News Article

National Public Radio correspondent Joe Palca was the speaker at the Nov. 14 Science Unwrapped event at Utah State University. Palca, NPR’s science correspondent, explored how to present complex topics in a short amount of time. He also spoke about his job with NPR and how one can make any topic informative and entertaining for any audience. 

After Palca’s talk, many children, parents, students, and teachers stayed to enjoy refreshments and a variety of hands-on learning activities, including a booth staffed by iUTAH with the theme “Do You Know Where Your Water Comes From?”  We were able to demonstrate both urban and rural examples of water use via our watershed map and model. The model allows kids to siphon water out of a river and route it through homes, factories, and treatment plants to simulate true water flow. They also used a spray bottle to simulate rain falling over crops and neighborhoods. The iUTAH booth was one of 25 exhibits featuring a range of science topics from the anatomy of an eye to exciting chemistry experiments.

The monthly Friday evening series resumes in January with the first of four lectures carrying a water theme. We plan to staff booths at each event to share the iUTAH message with a diverse group of individuals interested in science.

View more images and get more information about Science UnWrapped...