Public invited to meet science laureates at town hall forum
The public is invited to talk with leading science writers on Nov. 10 at a town hall forum during Purdue University's three-day Science Journalism Laureates program.
This year four new laureates are expected to join at least seven previous honorees for the town hall event to discuss the topic "Raising the Bar in Science Journalism." This is the fifth year for the program, during which time Purdue has honored 26 science writers with the laureate designation.
The 90-minute town hall meeting will begin at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 10 in the Lawson Computer Science Building foyer and will include time for questions. Laureate Moira Gunn, a Purdue alumna and host of public radio shows "Tech Nation" and "BioTech Nation," will moderate the discussion. The forum will be taped for later broadcast on "Tech Nation." A book signing will follow.
New laureates are Sandra Aamodt, Hepeng Jia, Andrea Kissack and Steve Rosenbaum.
"We encourage both faculty and students to attend," said professor Gabriela Weaver, director of the Discovery Learning Research Center and co-organizer of the Science Journalism Laureates program with professor Howard Sypher, head of the Department of Communication. "Science journalists represent a critical step in research: communication."
Also during their stay, the journalists will interact with the Purdue community and hear brief presentations from faculty. Several will visit classes.
The laureates are selected based on their reputation for thought-provoking work and aptitude for translating scientific discoveries into a format the public can easily understand.
The event's sponsors include all of Purdue's colleges or schools as well as the Discovery Research Learning Center, Discovery Park, Office of Engagement, Extended Campus, Global Policy Research Institute, Purdue Libraries, Office of the Vice President for Research and the Office of the Provost.