And now a word from a scientist we worked with at the World’s Maker Faire this past weekend. SciCheers Rachel (recent Redskins cheerleader and Navy officer currently earning her nurse anesthetist degree), Amanda (recent St. Louis Rams cheerleader in her fourth year of medical school at Columbia University) and Christine (former LA Rams cheerleader, Ph.D., Geologist, post-doc research scientist) volunteered to help get thousands of people engaged in citizen science activities. Read more about them, and the event, here.

The scientists we worked with, like many people, raised their eyebrows at the mere thought of Science Cheerleaders. We’re used to that. We’ve also grown accustomed to the evolution in opinions once people see the SciCheers in action. We thought we’d share one recent testimonial with you:

(See pix of the SciCheers at the Maker Faire here.)

Carlyn S. Buckler, Ph.D.
Education and Outreach Associate
Paleontological Research Institution
and its Museum of the Earth
Adj. Asst. Professor of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
State University New York, Oneonta
1259 Trumansburg Road, Ithaca, NY 14850
www.MuseumoftheEarth.org

John-the-Tourist writes:

“What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas“.  Not quite true – my intrepid Science Cheerleader squad member John Ohab nabbed a snazzy Einstein T-shirt while he was recently in Las Vegas and presumably got the shirt outside the city limits.

Now, if you REALLY want to do something that you don’t want your mother to find out about, you need to be in the vicinity of a black hole, in which (as far as we know) nothing can escape.  My friend Matt (who works at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory) quipped “What happens in the event horizon stays in the event horizon”.  Matt’s son Owen told the joke on “CBS Sunday Morning” and Matt’s wife Robin (who is a graphical designer) turned the quip into a T-shirt (modeled by their daughter Lindsay) that you can purchase from Cafe Press. There is also a light-background version of the design.

So, be bold!  Show the universe that secrets can be kept – as long as you are within the Schwarzschild radius of a black hole.

P.S. – Don’t forget our own nifty Science Cheerleader T-shirts!  Make a fashion statement and fill up your closet!

Image source:  Matt Crawford

From John-the-Tourist:

Looking for that perfect holiday gift for the science cheerleader in your life?  Having a hard time finding it? I had that problem a couple of years ago, then I saw a blurb in the print version of Discover magazine titled “Micrograph Chic” which showed a pair of absolutely stunning earrings – the colors were vibrant and the pattern was beautifully abstract. The reason for the cool colors and impressive pattern was that the earrings were a photomicrograph of crystallized brain chemicals (dopamine, serotonin, etc), which was photographed through polarized light and then magnified about 600 times. Unfortunately, the Discover article didn’t include a URL, and my Google Search at the time didn’t come up with anything.  Sadly, I had to buy my wife some lame present like a frying pan.

Since I’m a cool science guy (and don’t want to get smacked on the head with another frying pan), I tried another Google search this year and I hit the jackpot!  The earrings are the handiwork of Amy Sweetman, a psychologist with a passion for jewelry design.  On her website DopomineJewelry.com you can find necklaces, cuff links, bracelets, key chains and (of course) earrings.  Not only can you get brain chemicals, but you can get photomicrographs of brain altering chemicals such as the ever popular “caffeine” and a wide assortment of cocktails.

Amy and I shared a few emails about her interest in science and what she’s doing to merge science and art; here’s what she wrote…

I read about the Science Cheerleader and was very impressed.  Darlene has definitely been added to my list of admirable figures.  If possible, I would love to meet with her the next time she visits Los Angeles.  I am sure we could find a lot to talk about, and I look forward to help support her efforts.

Like Darlene, I was also captain of my high school cheerleading team, so I can definitely relate to her spirit.  Also, I worked as a cocktail waitress to fund my college education.  At the age of 22, I obtained my Masters degree and was very fortunate to land a full time position as a professor of psychology at a local community college.  My specialization is Biological Psychology which attempts to analyze behavior and its correlation to brain and nervous system processes.  Additionally, I have a couple of businesses that are science related and fit right in with the Science Cheerleader’s mission of “making science Sexy”.  My company is named Dopamine Jewelry, and it showcases microscopic photographs of behavior altering chemicals.  The line features pictures of neurotransmitters, hormones, and caffeine.  However, I also decided to utilize my bar related experience and knowledge to include cocktails and wine as well.  The jewelry not only illuminates the beauty of science, but is also educational.  Each item comes with two informational cards: one that tells about the chemical; the second explains the microscopic photography process.    The line has been featured in Discover Magazine and is sold in museums across the nation.

I do a number of fundraisers for local schools, and I find it very rewarding educating people about the various brain chemicals and their affect on behavior.  I have recently launched a new line simply called “Science”.  This jewelry line features the molecular structure of my best selling images, which are caffeine, dopamine, and serotonin.   The line also includes a beautiful science symbol (atom with orbiting electrons) with gemstones that I think would be perfect for the science cheerleader.  Other designs in the line feature magnifying glass jewelry.   I have also manufactured Christmas ornaments of the molecular structures.  My design aim for this particular line was to create something that is science based, sleek, beautiful and sexy without being geeky – like the science cheerleader herself.

One of my greatest contributions of educating the public about science is through the “Brain Bee.”  The Brain Bee is part of the National Brain Awareness initiative that seeks to educate the general population about neuroscience research.  High School students study a booklet created by the Society for Neuroscience and then competes to determine who has the most brain science knowledge.  I established the first Los Angeles Brain Bee last year.  Up until then, there were no local brain bees on the west coast of the United States.  I completely organized and funded this event and was able to take the winner and her father to compete in the National event held at the University of Maryland.  This year, I am making improvements to the Brain Bee by working with UCLA and USC Neurosurgeons. These doctors will be giving talks and conducting tours of their neuroscience labs.  Very exciting!

Another future goal is to create a Brain Art Exhibit which will feature a variety of art that illustrates the beauty of scientific phenomenon.

I truly admire what the Science Cheerleader is doing, and please convey to Darlene that she can count on me to be part of her squad!

John-the-Tourist again:  I’ve purchased a beta-endorphin necklace for my wife.  If I got her another frying pan, I’d need a shot of beta-endorphin to manage the pain of my re-flattened head.  May your heads retain some curvature and may you have a wonderful holiday season!

P.S. – If you still need a few other gift ideas, don’t forget soft and cuddly sub-atomic particles, giant stuffed microbes and (of course) our very own Science Cheerleader T-shirts.

Image credit:  Amy Sweetman

What if the media covered baseball like it covers science?

Larry Husten, founder of CardioBrief.org , poses this question and presents some interesting scenarios following this line of thought. For example, the World Series would receive one article in each major paper– after the series ended–set in no context at all (a la the Nobel Prize).

Check out Husten’s piece.

You’ll see this sweet intro where he has this to say about Science Cheerleader’s Brain Makeover effort to increase adult science literacy and bring science to the public:

“Beneath the highly attractive surface here there’s something important going on. I don’t know if the Science Cheerleader can single-handedly reverse the course of scientific illiteracy, but she deserves all the cheers we can give her for at least giving it the old college try. (Thanks to USA Today reporter Rita Rubin for tweeting about this.)”