ED41C-01
IAI Capacity Building Activities in the Americas: Fostering Multinational and Multidisciplinary Research
The IAI's Training and Education (T&E) activities are designed to encourage capacity building in the Americas
and are developed within and in parallel with the IAI research programs in global environmental change (GEC).
The IAI has various training priorities: (1) support for graduate students in the form of fellowships through
research programs; (2) development of IAI Training Institutes in Interdisciplinary Sciences and Science-Policy
Fora; and (3) support for technical workshops, scientific meetings, and seminars. It becomes increasingly evident
that institutions such as IAI must provide training and support to policy and decision makers who deal with
environmental issues. The IAI Training Institutes emphasize an exchange of information about the various
scientific languages, needs, and methodologies of disciplines that study GEC. Particular attention is given to
socio-economic impacts and ways in which nations can gain a better understanding of the complex
mechanisms, degrees of change, causes, and consequences — and therefore, plan sound public and private
policies to minimize problems and maximize opportunities. The IAI has also implemented a Training Institute
Seed Grant (TISG) Program as an assessment activity of the Training Institutes to further encourage network
building and multinational and multidisciplinary collaboration among its 19 member countries in the Americas. By
fostering the development of such new multidisciplinary, multinational teams, the IAI ensures a future generation
of professionals who will be engaged in IAI research programs and networks and will lead the integrated science
programs in the next decades. Furthermore, IAI has organized Science-Policy Fora, which focus on the science-
policy interface and ways to incorporate scientific information into policy and decision-making processes.
Participants discussed what scientific information is available, what aspects need to be better understood,
translation of scientific information for the nonscientific community, potential uses of technical information, and
policy issues that should be incorporated into the scientific community's agenda. Participants are individuals
from governmental agencies, national and international organizations, nongovernmental organizations (NGO),
universities, and private companies. Various other T&E-based initiatives that contribute to the building of
scientific capacity in the Americas are supported by the IAI. Workshops, seminars, conferences, and other venues
encourage the exchange of information and data providing scientists and professionals in global change related
fields many opportunities to interact and benefit from multinational, multidisciplinary collaborations.
http:www.iai.int
ED41C-02
High-School Solar Radio Astronomy Project in Mexico Based on Radio Jove
Inspired by the RADIO JOVE project (http:radiojove.gsfc.nasa.gov) we propose a curse in solar radio astronomy
for the high school system (CCH) at UNAM. The aim of this curse is to introduce solar radio astronomy to
students and teachers, building their own radio telescope, and participating in radio astronomical measurements
becoming familiar with the emissions of the Sun and Jupiter. The project is also based on the observations from
the Mexican Array Radio Telescope(www.mexart.unam.mx) and the real time data from the Virtual Earth Sun
Observatory (www.veso.unam.mx) at the Instituto de Geofisica-UNAM. The aim of this Project is to adapt the
materials to the high school system in Mexico.
http:www.mexart.unam.mx
ED41C-03
Importance and Perspectives of the Earth Sciences Popularization in Mexico
In our days the scientific popularization in Mexico has not a promising future and with the earth sciences is not better; most of the papers in the popularization magazines deal with subjects as earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, meteorite impacts and the massive extensions associated with them (e.g. Chicxulub). However, these subjects have not been enough to create conscience about the importance of earth sciences in the society and it has even motivated the idea of a community distant scientific with no social obligation, the idea that the earth scientists are responsible for all the problems in the planet (global warming, catastrophes) is wide spread. In these days that we need a change in our consumption, mainly in the energetic one, it's compulsory to change the relation between the subject and its environment; then, as we can not take care of something that we don't know, the scientific popularization has a fundamental role that we must start to pay attention to.
ED41C-04
"The Earth Under my Shoes", a Poster Where Research and Outreach Merge
The MesoAmerican Subduction Experiment is a cooperative research project that will help a lot of people to know about the behavior of the subduction of Cocos plate beneath North America, especially in rural communities where its 100 seismic stations are located. MASE is not only focused in its research results, it is also concerned about outreach to the community. To achieve this, MASE conducts an information program on the experiment and seismology, especially targetted to children, to educate them about seismic prevention. MASE field operations in Guerrero, Morelos, Distrito Federal, Estado de México, Hidalgo and Veracruz are ending this year, and our last outreach activity is providing MASE host sites with a poster informing about the experiment and its results. This poster will include pictures about the instruments, a collection of key seismograms, figures of the final seismic model obtained by the MASE research group, showing our enhanced knowledge of the interior of the Earth under each particular site, and a reminder that Mexico is a seismic country and they should be always prepared.
ED41C-05
Inquiry Coaching: Scientists & Science Educators Energizing the Next Generation
A recent National Academy of Sciences report recommends that science educators focus strategically on teaching the practice of science. To accomplish this, we have devised and implemented the Science Performance Laboratory, a collaborative research, education, and workforce model that brings scientists and science educators together to conduct scientific inquiry. In this session, we demonstrate how to form active inquiry teams around Arctica Science Research content areas related to the International Polar Year. We use the term "Arctica Science Research" to refer to the entire scope of exploration and discovery relating to: polar science and its global connections; Arctic and Antarctic research and climate sciences; ice and cryospheric studies on Earth; polar regions of the Moon, Mars, and Mercury; icy worlds throughout the Solar System, such as Europa, Enceladus, Titan, Pluto and the Comets; cryovolcanism; ice in interstellar space, and beyond. We apply the notion of teaching the practice science by enacting three effective strategies: 1) The Inquiry Wheel Game, in which we develop an expanded understanding of what has been traditionally taught as "the scientific method"; 2) Acting Out the Science Story, in which we develop a physicalized expression of our conceptual understanding; and 3) Selecting Success Criteria for Inquiry Coaching, in which we reframe how we evaluate science learning as we teach the practice of science.
ED41C-06
Family Science Night, Changing Perceptions one Family at a Time
If students are not encouraged to succeed in science, mathematics, and technology classes at school, efforts to
improve the quality of content and teaching in these subjects may be futile. Parents and families are in a unique
position to encourage children to enroll and achieve in these classes. The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Family Science Night program invites middle school students and their families to explore the importance of
science and technology in our daily lives by providing a venue for families to comfortably engage in learning
activities that change their perception and understanding of science - making it more practical and approachable
for participants of all ages. Family Science Night strives to change the way that students and their families
participate in science, within the program and beyond.
http:sdoepo.gsfc.nasa.gov
ED41C-07
Illinois State University FOCUS Initiative: Civic Engagement and Outreach Projects in the ISU Physics Department
The Illinois State University Physics Department has long realized the importance of providing educational outreach opportunities to the wider community. Creating and maintaining community networks with engaging outreach projects helps us broaden the appreciation of physics, as well as encourage young students to consider careers in the sciences. A key aspect of these ISU Physics programs is that we involve our undergraduates in them, thereby fostering civic engagement in the next generation of scientists. This presentation highlights how our department promotes basic science literacy, and awareness of space physics and astronomy through several existing outreach projects. We also describe how we operate under the broader scope of the ISU FOCUS Initiative, and the NASA Solar System Ambassadors program.
ED41C-08
Auroras and Space Weather Celebrating the International Heliophysics Year in Classroom
2007 Celebrates the International Heliophysics year and its outreach has a primary objective, to "demonstrate the
beauty, relevance and significance of Space and Earth Science to the world." NASA's first five-satellite mission,
THEMIS (Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms), was launched on February 17,
2007 and is to investigate a key mystery surrounding the dynamics of the auroras- when, where, and how are they
triggered? When the five probes align perfectly over the North American continent- every four days - and with 20
ground stations in Northern Canada and Alaska with automated, all-sky cameras will document the auroras from
Earth. To monitor the large-scale local effects of the currents in space, THEMIS Education and Outreach program
has installed 10 ground magnetometers, instruments that measure Earth's magnetic field, in competitively
selected rural schools around the country and receive data. The THEMIS Education and Outreach Program
shares the IHY objective by bringing in this live local space weather data in the classrooms and engaging the
teachers and students on authentic research in the classroom. The data are displayed on the school computer
monitors as well as on the THEMIS E/PO website providing the local data to the science mission as well as
schools. Teachers use the data to teach about the aurora not only in math and science, but also in Earth science,
history and art. These students and their teachers are our ambassadors to rural America and share the
excitement of learning and teaching with their regional teachers. We will share how authentic space science
data related to Earth's magnetic field and auroras can be understood, researched, predicted and shared via the
internet to any school around the globe that wished to be part of tracking solar storms.
Complimenting IHY, World Space Week will take place from October 4-10th and this year. World Space week is
"an international celebration of science and technology, and their contribution to the betterment of the human
condition." THEMIS will take part in World Space Week as a feature science mission with its education program
contributing materials to the project so that students around the world can learn more about Earth's magnetic
field, magnetic storms and substorms, and beautiful auroras. To facilitate the use of some of our magnetism
materials around the world, we will provide some of our activities in German and Spanish on the web.
http:ds9.ssl.berkeley.edu/themis/classroom.html
ED41C-09
The single most important education reform in developing country
I deciding teaching as peer educator and working with NGOs in my country, as method to need to consider students' background knowledge, environment, and their learning goals as well as standardized curriculum as determined by their school district. Strengthening relationships among students and adults, Improving engagement, alignment and rigor of teaching and learning in every classroom, every day. My single most reform achieves is the rural school and community trust is a national non-profit organization addressing the crucial relationship between good schools and thriving communities. Our mission is to help rural schools and communities get better together. Working in some of the poorest, most challenging places, the rural trust involves young people in learning linked to their communities, improves the quality of teaching and school leadership, and advocates in a variety of ways for appropriate state educational policies, including the key issue of equitable and national agenda (serve Peer Educator) where rural people and their issues are visible and credible for rural schools.