Growing With Science Blog

DNLee of Urban Science Adventures defended her thesis this month. If you have ever wondered what a PhD thesis defense might be like, she has been writing about her experiences. For example, check out her post and links to videos:

How a dissertation defense (in science) goes down

This is a rare glimpse into the hoops one has to jump through to become a scientist. I applaud her bravery.

Congratulations, Dr. Lee!

Once again our post was inspired by a book, this time about ethologist Dr. Jane Goodall.

Jane Goodall is an extremely interesting scientist to study, because she came to science by a route that was not at all traditional.

Jane Goodall was born in London, England in 1934, which was shortly before the start of World War II. During the war she went to the countryside to stay with her grandmother. Her father went to fight in the war. After the war, her mother and father got a divorce and she stayed in the country where she learned about nature and studied animals. She also read books about far away Africa and dreamed of one day being able to visit.

Once Jane had finished school, she moved back to London and trained to become a secretary. When she had the opportunity to make a trip to Africa, she remembered her early aspirations and jumped at it. She like Africa so much, she got a job as a typist in the city of Nairobi.

By luck Dr, Louis Leakey, the famous anthropologist, and his wife Mary were also in Nairobi at the time. Jane went to meet him, and made a favorable impression. Before long, Jane Goodall was traveling with the Leakeys looking for fossils.

Louis Leakey had the idea that someone should study chimpanzees in the wild, which had never been done before. He thought Jane should give it a try. It turns out, although she had no degree and no formal training in how to study animal behavior, Jane Goodall was a natural. She didn’t mind the danger and difficult conditions, and she was soon making remarkable observations.

Eventually she did go back to school to obtain her doctoral degree at Cambridge University. Now she is a world-renowned scientist and leading expert on chimpanzee behavior. This shows what a sense of adventure, willingness to work hard, and a little good timing can bring you.

Dr. Jane Goodall is also an outspoken conservationist. She started Root and Shoots, an organization that encourages people, particularly young people, to help animals and the environment.

I have reviews of related children’s books at Wrapped In Foil today.

And if you are interested in chimp behavior as it relates to ants, try this post at Wild About Ants.

As many of you may know, this month is Women’s History Month. Let’s celebrate by learning about some women astronomers past and present.

This is a video of an interview with Dr. Letisha McLaughlin, an astronomer at NC State. She talks about how she became an astronomer and how she was inspired when her mother got her a telescope.

I was also able to find this video tribute to Women Astronomers in History: Telescope Women in History.

Please Note: One of the images in this video is a star map overlaid with a drawing of a woman with one bare breast, which some people may find offensive. Please preview this video for suitability for your children.

Finally, here is a video about Women in Astronomy from NASA, which begins with a recent history of the field.