In his latest book “The scientific life. A moral history of a late modern vocation”, the social historian of science Steven Shapin addresses the public image of contemporary scientists, their virtues and vocations. Who are, and how they represent themselves, those scientists who work on the edge between industry and academy, and who are responsible for the radical uncertainty embedded in the contemporary production of scientific knowledge? If “people matter”, as Shapin states, the genealogy he provides should encourage us to dig more deeply in the main stage of the virtues and ethos of
Soundprint Media Center, Inc. and RLPaul Productions, produced a cross-media package that includes a website (capecosmos.org), radio programs, and museum-based family events related to the 50th anniversary of the Space Program. The project, Out of This World (OOTW), is a program that sought to stimulate interest in science by presenting the little known stories of African-Americans and women who contributed to the U.S. Space program, and to provide historical context for the scope and reach of the nascent aerospace science program. Through radio documentaries and collaborations with science centers and museums, including the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum (NASM), OOTW broke new ground in developing an integrated media project that reached different audiences. The deliverables included: three radio documentaries (; an educational DVD package with 20 video mini-documentaries, curator interviews with space research pioneers and a learning guide; an interactive website that recreates a space mission circa 1961, and a series of live two-way video conferences between NASM and some 14 partner museums and science centers. OOTW used the power of investigative journalism and the reach of public radio and local science museums to connect with adults and school-age children, to cut across demographic categories, and to include a significant number of minority and at-risk children.
The Science Museum of Minnesota, in collaboration with six NSF-funded Science and Technology Centers (STCs) around the country, is developing several deliverables around the theme of the Anthropocene; that is, the idea that Earth has entered a new geologic epoch in which humanity is the dominant agent of global change. Deliverables include: (1) a 3,500 square-foot exhibit with object theater at the museum; (2) an Earth Buzz Web site that focuses on global change topics equivalent in design intent to the museum's popular current science Science Buzz website; (3) kiosks with Earth Buzz experiences installed in selected public venues; (4) Public programs with decision makers and opinion leaders on the implications of a human-dominated planet; and (5) youth programs and activities that engage them with the exhibit, web site, and careers in STEM. The exhibits and Web site will feature scientific visualizations and computational models adapted to public learning environments from research work being conducted by STCs and other academic research partners. First-person narrative videos of scientists and their research produced by Twin Cities Public Television now are on display in the Future Earth exhibit and also have been packaged into a half-hour program for broadcast statewide. The intended strategic impact on the field of informal STEM education is twofold: (1) explore how to accelerate the dissemination of scientific research to public audiences; (2) investigate ways science centers/museums can serve as forums for public policy dialogues.
"Genes to Ecosystems" is a Communicating Research to Public Audiences (CRPA) proposal based upon the Dr. Thomas Whitham's NSF funded research (#0425908 "Frontiers in Integrative Biological Research (FBIR): Ecological Genomics and Heritability: Consequences of Extended Phenotypes"). "Genes to Ecosystems" has two main educational objectives: to introduce a wide sector of the public to new ways of looking at ecosystems, and to show how science happens, with practical outcomes that are meaningful to the public. The CRPA request will support the production of a one-hour documentary film, podcasts, a stand-alone DVD, and radio segments for "Earth Notes." These deliverables are targeted to informal learners and public television viewers in the western United States. The documentary will follow a research project begun in 1982 which demonstrates how genetic variation within a foundation species--in this case cottonwood trees--impacts community members ranging from microbes to mega-fauna. The concept of genes-to-ecosystems has introduced new ways of understanding ecosystems which have practical implications for conserving biodiversity, ecological restoration, coping with climate change, and other public policy issues. The project will be managed by the PI, Dr. Thomas Whitham, and co-PI, Daniel Boone, both at Northern Arizona University.
The purpose of this integrated cross media project is to build public knowledge and curiosity about energy science and policy, to encourage audience confidence in its abilities to understand energy related science, and to stimulate exchange between community-based experts. The deliverables include five hour-long radio programs focusing on the interconnected nature of waterways, climate systems, and energy sources; a digital journalism and social network site focusing on energy topics; partner-driven outreach with universities and local public radio stations; and a training workshop for ethnic media partners. The project targets public radio listeners, ethnic media readers, local urban and rural communities, and Internet users. Partner organizations include New American Media, a consortium of ethnic media producers, the University of Texas at Austin (which will provide content expertise as well as outreach assistance), local public radio stations, and scientific organizations. Intended impacts on the general audience include building their knowledge and interest in energy science and policy, and influencing their confidence in understanding energy science, technology and engineering, as well as empowering them to voice their opinions in energy policy discussions and to make changes in their lives that will support a sustainable energy future. It is estimated that five million people will access the radio programs and web content over the sustained life of the project. Professional audience impacts include building science journalism capacity and reciprocal relationships between general and ethnic news media, as well as stimulating exchange between subject experts (e.g., water engineers and geoscientists) and community experts (e.g., community organizers and backyard gardeners) who can inform energy reporting and open new areas of discussion in the energy debate. The evaluation plan uses both quantitative and qualitative data collection and quasi-experimental designs to examine the impact of this project on both public and professional audiences.
Oregon Public Broadcasting is requesting funds to produce three one-hour nationally broadcast television programs, a project website, community-centered outreach coordinated by AAAS in 7 U.S. cities, a seminar discussion guide and a series of 90-second programs as part of the "Earth &Sky" radio series. The subject and purpose of the project is to attract public interest in nanotechnology by examining the social, ethical, legal and environmental issuers surrounding its application. The television programs will be produced by Fred Friendly Seminars (FFS) and broadcast on PBS. Two science museums, Boston Museum of Science and the South Carolina State Museum, and the University of California, Berkeley, will host the FFS panels. The format of the Seminars is designed to produce thought provoking and nuanced discussions of contemporary issues. Collaborative partners in the project include AAAS, Lawrence Hall of Science and ICAN Productions. The outreach initiative includes outreach to "targeted stakeholders" in 7 US cities, four 90-second radio spots as part of Earth & Sky, a project web site and a Seminar discussion guide. Inverness Research Associates and Edu, Inc. will conduct both formative and summative evaluation of the project components.
INTO THE DEEP: America, Whaling & the World: a two-hour documentary film for national broadcast on PBS in 2010, directed by Ric Burns and co-produced by Steeplechase Films, American Experience, and WGBH/Boston, explores the history, culture and significance of the American whaling industry from its 17th century origins in drift and shore-whaling, through the golden age of deep ocean whaling in the 18th and 19th centuries, and on to the industry's demise in the decades following the American Civil War. Combining stunning archival material with powerful on-camera interviews, evocative live cinematography, dramatic reenactments, and underwater footage of whales at sea, the film will bring alive the complex reality and extraordinary experience of American whaling as the nation rose to the threshold of global power, all the while registering the larger forces, economic, social, cultural, technological and environmental, that shaped and propelled American Whaling.
This two-hour documentary, John Muir in the New World [working title], shot on high definition for PBS' American Masters, will follow the life of the Scottish-American naturalist and place his writing, his beliefs, and his activism in the context of late 19th and 20th century American history. We will show how, through his writings and associations, Muir became an early and influential spokesman for the conservation movement of the United States. Visually, this film will be strongly rooted in the locations of Muir's life, from Scotland to California, which were the prime influences on his thinking and writing. While preparing this documentary, we will look specifically at the emergent field of environmental history and the new scholarship on the definition of wilderness.
This is a request to the National Endowment for the Humanities for funds to support the production of Panama Canal, a two-hour special presentation of American Experience, for national broadcast on PBS. Focusing primarily on the decade-long American construction effort, it places the American Canal against the backdrop of the calamitous French effort that preceded and haunted it. It traces the roots of the American commitment to a trans-Isthmian canal in Theodore Roosevelt’s expansionist vision of American power, and shows how advances in public health, technology and engineering made it possible for the Americans to succeed where the French had failed. It examines how the leadership of the canal dealt with the challenges of recruiting and managing an immense and diverse work force, and explores the risks borne by workers building one of the planet's most remarkable structures in one of the most hostile environments on earth.