It’s official – just saw on NY1 that this scruffy scientist is NY1′s New Yorker of the Week. I’ve been on the phone with excited New Yorkers for the past 2 hours solid, ever since the segment aired.
Ryan, BioBus High School Intern
Filming took place at the Belmont Library in the Bronx this past Wednesday afternoon. The event represented exactly why I started the BioBus – bringing scientists, educators, and the public together around exciting science. The BioBus pulled up in front of the library, and I, along with 6 volunteers ranging from a middle-school student to a retired member of the New York Microscopical Society, setup our microscopes. Then, along with a hundred or so library patrons and community members, we proceeded to have ourselves a grand time exploring the microscopic world around us. By the end of the day, after going a full 90 minutes longer than scheduled, we packed up, euphoric. I think the most important thing the NY1 piece shows is how much fun everyone was having!
Mosquito Larva
Again and again I am struck by the excitement ordinary people have when given the chance to use their own hands in the search for knowledge. Equally impressive is the comraderie it engenders with their fellow explorers. Who knew a mosquito larva could be so beautiful and interesting to look at? One of the highlights of the day came when two students started eagerly searching through the grass for bugs and rocks to look at with the microscope, having realized that amazing things are oft hidden in the most unexpected places.
There are literally hundreds of folks to thank for getting the BioBus to this milestone, including many of you who are reading this post. But today special thanks goes out to Martin Halla, BioBus Volunteer Web Developer, and Justin Yuen, BioBus Volunteer Web Designer. Forgoing food and sleep, they rolled out our new website in time for the NY1 segment. I take full responsibility for it still being a bit rough around the edges – but it is a big improvement over our old site, and, since it is based on Word Press, will be much easier to keep current. Thank you Justin and Martin.
And remember: food + music + biobus = fun.