PhUn Week Takes the Spotlight
We knew that PhUn (Physiology Understanding) Week, the
pilot program that brings physiologists into the classroom, is a cool and
creative way to spark children’s interest in physiology. Now the organizers
of an upcoming Boston conference, Science + Society: Closing the Gap,
have come to the same conclusion.
PhUn Week is one of about a dozen programs selected
from scores of entries to be highlighted during the “Innovative Projects:
Public Engagement” panel at the conference Jan. 19-21, 2007. Science +
Society will bring together scientists, the media and policy makers,
including former Vice President Al Gore, producers of NBC’s Law & Order and
executives from PBS’ NewsHour to promote new ways to communicate science to
the public.
The Innovative Projects panel will include APS Director
of Education Programs, Marsha Lakes Matyas, making a presentation on PhUn
Week, as well as speakers from the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention and the Boston public television station WGBH, among others.
As part of PhUn Week, a senior researcher and his or
her students work with a local area teacher to visit a classroom and do
hands-on physiology activities with the children, explains Matyas. The
children find out how scientific discoveries are made and spend time with
real life scientists, encounters that could inspire future generations of
physiologists.
Congratulations to the members who have worked so hard
to spread the excitement and joy of physiology in the pilot phase of this
program over the last two years. Get involved with our national launch of
PhUn Week 2007 in November. Go to
www.PhUnWeek.org to find out more about PhUn Week 2006, and send an
email to
phunweek@the-aps.org to be notified of PhUn Week 2007 updates.
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