ExhibitFiles, an ASTC website for the museum exhibits community, reaches a milestone April 23 with the first anniversary of the site’s opening. Started with the support of a committed core group of exhibits people and funding from the National Science Foundation, the site has grown to include more than 650 members from around the world, who have generously shared their experiences and reflections in more than 100 case studies and reviews.

ASTC has a longstanding commitment to excellence and innovation in museum exhibits. By building a collaborative community site with a rich and growing set of exhibition records at its core, we hope to preserve accumulated experience, make it easier to find, and support development of a culture of critique.

The site’s contributions and promise were recently recognized with the Museums & the Web’s Best of the Web award for top museum professional site.  Site design is by Ideum, an ASTC member.

On April 2, NISE Net brought interactive exhibits and activities to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., inviting House and Senate members of the STEM Education and Nanotechnology Caucuses, legislative staffers, and the general public to learn more about nanotechnology’s potential transformative impact on such fields as healthcare, information processing, and energy production. In addition to small indoor exhibits, NanoExpress, a mobile nanoscale science lab from Washington’s Howard University, was set up near the Capitol, giving passersby the opportunity to explore real research equipment. ASTC participants included the Museum of Science, Boston; the Museum of Life and Science, Durham, North Carolina; and the Exploratorium, San Francisco, California.

In the evening,  the events continued downtown at the Woodrow Wilson Center with a reception and screening of the new PBS three-part series, The Power of Small, hosted by the National Science Foundation and the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies. Special guests included Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, NSF Director Arden Bement, and Project Science Advisor Andrew Maynard.

About the image: Howard University’s NanoExpress lets visitors explore real nanoscale science research equipment. Photo by Lynn Lim

From March 29 through April 6, the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net) presents NanoDays, the first nationwide festival of educational programs about nanoscale science.  Through activities like NanoDays, the NISE Net is working to build partnerships between science museums and research centers to increase the capacity of both kinds of institutions to engage the public in learning about nanoscale science and engineering. Kits with hands-on activities, reference materials, short films, and a public forums manual were distributed to over 100 U.S. participating science museums, research centers, and universities in early January.

ASTC members have a variety of activities planned, from community forums and presentations by researchers to nano-themed exhibitions and demonstrations. Additionally, ASTC and the NISE Net will be hosting NanoDays activities in and around Washington, D.C. On April 2, the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education and Nanotechnology Caucuses will host an event featuring hands-on exhibits and demonstrations for legislators, staffers, and the public on Capitol Hill. The following day, the NISE Net will bring those same activities to the National Science Foundation’s headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

For more information, including a list of participating institutions, please visit the NISE Net website.

 About the image: Staff members build a giant balloon model of carbon nanotube at the Museum of Science, Boston. Photo by Margaret Glass

In recognition of the crucial role science centers play in educating the public, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has named ASTC as a partner in its Earth Hour initiative. On March 29, 24 cities around the world will turn off their non-emergency lights from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m (local time). ASTC is mobilizing the science center community and encouraging members to get involved. Participation may take a number of forms, from a stargazing party at the Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, to “Kill-a-Watt” conservation activities at the Philippine Science Centrum, Manila. The goal is to raise awareness of energy consumption and climate issues by demonstrating the impact of collective individual actions. In doing so, Earth Hour proponents hope to inspire citizens and organizations to reflect upon how they can address climate change.

Earth Hour provides a great opportunity for ASTC to take a closer look at the energy consumption of both individual institutions and the science center field as a whole. What is our carbon footprint? What policies have our members implemented to address this global crisis? To address these questions, ASTC is launching a new initiative to gather information about members’ current green practices and then collectively set goals for our field. To join a special task force dedicated to this initiative, please contact Walter Staveloz, director of international relations, wstaveloz@astc.org.

On March 13, two interactive videoconferences themed Our Changing Planet: Past and Present were sponsored by the International Polar Year (IPY) and ASTC’s IGLO initiative. A program of presentations by polar scientists and students was developed in partnership with NASA, MAGPI (an Internet2 consortium), and seven science centers from all over the world. Dr. Robert Bindschadler, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, United States, spoke to both groups about IPY and its first major scientific outcome, the new Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA). “It is wonderful to be able to talk to so many young people in the world at once, including those who are watching us,” he said in his opening remarks. “The technological advances that allow us to develop events like this give scientists the chance to speak directly to the youth. As polar researchers, we can communicate what we do, why we do it, and why we should care. This is an opportunity to show that scientific research is fun and satisfying and to inspire students consider choosing careers in science and engineering.”

Students worked with Monash Science Centre, Melbourne, Australia; the Chinese Network Information Center at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Universum-UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico; the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago, United States; the Pavilion of Knowledge–Ciencia Viva, Lisbon, Portugal; the Planetarium Science Centre at the Bibiliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt; and Techniquest, Cardiff, Wales.Ranging from ages 7 through 19, all students exhibited a passion for science and a willingness to address climate change. Using creative means of communication, they gave PowerPoint presentations, performed live demonstrations, and showed videos that they had animated themselves. Their contributions are archived in the IGLO Toolkit for use as an educational resource.

During Q&A sessions that followed each site’s presentations and concluded each videoconference, it was evident that dialogue is possible between scientists and students and also among young people of all nationalities. One Portuguese student who had traveled with Students on Ice said, “We all have the same issues and same concerns.” For more information about this event and how to participate in future videoconferences, please visit the IGLO web site or send an email to iglo@astc.org.

About the image: A view of Antarctica using LIMA.