IN THIS ISSUE March/April 2019 It’s generally easy to notice big things, but it’s the small things that often have a profound effect on our lives. As best-selling author Mary Roach points out in the Q&A interview, the things she couldn’t see while traveling recently in India—bacteria and viruses—were much more likely to take her down than the massive... Read More
Kirsten Ellenbogen, president and chief executive officer of the Great Lakes Science Center, has been appointed to a new National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine committee that was created to improve science communication nationwide. As a member of the Standing Committee on Advancing Science Communication Research and Practice, Ellenbogen will help to “build a... Read More
“The Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) commends the U.S. Congress for completing work on the Federal budget for Fiscal Year 2019 and for continuing to support science; research; and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. This bipartisan effort to resolve Fiscal Year 2019 funding is particularly welcome as the science community works to recover... Read More
By Cristin Dorgelo Charting a course for the future is one of the more difficult things we are called upon to do as leaders and as individuals. The futures of our institutions, the future of our communities, and the future frontiers of science and technology are inextricably linked. As we scan those horizons and set... Read More
IN THIS ISSUE January/February 2019 At the forefront of informal science learning, we are, in some ways, naturally good at gazing fearlessly into the future. But while we may be better equipped than those in many other fields to strategize for upcoming changes, it’s difficult to see very far ahead, or to know the best... Read More
Interviewed by Susan Straight This interview appeared in the January/February 2019 issue of Dimensions magazine. DJ is the head of technology at Devoted Health and a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. During the Obama administration, he was appointed by President Obama to be the first U.S. chief data scientist. In that role, his... Read More
By David A. Ucko From Dimensions January/February 2019 Science centers may seem commonplace today. However, that was not so four decades ago, when total attendance at my first ASTC conference was about 50. Reviewing the history of the field, beginning with those institutions that influenced its development, can offer perspective for considering future directions. Natural history... Read More
Today I’m celebrating one year of service as ASTC’s President and CEO. I remain honored to serve you and our science-center and science-museum field. I’m inspired by the work you do every day to engage more people in science, technology, and innovation, to the benefit of your communities. On this first anniversary of my tenure... Read More
About 800,000 Americans are now furloughed from their jobs working for the Federal government, and several science centers and museums have implemented free-admission programs and events to help government workers and the families maintain access to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning opportunities. With community members in nearly every U.S. city facing paycheck losses,... Read More
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is known fondly in the Philadelphia region as “the dinosaur museum.” To some people that connotes “children’s museum,” and indeed the marketing in the last decade has been successful in attracting scads of families with young kids. Some visiting parents tell us toting their toddler or preschooler... Read More
