Calling all middle school, high school, and community college biology teachers and science educators!

Put on your evolution eyeglasses and your nature of science thinking cap and join us for (yet another) fun-filled five days of evolutionary explorations with biologists and educators from the University of California.

The Think Evolution Summer Institute, back by popular demand, will combine lectures by prominent biologists with sessions focused on hands-on activities for the middle school, high school, and community college classroom.

Topics this year to include: How evolution informs big ideas; Molecular evolution—from gene trees to species phylogenies; Continued discussion of the important role of developmental biology in generating new insights into evolution; and the latest developments in human and primate evolution. Check out the most recent developments in evolution and explore how to integrate these topics into your curriculum. Follow up with biologists and participating educators at the Evo-Picnic to be held the following February.

SUMMER INSTITUTE
sponsored by the
University of California Museum of Paleontology
and the
National Center for Science Education

Too often the press coverage of human evolution focuses on the disagreements among scientists, leaving the public (and students) with the impression that we know very little about this subject. Actually, because of a surprisingly abundant fossil record, we have a very good idea of the basic outlines of human evolution. Disputes, as is so often the case in science, concern the details --- and are comparatively minor from the standpoint of the general public. So how should teachers deal with the new fossil discoveries?

A presentation at the
University of California Museum of Paleontology's
Think Evolution II
A Summer Institute for Science Teachers

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See website for registration costs

Charles Darwin proposed 150 years ago that living things have descended with modification from common ancestors by the process of Natural Selection. This is the key to understanding virtually every area in biology from biochemistry, to cell biology, to organismic biology, to population biology, to ecology. Evolution is the glue that holds biology together as a coherent science, making, in the words of a famous scientist, a "meaningful picture as a whole." Nonetheless, the teaching of evolution is a contentious issue in the United States today for reasons that touch upon religion, science, history, and – inevitably – politics. Dr. Eugenie C. Scott, authority on evolution and the creationism/evolution controversy, will help to clear the air about this publicly controversial, if not scientifically controversial, topic of evolution.

A panel at the Council for Secular Humanism’s 30th Anniversary Conference.

What is the universe made of? Why did dinosaurs go extinct? What do magic tricks and hip-hop have to with math? What can amphibians and reptiles tell us about the environment? What do engineers have to do with baseball? Find out at the first ever USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo on the National Mall. NCSE is an Expo Partner and will have a table there.

Explore science & engineering with hundreds of free, hands-on activities and over 40 science shows on three different stages. The two-day Expo is perfect for teens, children and their families, and anyone with a curious mind who is looking for a weekend of fun and discovery.

Build an underwater robot, chat with a Nobel Laureate, explore the science behind the magic of Hogwarts Academy and see a car that drives itself. From bugs to birds, kitchen chemistry to computer games, environmental monitoring to electronic music – the Expo has something for everyone and is completely free of charge.

The Expo is the pinnacle event of the inaugural USA Science & Engineering Festival to be held in the greater Washington D.C. area October 10-24, 2010. The USA Science & Engineering Festival is a collaboration of over 500 of the nation’s leading science and engineering organizations.

TAM, the Amaz!ng Meeting, is the biggest get-together in the Skeptical universe, and in November 2010, TAM comes to Australia. TAM features the best and most interesting, humorous and controversial Skeptics from around the world, and TAM Australia will be the largest event of its kind ever held here.

The line-up includes James Randi, Simon Singh, the entire cast of The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe, Brian Dunning from Skeptoid, Krissy Wilson, Eugenie Scott, George Hrab from the Geologic Podcast, Dr Karl, Fred Watson, Rachael Dunlop and a host of other local and overseas skeptics and freethinkers. TAM Australia offers a variety of divertissements, from education and entertainment to the camaraderie and shared experiences you can only get at Skeptical meetings.

Twenty four lucky members will raft the full length of the canyon from Marble Canyon to South Cove, experiencing one of the most beautiful and majestic natural features on the planet.

Of course, as Eugenie Scott, NCSE's executive director, will inform the rafters, the whole Colorado plateau was laid down by the receding waters of Noah's Flood about 4,300 years ago, and the Grand Canyon itself was gouged catastrophically in a matter of days. Geologist Alan "Gish" Gishlick, former NCSE postdoc, will present the standard geological history of Grand Canyon to the rafters — and "they can make up their own minds."

NCSE's "Creation/Evolution Grand Canyon Raft Trip" is a wonderful way to learn about the creationism/evolution controversy in a fabulous natural setting.

For more information: 

Contact: Click here for more information or email NCSE