Obama Kicks Off Massive Science Education Effort 801
In a speech at the White House today, President Obama launched a new campaign, "Educate to Innovate," designed to get American students fired up about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The full text of the speech is also available on whitehouse.gov. "The new campaign builds on the President's Inaugural Address, which included a vow to put science 'in its rightful place.' One of those rightful places, of course, is the classroom. Yet too often our schools lack support for teachers or the other resources needed to convey the practical utility and remarkable beauty of science and engineering. As a result, students become overwhelmed in their classes and ultimately disengaged. They lose, and our nation loses too. The partnerships launched today aim to change that. They respond to a challenge made by the President in April, when he spoke at the annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences and asked the nation's philanthropists, professional and educational societies, corporations, and individuals to collaborate and innovate with the goal of reinvigorating America's STEM educational enterprise. The partnerships announced today — dramatic commitments in the hundreds of millions of dollars, generated through novel collaborations and creative outreach activities — are just the first wave of commitments anticipated in response to his call."
Excellent! More awards! (Score:5, Funny)
Now we can give Obama the Nobel prize for Chemistry and Physics as well!
ws
stem cells (Score:5, Funny)
We should set up small groups around the country to independently engage in the study of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math... call them STEM Cells, and watch the right-wingers line up to ban funding them, on reflex.
Re:Easier solution: (Score:2, Funny)
Practical utility and remarkable beauty (Score:4, Funny)
Yet too often our schools lack support for teachers or the other resources needed to convey the practical utility and remarkable beauty of science and engineering.
This looks like a job for...Sagan-Man [xkcd.com]!
Re:STEM... (Score:5, Funny)
The Cold War ended 18 years ago... OMG, that's what causing Global Warming(TM)!
Re:Easier solution: (Score:5, Funny)
Being cool means kids don't feel stigmatized if they enter a field. The study comes later after choosing a career. Lawyers and doctors are often portrayed as smart, powerful, as well as highly paid in movies and TV. Compare that to the lead scientist in Independence Day. He couldn't even afford decent pants.
Re:And In Unrelated News... (Score:1, Funny)
"You're a radical! How DARE you tear apart the DOE? Everything would go to hell if you did that! We live in a society and we must have government running that society. Duh." - pro-big-government citizen
IT'S A SOCIALIST CONSPIRACY! (Score:3, Funny)
Obama is a member of the One World Order muslim kenyan atheist conspiracy and is only interested in promoting America-Last policies like Darwinism, heliocentrism, and rational thought.
YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!
Re:In Russia, commie govt gives health care to YOU (Score:2, Funny)
The remaining ones are illegal intruders (non-citizens).
That's a very good point, it's a known fact non-citizens and illegal immigrants don't get sick or need help in any way. Those damn cyborg immigrants, not only are they stealing our jobs, parking their cars on their lawns and fucking our wives behind our backs, but they're also immune to pain and disease! It's just unfair.
Re:Good Point, So What Do We Do? (Score:3, Funny)
Well most engineers like interacting with people, especially when solving problems, so rather than assigning one problem per engineer... try assigning one problem to a TEAM of engineers. And it doesn't have to be every day; twice a year ought to be enough where you have a "team project".
Also, why not send engineers on sales calls, so they can meet the people who desire the product?
And finally let engineers have freedom. On my last job I had to account for every 0.1 tick of the clock. If I wasn't working I wasn't allowed to charge anything
Covered perfectly (Score:3, Funny)
Funny you should propose that, it was proposed in the brilliant Yes Prime Minister series.
See below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uP-9WzAh26Y [youtube.com]
Re:Easier solution: (Score:4, Funny)
Re:And In Unrelated News... (Score:5, Funny)
Getting an MBA sure seems like confirmation of the earlier diagnosis :)
Re:And In Unrelated News... (Score:3, Funny)
and then everything goes to hell.
that only happens in religious schools, in public schools it just creates a mess.