Girls Just Want to Have Astro Fun

I was out of the office teaching what's hot in astrophysics much of this week to a wonderful audience - the best and brightest middle school girls in science in California. The American Association of University Women of California (AAUW) sponsored a one week summer program for young women at Stanford University called "Tech Trek Science, Math, & Computer Camp" on July 11-17 2004. There were 125 seventh graders attending from all over California this year - all vital and curious.

I put together a presentation on current topics in astronomy and astrophysics. It's a great time for a girl to consider this area as a career, with the Rutan's SpaceShip One and the robotics successes of Spirit and Opportunity. Plus, as I mentioned in my presentation, there is very little gender discrimination in the field - in other words, equal pay and equal work is the norm in physics and astronomy, plus many mixed teams and interesting projects.

My daughter Rebecca (she's 9) demonstrated how to use a Schmidt-Cassagrain (SCT) telescope, while I meshed theory and practice in a one-hour powerpoint presentation loaded with cool video of NASA launches and space exploration, plus a bit of the physics of magnitude and distance.

Rebecca used her own Celestron C-5 as an example of how to handle an instrument. Most girls are pretty good on theory, but don't have a lot of experience with handling a scope. Perhaps seeing that a girl younger then them works with such may alleviate "instrument anxiety" in the future.

I had a great time last week. The girls were smart and saavy, and I enjoyed every question (even ones I had to look up later). Kudos to a great camp experience and the AAUW volunteers like Director Marie Wolbach who make it such a meaningful experience. I'm thankful to them for allowing me and Rebecca to share a bit of the magic of astronomy and astrophysics.