INSTAAR Outreach-Past

Past INSTAAR Outreach

2001-2002 | 1999-2000 | 1998

2001-2002

Scott Peckham (INSTAAR) explains how mathematical models can be used to understand patterns and forms in nature, such as soap films and the meandering stream shown on the screen, INSTAAR Open House, May 2001.

On a day-to-day basis, INSTAAR members respond to inquiries from the public and the media on the broad spectrum of scientific matters that relate to INSTAAR’s research. They regularly give lectures and presentations to schools and civic groups and provide TV and radio interviews for the popular press.

Open Houses:
In April 2003 and May 2001, INSTAAR continued its successful series of open houses by hosting the entire eighth grade from Southern Hills Middle School (>140 students each time). The students collected samples and learned about relationships among stream flow, water quality, and insect ecology at nearby Boulder Creek. By visiting a few of the many labs at INSTAAR and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), the students learned how materials such as bones and soils are radiocarbon dated, how climate controls the extent of glaciers and sea ice, and how climate is recorded in ice cores. In addition to the hands-on exercises, the students participated in lectures on Neanderthals as well as mathematical models of patterns in nature. The open house helped convey the diverse aspects of Earth Science, use of sophisticated instrumentation and modeling, and the relevance of Earth Science for important global and local issues. 2001 Open House web pages

A group of second and third grade students from Denver study snow layering with HP Marshall (INSTAAR, not pictured). The students measured snow temperature with dial thermometers, snow density with spring balances, and snow wetness with a Denoth meter (electrical properties of snow). December 2002. Photo: HP Marshall.

Other outreach highlights for 2001–2002 include:

INSTAAR personnel judged several science fairs, ranging from individual schools (such as Summit Middle School) to regional and state fairs.
INSTAAR faculty and graduate students mentored promising high school students with research-related projects. Studies included geospatial analysis of glacier landforms and radar assessment of snowpack stability.
Scott Elias continued progress with a project funded by NSF—Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Education to develop an interactive CD-ROM on arctic science for middle school students in Alaska.
James Dixon was a particularly active speaker, giving talks to groups in locations ranging from Yukon Territory, Canada, to Michigan to Colorado.
Tim Kittel and others contributed to scientific assessments for nongovernmental organizations, including the Nature Conservancy.
Hans-Peter Marshall, an INSTAAR graduate student, led a field trip to Loveland Pass, showing second and third graders how to measure temperature, density, and other properties in snow pits.
Connie Woodhouse gave talks to outdoor enthusiasts, as well as a water conservancy district, on the tree-ring record of past stream flows and drought in the western United States.

Andrew Todd (INSTAAR) shows aquatic insects collected in Boulder Creek to a group of 8th grade students. May 2001.

Mountain Research Station:
Through the Niwot Ridge Long-Term Ecological Research Program, INSTAAR’s Mountain Research Station has offered a summer course, “Alpine Ecology and Experiential Learning,” that involves K–12 outreach and training of in-service and preservice teachers from the local area and beyond. The field trips that are integral to this program are organized in conjunction with several local summer science programs for children: Science Discovery, Wild Bear Science School in Nederland, and Bixby School in Boulder.

Nancy Rivera, Garymar Rivera and Detlev Helmig working on Summit Greenland data. Both Nancy and Garymar were summer students from the UCAR SOARS program (Significant Opportunities for Advancement in Research and Science). Both students worked on archived data to further elucidate processes that determine the sources and sinks of ozone in the Polar troposphere. Summer 2002.

Undergraduates and minorities:
INSTAAR continued strong involvement with several CU initiatives to directly involve undergraduates and minority students in scientific research. These included the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, the Summer Multicultural Access to Research Training (SMART) program, the Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) program, and others.

1999-2000

On a day-to-day basis, INSTAAR members respond regularly to enquiries from the public and the media on a broad spectrum of scientific matters which relate to INSTAAR’s research. They also regularly give lectures and presentations to schools and civic groups.

Outreach highlights from 1999-2001 include:

The entire eighth grade (about 140 students) from Southern Hills Middle School in Boulder, CO participated in the third annual INSTAAR Open House in May 2001. Open House website
Daniel Grossman completed a half-hour radio documentary, called Fire and Ice about tree-ring research in Alaska that sheds light on an Eskimo legend about an unusually cold winter and is providing climate modelers with a useful data point to test their simulations.
Scott Elias received a major new grant from NSF- Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Education to develop an interactive CD-ROM programs on Arctic science for middle school students in Alaska.
Astrid Ogilvie spoke on "Sagas and Science" to a large audience containing Scandinavian royalty, at the opening of the exhibition "Vikings–The North Atlantic Saga" in April 2000 at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. With the move of this exhibit to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, she has also been active in advising this museum on programming around the exhibit.
An article by Tad Pfeffer on Columbia Glacier in EOS (November 2000) was reprinted in Earth in Space, an AGU-published magazine for science teachers.
In November 2000, Astrid Ogilvie attended a meeting in Iceland focusing on Arctic issues attended by government ministers from the Arctic countries, and spearheaded by the President of Iceland.
In 1999, INSTAAR hosted the second of its Open Days to 400 students from local middle schools. Several INSTAAR members gave television and radio interviews on a wide variety of "INSTAAR" subjects, as well as interviews to the popular press.
Lisa Barlow’s contribution to the mystery of what happened to the Greenland Norse, showcased in the television program "Secrets of the Dead: The Lost Vikings";
John Behrendt’s book Innocents on the Ice: A Memoir of Antarctic Exploration, 1957 which was co-winner of the Colorado Book Award for nonfiction in 1999 from the Colorado Center for the Book. Also, when speaking on Antarctica to a meeting of scientists and members of the public in Rome, John was presented with the Felice Ippolito Gold Medal by the Academia Lincei and the Italian Antarctic Program;
James Dixon was a particularly active speaker, giving talks to groups in locations ranging from Yukon Territory, Canada, to Michigan to Colorado.
Diane McKnight and Astrid Ogilvie were interviewed on Boulder television’s Channel 8 regarding a number of aspects of INSTAAR research;

INSTAAR faculty and researchers were particularly active with outreach to local elementary and secondary schools. The entire eighth grade (about 140 students) from Southern Hills Middle School in Boulder, CO participated in the third annual INSTAAR Open House in May 2001. INSTAAR presented "Mountain Research Awards" for both 1999 and 2000 at district and state-wide science fairs for projects that best apply the scientific method to issues of earth-system science and climate dynamics in high-altitude settings. Project titles included "Microclimatic Effects on Snow Conditions," and "Lichen Growth after Fire: A Survey of Burned Forest Sites on Storm King Mountain." INSTAAR personnel also judged several science fairs, led an afternoon environmental science club at a local middle school, and mentored promising high school students with research-related projects.

Through the Niwot Ridge Long-Term Ecological Research Program (NWTLTER), INSTAAR’s Mountain Research Station offers a summer course "Alpine Ecology and Experiential Learning" that involves K-12 outreach and training of in-service and pre-service teachers from the local area and beyond. The field trips that are integral to this program are organized in conjunction with several local summer science programs for children: Science Discovery, Wild Bear Science School in Nederland, and Bixby School in Boulder.

INSTAAR also continued its support of the CU Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program, SMART STARS program (Summer Minority Access to Research Training at INSTAAR), and the CU Summer Undergraduate Research Experience program. These programs contribute to INSTAAR’s commitment to bringing research to undergraduates at the University of Colorado.

Outreach (from 1998 Annual Report)

Public outreach is an important activity of the Institute, and it involves the communication of our goals, mission, and research activities to the general public of the State of Colorado. INSTAAR members have participated in numerous public outreach activities.

The most common activities were lectures, field trips, and other presentations to school classes and civic groups. For example, Diane McKnight, Tim Seastet, and Mark Williams participated for a second year in the Boulder Creek Watershed Forum. Field trips have focused on avalance awareness for elementary school students (Tad Pfeffer) and Ice Age environments of Rocky Mountain National Park (Scott Elias). INSTAAR members have served as judges for science fairs at the school, district, and state levels. They have also reponded to telephone calls from the press and the public requestiong information on scinetific matters within INSTAAR's areas of expertise.

The Mountain Research Station actively reaches the public through a variety of eduational activities. For example, during the summer of 1998, Diane McKnight (INSTAAR) and Ken Emo (CU College of Education) taught a course involving three undergraduate students and 60 children who participated in five field trips to the Tundra Laboratory on Niwot Ridge. Several INSTAAR members have been interviewed for popular science articles, and have appeared on television.

INSTAAR held a broadly succussful two-day Open House last November, attracting the interest and enthusiasm of nearly 550 middle-school students and 75 members of the public. At the Open House, participants were able to attend presentations on ice-age environments, the Antarctic Dry Valleys, glaciers, and crossing into the Americas via the Bering Land Bridge. Laboratory tours emphasized harnds-on and visual experiences, including, among others, the popular ice-cream making from liquid nitrogen in the Stable Isotope Lab, cold-weather field clothing, computer simulations of the ocean floor, and a field experience at nearby Boulder Creek. Feedback from teachers and students was very enthousiastic. Many INSTAAR faculty, staff, students, and researchers were involved in making the Open House a success.