AAAS - News & Notes

AAAS broke a record during its 2004 Annual Meeting, drawing 1200 members of the press, 5700 registrants, and 3300 children and members of their families to downtown Seattle 2 weeks ago—a total that more than doubles the number of people who attended the event in Denver the year before.

"I think we are seeing a new paradigm for large scientific meetings," said AAAS CEO Alan I. Leshner. "We used the occasion to reach out to the broader community and to engage the public in the world of science. This demonstrates that AAAS can use its annual meeting to accomplish two of its main goals at once—to advance science and serve society."

The numbers of scientists and journalists who attended the meeting for its traditional scientific content were robust compared to prior years, but it was the newest category of visitors—3300 children and members of their families who came to celebrate the AAAS Family Science Days—that brought attendance levels up dramatically, according to organizers of the event.

Leshner noted that there were three components to AAAS's public outreach during the 5-day meeting held in mid-February. On the 12th, AAAS's Directorate for Education and Human Resources organized Public Science Day at Seattle's Pacific Science Center, which drew hundreds of elementary students from local schools. Children were also the focus of the Family Science Days, which took place 14 to 15 February in the AAAS Exhibit Hall at the convention center. Two local nonprofit organizations, the Institute for Systems Biology and the Pacific Science Center, helped design content for the family event.

The third public component of the AAAS Annual Meeting took place on the afternoon of 15 February, when a group of 300 local residents packed a room at the Seattle Trade and Convention Center to hear marine scientists Usha Varanasi, John Delaney, and former AAAS president Jane Lubchenco talk about the state of the world's oceans, and to provide their thoughts on possible solutions. The "Oceans for Everyone" town meeting was broadcast by National Public Radio (NPR) and moderated by NPR science writer Ira Flatow. It also served as the occasion of the launching of a new AAAS initiative, which Leshner said would create a forum to allow the public, policy-makers, and scientists to exchange ideas and influence policy.

"This is a historic event," Flatow told the audience, in opening the town meeting. "This is the inaugural event for the AAAS Center for Public Engagement with Science and Technology. It's important because we have a nationally and internationally known organization trying to get us all to do something about our future."

AAAS
Scientists Urged to Move Beyond Bench

In opening remarks for the AAAS Annual Meeting in Seattle on 12 February, AAAS President Mary Ellen Avery called for better access to health care and a sustainable environment. She also reminded her audience of the importance of imagination in the creation of new knowledge, and challenged them to imagine the world "you would want your children to inherit."

Avery noted as well the role of the annual event in "bringing experiences and ideas from this meeting to the public," and 2004 was no exception. Journalists reported on stem cells collected from the first cloned human embryo, and wrote about the possible discovery of the most distant object in space, potential gene therapies to enhance athletic ability, the genetic origins of dogs, and the decision by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to donate $83 million for the development of a tuberculosis vaccine.

The AAAS president, who was introduced by AAAS Board Chairman Floyd Bloom, was joined on the podium by Amanda Adeleye, a student at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, and by Richard Klausner, head of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Global Health program; Leonard Peters, director of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; V. Lane Rawlins, president of Washington State University; and Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels.

Amanda asked the scientists in the audience to support young researchers in their pursuit of careers in the sciences. Klausner argued that science has improved the lives of too few individuals: "The problem is the lack of attention as well as the lack of resources. There is no reason that the community of scientists cannot take the lead."

At the end of the AAAS Annual Meeting, Bloom stepped down as chairman, and Avery took his place. The new president is physicist Shirley Ann Jackson. Gilbert S. Omenn will take over as president in February 2005.