The Earth Science Week Update
EARTH SCIENCE WEEK UPDATE
American Geosciences Institute
Vol. 6, No. 2: February 2008
IN THIS ISSUE…
* Earth Science Week Spotlights Upcoming Movie
* Theme Announced for Earth Science Week 2008
* Independent Evaluation Details Program’s Success
* Free CD Explores “Earth Observations from Space”
* International Polar Day Coming March 12
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Earth Science Week
Spotlights Upcoming Movie
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The makers of “Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D,” due
in theaters July 11, are collaborating with the American Geosciences Institute (AGI) to create educational materials and activities linked
to this major summer movie release.
Starring Brendan Fraser, “Journey 3D” will plunge its characters
- and viewers - into the exciting world beneath the Earth’s surface.
Walden Media, which is producing this update of the Jules Verne classic,
has invited AGI, organizer of Earth Science Week, to help develop a
booklet of related geoscience information and activities, using the
movie as an opportunity to explore “science fiction and science
fact.”
Additional details on “Journey 3D” educational opportunities
will be made available in the coming months. To learn more about the
movie, visit http://www.journey3dmovie.com/ online.
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Theme Announced for
Earth Science Week 2008
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AGI is pleased to announce the theme of Earth Science Week 2008: “No
Child Left Inside.” Being held October 12-18, Earth Science Week
2008 will encourage young people to learn about the geosciences by getting
away from the television, off the computer, and out of doors.
AGI hosts Earth Science Week in cooperation with sponsors as a service
to the public and the geoscience community. Each year, local groups,
educators, and interested individuals organize celebratory events. Earth
Science Week offers opportunities to discover the Earth sciences and
engage in responsible stewardship of the Earth.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the first Earth Science Week,
held in 1998. The program is supported by the U.S. Geological Survey,
NASA, the AAPG Foundation, and other major geoscience groups. To learn
more about Earth Science Week, related resources, and ways to participate,
go to http://www.earthsciweek.org.
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Independent Evaluation
Details Last Year’s Success
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Students, teachers, and geoscience enthusiasts across the country and
around the world took part in Earth Science Week 2007, with an estimated
5 million people learning about this public-awareness campaign through
promotions, education, the Internet, and print and television media
coverage. The celebration was covered by dozens of media outlets, from
the Los Angeles Times to NBC.
Participation remained strong, as 74 percent of survey respondents
said they were either “more active” or “about the same”
in their participation in Earth Science Week 2007 relative to the previous
year, according to an independent evaluation recently completed by PS
International.
More than two-thirds of participants (69 percent) rated the usefulness
of Earth Science Week 2007 as “excellent” or “good.”
The Earth Science Week Toolkit received higher marks for usefulness
than ever, with most materials - such as the poster, calendar, CD/DVDs,
bookmarks, and contest materials - being rated more highly in 2007 than
the previous year. Similarly, web-based materials were given higher
ratings in 2007 by large majorities of respondents.
AGI uses such findings to strengthen the program. To learn more, see
Earth Science Week 2007 Highlights at
http://www.earthsciweek.org/highlights/index.html.
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Free CD Explores “Earth
Observations from Space”
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Observations from space over the past 50 years have fundamentally transformed
the way people view the Earth. The National Research Council report
“Earth Observations from Space” describes how satellites have
revolutionized Earth studies and ushered in a new era of multidisciplinary
Earth sciences.
Since the launch of Sputnik I in 1957, thousands of satellites have
been sent into space on missions to collect data about the Earth. Today,
the ability to forecast weather, climate, and natural hazards depends
critically on these satellite-based observations.
In particular, the ability to gather satellite images frequently enough
to create “movies” of the changing planet is improving our
understanding of Earth’s dynamic processes and helping society
to manage limited resources and environmental challenges. To learn more
or order free copies of the report’s companion CD while supplies
last, see
http://dels.nas.edu/basc/earthobservations/.
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International Polar Day
Coming up March 12
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Join educators and students around the world in celebrating International
Polar Day - with the theme “The Changing Earth: Past and Present.”
- on March 12. This event is a major part of International Polar Year
(IPY), currently underway.
The focus will be on change over geological time, especially the glacial
and interglacial periods during the past million years, and cycles of
ocean-atmosphere interactions that give rise to regional climate variations
on scales of decades to centuries. Understanding these processes, and
the science projects that investigate them, is critical to putting recent
human-induced climate change into context.
In partnership with IPY and NASA, a videoconference called “The
Science of IPY” is scheduled for March 13. For details, see
http://www.astc.org/iglo.
For a listing of all IPY events, see
http://www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/calendar.
You can sign up for e-mail alerts about federally funded educational
materials, classroom resources, and information about opportunities
to assist scientists in the field. The program offers two RSS (Real
Simple Syndication) feeds to the public - one on “news and features”
and one on “educational resources.” Directions for subscribing
to the RSS feeds are available at http://www.ipy.gov.
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The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 44 geoscientific
and professional associations that represents more than 120,000 geologists,
geophysicists, and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides
information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests
in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education,
and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences
play in society's use of resources and interaction with the environment.
For contact information, please visit
http://www.earthsciweek.org/contactus/index.html.
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