HAVE YOU EVER SEEN A HORSE ON A TREADMILL OR COWS AT MILKING TIME? Researchers study animal nutrition at one of the largest research animal centers in the world! Seldom open to the public, Junior Academy students are invited to a RARE INSIDER tour of the Land O'Lakes Purina Research Farm which is situated on 1200 acres in Grey Summit. Owned by the Land of Lakes Farmers Cooperative, nutrition and dietary research is conducted to improve the lives of livestock and companion animals such as horses, beef and dairy cattle. Animal lovers - this field trip is for you. This is a great opportunity to see the research applicability of Veterinary Science. You will see the horses up close and enjoy some time in the country. To comply with strict security, all participants must pre-register.

Open to Junior Academy of Science students only (Parents welcome)

RSVP (by noon July 26th) at peggyw@academyofsciencestl.org

Featured Speaker: Mark Rollins, Professor of Philosophy, Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology Program, Washington University in St. Louis and courtesy appointment, Professor, Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art

Presented in conjunction with the Craft Alliance in Grand Center’s Artists-in-Residence Exhibition, Traces of Time and Presence: Tom Dykas, Michael Parrett, Erin Vigneau Dimick, thru August 15, 2010. For more on Traces of Time and Presence, visit http://www.craftalliance.org/exhibitions/currentgc.htm

Why has the world been represented in art in such different ways? Why are there so many different styles of ornament and design? One traditional answer is that perception is plastic– people in various places or periods see the world in different ways as a result of diverse experiences and beliefs; and their design preferences are embodied in the different patterns of attention they employ. This view rests on assumptions about the changeability of the visual system. Research in cognitive science has recently put these assumptions to the test, offering new insight into how perception might vary in ways that explain the history of styles. Join philosophy professor, Mark Rollins for a fascinating look at the Science of Perception and Artistic Style.

Craft Alliance at Grand Center
501 North Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63103

Directions and Parking at http://www.craftalliance.org.htm

FREE and OPEN to ALL.

Seating is limited. Registration required. To RSVP call 314-533-8586, or email lfendler@academyofsciencestl.org

Photos courtesy of Craft Alliance

A book signing and talk with…

Featured Speaker: Daniel L. Rust, Ph.D., Assistant Director of the Center for Transportation Studies, University of Missouri-St. Louis, and author of, Flying Across America: The Airline Passenger Experience

Americans who now endure the inconveniences of crowded airports, packed airplanes, added fees, and missed connections might not realize that flying was once an elegant, exhilarating adventure. In the beginning, flying coast-to-coast was an exciting yet uncomfortable journey of nearly forty-eight hours that required numerous stops and overnight travel by train. With time and technical innovation, passengers became increasingly removed both physically and psychologically from the raw experience of flying. Faster planes, pressurized cabins, onboard amenities, and stronger safety precautions made flying more convenient and predicable—but also less evocative and sensational.

Prior to the 1980s, many Americans dressed for air travel in their formal best and enjoyed such onboard amenities as delicious meals and ample cabin space. What made air travel glamorous, however, also made it more expensive. With deregulation in 1978, cost reductions reduced flying to a more tedious and, after 9/11, more regimented experience.

In his colorful book, Flying Across America: The Airline Passenger Experience, Daniel L. Rust traces the evolution of commercial air travel from the first transcontinental expeditions of the 1920s, through the luxurious airline environments of the 1950s and 1960s, to the more hectic, fatiguing experiences of flying in the post-9/11 era. Rust’s narrative brims with firsthand accounts from such celebrities as Will Rogers and from ordinary Americans. Enlivened by more than 100 illustrations, including vintage brochures, posters, and photographs, Flying Across America reminds today’s airline passengers of what they have gained—and what they have lost—in the transcontinental flying experience.

OASIS – Center of Clayton, 50 Gay Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63105

FREE to the first 10 registrants, $9 per person thereafter. OPEN to ALL. Space is limited.

To register call 314-533-8586 or e-mail rsvp@academyofsciencestl.org

On Science Series co-sponsor:

The STAR PARTY is an annual favorite! Rich Heuermann, Administrative Officer, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, NASA Missouri Space Grant Consortium, Washington University and St. Louis Astronomical Society will provide an overview of the night sky and the Perseids. Be prepared to stay up late! Let's hope for good weather and a clear sky as we view hundreds of shooting stars! Cost is minimal at $30 each which includes welcome bar-b-q, snacks, night in a log cabin, guided night hike, guided Perseid viewing, and continental breakfast!

Junior Academy Event - open to Junior Academy members and their families (siblings need to be over 7 years old to attend)

Photo Credit: NASA

RSVP by August 5th. (RSVP early as space is limited) Send e-mail to peggyw@academyofsciencestl.org

The doctors with joysticks (Eric Leuthardt, seated, and Matthew Smyth, standing) engage in a game of Space Invaders while biomedical engineer Daniel Moran looks on behind the computer screen.

Photo by David Kilper / WUSTL Photo

Featured Speaker: Eric C. Leuthardt, MD,Assistant Professor of Neurological Surgery and Biomedical Engineering and Director, Center for Innovation in Neuroscience and Technology, Washington University School of Medicine, Department of Neurological Surgery; 2007 Academy of Science Innovation Award recipient

Over the last decade the idea of machines that can be controlled by one's thoughts has emerged from the realm of fiction to one of serious scientific inquiry. These types of devices hold tremendous promise for improving the quality of life of individuals who are cognitively intact yet motor impaired. Join Eric Leuthardt, M.D., assistant professor of Neurological Surgery and Biomedical Engineering at Washington University, as he discusses human brain signals, how these signals are decoded, the implications they hold for brain computer interfaces, and how the world will change when we can control devices with our thoughts alone.

Presented in conjunction with the History Museum gallery installation, The Americans with Disabilities Act: Twenty Years Later, on display at the Missouri History Museum, June 26, 2010 – June 6, 2011.

To be held at: Missouri History Museum – Lee Auditorium
Lindell and DeBaliviere in Forest Park
St. Louis, Missouri 63112

FREE and OPEN to ALL. Middle and high school students welcome.
Parking free in Museum lots or in Forest Park.

Perspectives on Science & History Series Co-sponsored by:

Stay tuned for details!