I'm heading to Louisville, Kentucky today to serve as a digital correspondent for the Alcoa Foundation at National Leadership and Skills Conference of SkillsUSA, an exciting student STEM competition. Follow along on Instagram and Twitter and look for #NLSC15. Stay tuned for more in-depth coverage on the blog after I return. It will be a quick trip with a laser focus on my work, but it got me thinking about the family-oriented STEM fun that ... [ Read More ]
Vandals in Goblin Valley State Park
Just hours after I published a post about Utah's amazing geology, my new respect for rocks, and the thrill of seeing nearly 200 million years of natural history laid out before me, a news story broke about a few men who toppled over one of Mother Nature's wonders in Utah's Goblin Valley State Park. Here's my reaction, cross-posted from my personal blog where it first appeared.After hearing the news that a small stupid group of men not only ... [ Read More ]
Geology is More than Rocks for Jocks
As I noted in the post about Earth Science Week, I always thought of that subject in general, and geology in particular, kind of...meh. In fact, I'd yawn at the mere mention of the Science Olympiad event, "Rocks and Minerals." And then I took a trip to Utah. (You can read about it on my personal blog). I avoided mentioning the trip here because I'm not one of those folks who likes to advertise that, hey, my house is empty for the week, save ... [ Read More ]
Discovery World Museum Milwaukee
My parents first turned us on to Discovery World Museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin when The Maker Boys were young. I was not a part of those early trips up there, likely enjoying a bit freedom while my little guys sojourned up in the land of cheese. But I did eventually make it up there with my crew, and we had a blast learning and playing. So when The Maker Tween's grade took a field trip to Springfield that replicated our Lincoln-centric 2010 ... [ Read More ]