Science and, well, everything

I was talking to a student the other day, and he told me that he loved his iPod, but hated science.  That struck me as odd, since he was, of course, holding science in his hand.  But, it turns out, too many young people don't get the connection between science, and cool.

Really, science is everywhere.  In that iPod, at work when our scoop of vanilla falls out of the cone, right there in the discussion about runaway oil wells and global warming.   In fact, science is so cool that it's hiding in plain sight, everyday, everywhere.

In a way, Earth Explore is about making that coolness more obvious to young people.  Showing them that science is a very fun, and relevant way to make sense of the world.  And that it provides opportunities that they don't want to miss.

I remember more than 10 years ago talking to the lead scientist at the Hawaii Volcano Observatory.  She loved to explain to our students how the Kilauea volcano works.  But she also had another message, which she made with great passion.  And that is that science is really everything.  In a volcano you can find art, history, culture and lots more.

More recently I was standing among a group of students at 5:30AM, listening to howler monkeys, and spotting birds outside the Tortuga Lodge in Costa Rica.  And it struck me that everything we were doing, from watching toucans feed, to finding tiny poison dart frogs, was science.  But the students didn't think of it that way.  It was just plain coolness. 

We're hearing all the time about America's kids falling behind in science and math.  About our place as the world's innovators and creators being at risk.  I believe one solution is to get the cool back in science, and make it a thrilling experience that kids don't want to miss.