AAAS Annual Meeting To Be Launched with
Public Science Day at Denver Museum of Science and Nature

On 13 February, education advocate Dr. Shirley Malcom, director of the AAAS Directorate for Education and Human Resources, will join more than 1,000 Denver grade-schoolers for Public Science Day, thus launching the annual meeting of the world's largest federation of scientists. Public Science Day is just one of approximately 30 free events planned during the 2003 AAAS Annual Meeting.

Students will be invited to roam about the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, entering the extraordinary world of ancient Egypt through the eyes of an archaeologist, said Malcom, winner of the prestigious Public Welfare Medal for her lifelong efforts to draw more women and minorities into the sciences. During Public Science Day in Denver, children will explore methods that may have been used to build pyramids; witness what modern medicine can teach us about ancient mummies; and decipher messages written in hieroglyphics, explained Malcom.

The young scientists also will have an opportunity to confer with the museum's Dr. Steve Holen and trace the evolution of mammoths on their long trip to North America. Holen will discuss how humans came to North America, and how they hunted mammoths.

Public Science Day will include lunch, presentations, gallery science shows, health fairs, lightning demonstrations and dissections, and hands-on activities, including dinosaur digs and scavenger hunts. Telescopes, science kits, activity booths, touch carts and journaling also will be available to the students throughout the day.

Each year since 1989, AAAS has sponsored Public Science Day to promote scientific exploration by children in the various cities where the Association holds its annual meetings. This annual event takes thousands of students on an educational journey to local museums and scientific institutions to participate in hands-on science activities, thus fostering a greater appreciation of the scientific processes at work in the world around them.

12 February 2003