This is a plea for some love for the University of Missouri-St. Louis science programs.
Every semester, in addition to the seminars for students majoring in the various science departments, the UM-St. Louis science institutes and departments present an array of free, accessible, general-interest and thought-provoking educational events focused on science in society, business, medicine and the environment.
One of the ironies of the science programs at this university is that they are better known off-campus than on it. Attending some of these wonderful, informative talks, one may be struck by how few students there are, even when the room is filled with members of the general public.
Talk to any international graduate student majoring in biology here and you will quickly discover that our Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center is world-renowned. Here in St. Louis, people in the sciences, and particularly people connected to its sister institutes, The Missouri Botanical Garden and St. Louis Zoo, know all about the World Ecology Center. But if you stop the average student on campus, odds are they are unaware of its world class reputation and may not even know it exists.
The same sad situation exists for the Center for Neurodynamics, which does not do public events but continues to do ground-breaking research, and for our newest science center, the Center for Nanoscience.
Let us see if we can help remedy that by taking a look at some upcoming events. The World Ecology Center, Center for Nanoscience and some science departments all sponsor public events for an array of interests, on-campus or off. These events are often free and accessible by non-science majors and the general public, in addition to scientists.
Are you interested in learning about nanoscience, an area that overlaps with physics, biotech, medicine and a host of practical applications? Our Center for Nanoscience is co-sponsoring a multi-university event, the first annual St. Louis Institute of Nanomedicine Symposium, on Saturday, Feb. 13.
CNS also offers a series of monthly seminars that are co-sponsored by the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department on Mondays and by the Physics and Astronomy department on Fridays. Mike DuBois, legislative assistant to Senator Kit Bond, is the next speaker on April 12.
Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center has two annual spring events. One is the Jane and Whitney Harris Lecture, a free, multimedia, general-audience presentation on conservation by a major figure in the field. The other is the World Ecology Award, given to recognize prominent individuals who have raised public awareness and made significant contributions in conservation. Past recipients include Dr. Jane Goodall, Harrison Ford and Conservation International, Richard Leakey, and Jacques Cousteau.
This year, the World Ecology Center is also marking its 20th anniversary by presenting a year-long series of seminars.
The next 20th Anniversary Seminar is on Wednesday, April 7, when Dr. David Inouye, professor and director of the CONS program at the department of biology at the University of Maryland, will speak on this question: “How does natural history become science and what can it tell us about climate change?”
Inouye is also this year’s speaker for the Jane and Whitney Harris Lecture on Thursday, April 8, at the Missouri Botanical Garden’s Ridgway Center. The topic is “What is the future of Rocky Mountain wildflowers and their pollinators?”
The World Ecology Award will be presented to Dr. David Western, founding executive director of the African Conservation Centre in Kenya. The award will be presented at a gala dinner on May 7 at the Missouri Botanical Garden. The fancy-dress event also serves as a fundraiser for the Center.
If computer science or math is more your taste, there is the Mathematics and Computer Science department’s seminar, “Actuarial Science: Applied Math for Fun and Profit,” by Chris Clark of RGA Reinsurance Company on Wednesday, Feb. 10.
The Math and Computer Science department also sponsors the annual Spencer and Spencer talk in late April or early May, featuring a big name in the field presenting a broad-interest talk that can range from the future of the Internet to how math is taught in schools.
Now that you know, you should think about going.
Cate Marquis is A&E Editor and a columnist for The Current.
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