Mark Rosin
Mark Rosin is honored with the 2015 AAAS Early Career Award for Public Engagement with Science for his broad range of creative and sustainable public engagement strategies that target audiences who may not be actively seeking science information.
Rosin is an exceptional scientist with an impressive record in scientific research and public engagement. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Math and Sciences at Pratt Institute in New York City. His research has been recognized with awards from the Cambridge Philosophical Society and Bristol University. He has received funding from a variety of professional societies and foundations for his public engagement projects.
Rosin channels his joy for discovery into the creation of a broad range of public engagement offerings that connect with novel public audiences. These dynamic events, often embedded in cultural activities like art festivals, highlight the process, not just the products, of science in a way that is fundamentally fun. As director and co-founder of Guerilla Science, Rosin has reached over 15,000 people directly through events such as the Intergalactic Travel Bureau, multi-day events at math and art festivals, and a section of the first National Math Festival. His Fire Organ, which builds on the Rubens’ tube to visualize connections between math and music, has toured the United States, including visits to Maker Faire and Burning Man Festival. In addition to direct implementation, Rosin has trained over 100 scientists to engage public audiences.
Rosin’s combination of a promising scientific career and commitment to outreach to novel audiences offers a sustainable approach to public engagement with science.
2015 Early Career Award for Public Engagement with Science Finalists
- Raychelle Burks, Doane College
- Kenneth Hanson, Florida State University
- Katherine Mack, University of Melbourne
- Michael VanElzakker, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital &
Tufts University
AAAS’s First Endowed Award
As issues at the interface of science and society—from disease research to global climate change, evolution, human embryonic stem cell research, neuroscience, and others—take on increasing importance, the Early Career Award for Public Engagement with Science seeks to encourage efforts to promote interactive dialogue between scientists and non-scientific, public audiences. By highlighting and celebrating successful examples of public engagement, AAAS and our partners aim to communicate the importance of such efforts and create models for other scientists and engineers.
AAAS is grateful to Bob and Margee Hazen for their vision in initiating this award and for their generous gifts to establish the endowment that funds it. We also wish to acknowledge Bruce and Betty Alberts, Alan and Agnes Leshner, David Evans Shaw, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and the Noyce Foundation for their leadership support, as well as the many others who made contributions to make this award a reality.