episode 72: How Did Marine Fossils End Up on Dry Land?
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Challenge: Get and apple and a pencil. Give the apple 2 or 3 stabs with the pencil. Let the apple sit on the counter for a couple of days. Watch and see what happens. (Hint: the apple decaying is like your teeth decaying.) Explore this by making holes of different sizes and maybe even having… Continue Reading Episode 71: Why Do Teeth Decay?
Read MoreChallenge: Understand the structure of the Earth’s Atmosphere Use a series of boxes and stack them on top of each other. Each box represents a layer of the atmosphere. Ask yourself what takes place in these layers? (Hint: check out this link from UCAR Center for Science Education for help) Send us a picture or… Continue Reading Episode 70: Why Do Science Experiments Travel by Balloon instead of by Jet?
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Meet the Expert: Dr. Katie Lotterhos, Marine biologist and ecologist Dr. Katie Lotterhos is an Associate Professor of Marine and Environmental Sciences at Northeastern University. She received her B.A. in Physics from Binghamton University in Physics, but late in her degree discovered her love for the ocean through trips with the outdoors club. She learned… Continue Reading Episode 68: Can You Predict Which Animals Will Survive Environmental Change?
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Challenge: Go outside and watch an animal, observe its behavior. What is it doing? How does it use the parts of its body to move, eat, or just participate in its surroundings? Then write it down in your journal. Send us your information or share with us on our Twitter , Instagram or Facebook page and you’ll… Continue Reading Episode 67: What Can Ancient Rhinos Tell Us About the Midwest?
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Meet the Expert: Dr. Alison Pearce Stevens, biologist and children’s author Alison Pearce Stevens has been chased by a trumpeter swan, bitten by a bronze-winged duck, and served as a climbing wall for geckos and baby bats. She used to be a beekeeper and still thinks pollinators are some of the coolest things on the… Continue Reading Episode 67: What Can Ancient Rhinos Tell Us About the Midwest?
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Challenge: Check out the flora and fauna in your own neighborhood. Quietly observe what you see, write it down in a journal, or draw in your notebook. Then share with us on our Twitter , Instagram or Facebook page and you’ll automatically be entered to win a copy of the book on the episode page!
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