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Obama: Science Should NOT be an Afterthought

You hear the statistics over and over again about just how dismally low the US’s math and science test scores are.

But how did we get to this point? When did America become so apathetic about science education in schools?

This is exactly what President Obama addressed recently when he spoke at the National Academy of Sciences.

He explicitly stated that science is “essential for our prosperity, our security, our health, our environment, and our quality of life.”

What is the main concern?

That the US is falling behind in both education and research….and fast.

We need to be devoting more to our GDP to research and development.

Obama’s big GDP push represents “the largest commitment to scientific research and innovation in American history” according to The White House Blog.

Oftentimes it seems that since politics plays such a large role in science, the true intention of discovery gets lost.

By bringing science back to the core of expanding human knowledge, we can prevent our nation from falling behind globally-a fear that many feel has already come true.

By combining innovation and collaboration, we can accomplish a lot more than we think.

Inside ECO:nomics (part 2)- Dr. Phyl Speser talks education and the energy crisis

I was able to find another spirited video from Phyl’s T2+2^TM series.

It’s Supply Chain economics… Speser style.

Anyway.

Here’s the second half of Dr. Speser’s discussion of ECO:nomics and the education gap.

He covers everything from Wendell Berry to consumption to our Declaration of Independence. And he connects (rather thoughtfully) our budding green revolution to the counter culture 60′s Read the rest of this entry »

Inside ECO:nomics (part 1)– Dr. Phyl Speser talks golf, education and the energy crisis

For an inside look at ECO:nomics, I’ve turned to one of the conference’s most vocal participants, the co-founder, CEO, and CTO of Foresight Technologies, Inc., Phyl Speser.

As you can tell from the video below (and this one and this one and this one), he’s a fairly animated guy.

In a room brimming with money and influence, this inquisitive Ph.D from “humble” Rhode Island stood head and shoulders… and arm and hand (his hand raisin’ rivaled only that of Amory Lovins during the 3 day event) above the fray.

I have successfully parlayed his fondness for questions into a response to one, very important question of my own: What steps need to be taken to ensure that our young people (researchers) are properly equipped to inherit our current energy crisis?

Needless to say he was not shy. Read the rest of this entry »

Rising to the Occasion: Meeting the Demands of a New Age

Let’s face it, basic research in the United States is suffering; funds are dwindling and grants for scholars and engineers are disappearing. At the same time, many countries that did not have serious research efforts ten years ago are beginning to overtake the U.S. on critical fronts, such as, nanotechnology and bio-technology.

Academic researchers must find a way to adapt to these global changes and there is hope.

We heard today, in President Obama’s inaugural address, a pledge, a commitment to science, education and innovation:

“We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.”

The time is NOW. And it is my hope, my mission, to accelerate the pace of innovation in academic research through education, partnerships, and new paradigms.

My vision is to maximize the researcher’s role in creating solutions to global economic, social and environmental crises by designing more collaborative and results oriented culture.

With that I encourage everyone to embrace new beginnings, new opportunities and ideas.

To hope and to innovate.