Join me on June 24 in Washington, D.C. for a Capitol Hill briefing focusing on the science and engineering required to achieve the nation’s energy goals.
The topic: Biofuels from Algae: “It took nature millions of years to create petroleum. Scientists are working on a way to do the same thing in just hours–and to break America’s dependency on imported oil.” Learn more, ask more, on June 24: Noon -1 pm. Rayburn House Office Building, Room 369. RSVP: events@DiscoverMagazine.com

This is part of a series titled, “Road to the New Energy Economy” presented by the National Science Foundation, Discover, ASME and IEEE

2001 Discover Mag Awards, Penn and Teller, Antonio Mora, David Hartman, Robin Roberts, Marvin Minsky

One technology was a portable ultrasound to which, as a pregnant gal, I became addicted. While at one of the events, I asked a scientist if I was causing my unborn baby harm by obsessively performing ultrasounds on my belly to watch my baby move around, and he replied, “probably not but I’m sure you’re annoying the hell out of that baby. Don’t be surprised if it’s born with its hands clutched over its ears.” Thanks, Marvin Minsky.

We used to partner with the National Science Foundation and the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation to bestow similar awards to middle school students developing technologies to benefit their communities. The Columbus Foundation also gave an annual award of $100,000 to one of the adult Discover Award winners.

One of these $100,000 award winners, Dr. Jonathan Woodward from Oak Ridge National Lab, happened to have coauthored a paper with a high school student from NY and entered it in the Intel Science Talent Search. So, we invited this high school student to co-present an award at the Discover Mag Awards at Epcot.

Drumroll: as the title of this blog post suggests, that student was Natalie Portman (then known as Natalie Hershlag).

Ironically, the next year, we invited Christian Bale to present an award. He accepted and was terrific; although, as I recall, it was his father who had the greater interest in science.

For your reading pleasure, I present the title, abstract, and link to the now famous paper. Go Natalie!

As reported in Chemical & Engineering News:

The article, “A Simple Method To Demonstrate the Enzymatic Production of Hydrogen from Sugar,” was the result of an independent-study project carried out by Portman during her sophomore year at Syosset High. Intended to illustrate “environmentally friendly biotechnology for the utilization of renewable energy sources,” the work earned Portman a semifinalist position that year in the prestigious Intel Science Talent Search, an annual competition organized by the Society for Science & the Public.

The laboratory instructions Portman helped develop aim to teach high schoolers and undergraduates the principles of enzyme-catalyzed reactions by instructing them how to break down cellulose with a combination of cellulase, glucose dehydrogenase, and hydrogenase. The amount of hydrogen evolved in the process is indicated by a simple redox dye, benzyl viologen.

Read the article:
A Simple Method To Demonstrate the Enzymatic Production of Hydrogen from Sugar
J. Chem. Educ., 1998, 75 (10), p 1270
DOI: 10.1021/ed075p1270
Publication Date (Web): October 1, 1998

Abstract:
There is current interest in and concern for the development of environmentally friendly bioprocesses whereby biomass and the biodegradable content of municipal wastes can be converted to useful forms of energy. For example, cellulose, a glucose polymer that is the principal component of biomass and paper waste, can be enzymatically degraded to glucose, which can subsequently be converted by fermentation or further enzymatic reaction to fuels such as ethanol or hydrogen. These products represent alternative energy sources to fossil fuels such as oil. Demonstration of the relevant reactions in high-school and undergraduate college laboratories would have value not only in illustrating environmentally friendly biotechnology for the utilization of renewable energy sources, such as cellulosic wastes, but could also be used to teach the principles of enzyme-catalyzed reactions. In the experimental protocol described here, it has been demonstrated that the common sugar glucose can be used to produce hydrogen using two enzymes, glucose dehydrogenase and hydrogenase. No sophisticated or expensive hydrogen detection equipment is required-only a redox dye, benzyl viologen, which turns purple when it is reduced. The color can be detected by a simple colorimeter. Furthermore, it is shown that the renewable resource cellulose, in its soluble derivative from carboxymethylcellulose, as well as aspen-wood waste, is also a source of hydrogen if the enzyme cellulase is included in the reaction mixture.

Pro-Cheerleaders Turned Scientists Shatter Stereotypes

October 22, 2010. Washington, DC. Science Cheerleaders from across the nation are headed for Washington, DC’s National Mall this October 23-24, 2010 to prove it’s cool to be cool and love science.

Credit: Alma Radocaj

Cheerleaders from the Redskins, Titans, Chiefs, Texans among others are performing on stage at the USA Science & Engineering Festival, shaking their pom poms and divulging science and math facts about energy, electricity, atoms, math, and engineering.

Welcome to the new face of science as created by former Philadelphia 76ers cheerleader, Darlene Cavalier. She is joined by women who are mathematicians, medical doctors, chemists and engineers, among others. Their goal is to challenge the stereotypical image of female scientists as pale, frumpy, lab rats and show young girls that all of their dreams can come true.

Research from the National Science Foundation explains that the stereotype of a female scientist is still present in many girls’ minds. When students were asked to draw a scientist, NSF reported, most portrayed a white male in a lab coat. Female scientists were drawn as severe and not very happy. So it’s not surprising that by eighth grade, boys are twice as interested in STEM careers as girls are.

The cheerleading routines, choreographed by Going ProEntertainment, are set to fun, upbeat science songs. The cheerleaders will be wearing customized Science Cheerleader uniforms, designed and donated by Angela King Designs. Immediately following the performance, the cheerleaders will offer a free cheerleading clinic to all interested kids ages 4-17.

Science Cheerleaders will also hand-out and autograph trading cards (complete with education and science stats) and offer words of wisdom to festival-goers, including young women. The USA Science & Engineering Festival is the Science Cheerleaders first stop on a national tour where they will perform cheers and inspire others at regional festivals.
”Science Cheerleader’s mission is simply to engage more people in science. These remarkable current and former cheerleaders have proven to be incredibly influential partners in this effort. The opportunity to debut at the inaugural USA Science and Engineering Festival was something we could not pass up,” says Cavalier.

Cavalier, who has a masters degree from the University of Pennsylvania discovered as an adult that she loved science when she spent 10 years working for Discover magazine. In the process, she met famous scientists such as Dean Kamen, Marvin Minsky, Penn and Teller and Sally Ride and was wowed by their desire to share their passion for science.

The idea for creating a team of science cheerleaders came as a result of a project Cavalier launched with George Mason University professor (and science literacy expert) James Trefil and the Philadelphia 76ers cheerleaders. The series, entitled Brain Makeover, was picked up by national news outlets the day it was put on the Science Cheerleader web site and Cavalier knew she was onto something.

About 50 science cheerleaders have joined the team and Cavalier is recruiting college, high-school, and middle-school cheerleaders to be Science Cheerleaders! A grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund makes it possible for the participating cheerleaders to travel to Washington, D.C. for this event.

Darlene Cavalier is the cofounder of ScienceForCitizens.net, an online portal connecting regular people (“citizen scientists”) to research projects they can do. At the Festival, be sure to check out the very cool Sci4Cits booths #1229 and #1331.
As The Science Cheerleader, Cavalier has a popular blog and is a frequent writer and speaker on public engagement in science. She is also a founding partner of ECAST: Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology, a distributed network of science museums and universities working to foster greater public dialogue in sci/tech policy formation. Cavalier is a senior advisor and contributor to Discover Magazine. She resides in Philadelphia, PA with her husband and four children.

Contact: Darlene Cavalier Darlene@sciencecheerleader.com 267-253-1310
Aimee Stern, aimee@sterncommdc.com 202-744-5004

Here’s a short piece I wrote for DiscoverMagazine.com, yesterday, about a promising new use for Pokeberry weeds. Their berries’  highly absorbent dye is being used to coat fiber solar cells. Turns out their dye can trap lots of the sun’s energy in these lightweight, plastic storage devices. This solar energy is then converted to power/electricity.  Check it out!

Here’s a piece I recently wrote for DiscoverMagazine.com about research that suggests infants have rhythm. (I love the dancing baby in the closing video.)

Here’s a piece I wrote for Discover Magazine.com yesterday about a pharmaceutical ice cream–called ReCharge–New Zealand is producing to counter side effects of chemotherapy. I learned about this in The Scientist. The most important ingredient: Lactoferrin, a protein found in milk that possesses the power to impede tumor growth and improve intestinal immune response. Wow.

Really doesn’t have much to do with the dino sculpture my son created, next to the THANG  on our family’s fireplace matel. But I bet Carl Zimmer has a guess. I recall the time I brought this heavy THANG into HIS office at Discover. Back when HE had a windowed office and I did not. Cut me a break, HE was 28, I was still young…and, oh yeah, there was that AAAS award he won for “God-like writers under the age of 30″.

I asked, genuflecting upon entering his office, as we all did: “Carl, what do you think this is? My father-in-law found it in a local, Long Beach Island, NJ, fishing shop.”

HE said: “Looks like a Mastodon tooth, maybe a molar. Probably a young one because it’s not worn down too far. You should take this to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philly, near where you live,  and I bet they can tell you more.”

So I did. I pulled the THANG out of my baby’s diaper bag, and asked the resident paleontologist: “What do you think this THANG is?”

He replied: “WHERE DID YOU GET THAT? DID YOU STEAL THAT?!”

I spent the next hour ‘splainin’ the situation. Hey, Carl, back then, they never heard of YOU. The best thing I had going for me was the real baby in the real baby stroller…and two, twenty dollar bills.

But I digress.

I never did learn more about the origins of this tooth. Who knows more about this tooth? Closest to the tooth-truth earns a Tshirt. And now that I FINALLY have some street-cred with the National Academy of Sciences, I know I can find the answer there if you all fail.

I’m here in Pittsburgh, PA, at Carnegie Mellon University where Discover Magazine, in partnership with the National Science Foundation, is producing a panel discussion on the future of robotics! The event takes place tonight and highlights will be featured in a subsequent issue of Discover, while recorded interviews will appear on NSF.gov, the Research Channel, and DiscoverMagazine.com
Thought it would be fun to share with you all that goes into producing one of these events.
Each panelist (described here) is interviewed on camera. The screen in the background is plain now, but using “green screen” technology, the editor will drop in some cool backgrounds. Here’s MIT’s Rodney Brooks being interviewed. When asked “what would make robots better?” he replied: “Give robots the visual object recognition capabilities of a 2-year-old child; the verbal comprehension of 4-year-old; the manual dexterity of a 6-year-old; and the social understandings of an 8-year old. That’s it.”

And, here’s Robin Murphy being interviewed about her search and rescue robots.

Then Discover’s photographer take portraits of the panelists and the moderator for use in the magazine. Here’s the moderator, Discover’s editor Corey Powell, preparing for his portrait.Discover’s director of photography, Rebecca Horne, is calling the shots from the back there.

Here’s the video producer, Dan Agan, with Discover’s marketing director, Tricia Gately, talking through the on stage line up (while panelists Rodney Brooks and Javier Movellan look on).

Oh, and here’s Tank, the Roboceptionist who greeted me when I entered CMU’s Gates Building where this event will take place this evening.

Guests will start arriving at the Rashid Auditorium around 6:30 pm. Show time is 7pm!

Stay tuned for the feature article in Discover!

Tomorrow, I’m heading to Pittsburgh, PA, to prep for another Discover Magazine roundtable discussion. This time, the topic is on the future of the machine: How will robots transform industry, health care, and warfare? And will they ever be our equals? This is part of a multi-year series of Discover panel discussions sponsored by the National Science Foundation and hosted by a number of awesome institutions including: The Franklin Institute, CalTech, The Exploratorium, and Capitol Hill. This year, we’ve got Carnegie Mellon University, the South-by-Southwest Festival/Austin (see Discover’s abstract here!) and a yet-to-be finalized host.

Here’s some more information on Thursday’s event at Carnegie Mellon University:

Date: January 28th, 7pm.

Panelists:
Rodney Brooks, MIT

Javier Movellan, UC San Diego

Robin Murphy, Texas A&M University

Red Whittaker, Carnegie Mellon University

Hosted by Discover Magazine‘s editor in chief, Corey Powell.

I’ll post highlights here!

Discover Magazine’s Top 100 Stories of 2009 #69: Science Sets Its Eyes on the Prize
Big money awaits innovators who can build rockets, sequence genomes, predict people’s movie preferences, harvest energy from the tides, or explore the Moon.
by Darlene Cavalier
From the January-February special issue; published online December 25, 2009