I recommend at least skimming this article to give yourself a better idea of how people learn at museums, effective museum exhibits, and what to look for when at AMNH.
Allen, S. 2004. Designs for learning: Studying science museum exhibits that do more than entertain. Science Education 88: 17
For 10/10 Please find an article on a contentious environmental issue, for example: solving climate change, fracking, GMOs, etc.
We will be discussing what counts as scientific evidence and you should come with an understanding of the basic idea of these articles- since there are a few, you can skim them or at least read the abstract and conclusions, as well as check out the figures:
Also listen to the RadioLab short (~20 mins) on the Taung Child skull and think about the evidence needed to figure out what it all meant! There is a replica of this skill at AMNH, so you can see it on our field trip in November!
http://www.radiolab.org/story/taung-child/
Hi all- for the first reading, it is a website- please check out all the levels, but particularly pay attention to and read “level 2: Details: under the second question “2. Why is Biodiversity loss a concern”. We will be talking about biodiversity and human well being in the next class.
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: Biodiversity and Human Health Green Facts. Explore all, but especially Level 2. http://www.greenfacts.org/en/biodiversity/index.htm
Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. 2012. Cities and Biodiversity Outlook: Executive Summary Secretariat-of-the-Convention-on-Biological-Diversity-2012-Unknown
Further reading (if you’d like a preview for next class!):
Fuller, R. A., et al. 2012. Psychological benefits of greenspace increase with biodiversity. Biology Letters 3, 390-394Fuller etal.2007 psychological benefits of inc biodiversity
Magnusson, W.E. 1996. How to write backwards. Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America, 77(2) pp. 88-89how to write backwards
Miller, P. Before New York. 2009. National Geographic Magazine. http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/09/manhattan/miller-text
Palmer, M. Valuing urban wildlife: critical partners in the urban system or scary, disgusting nuisances? 2013. The Nature of Cities Blog. http://www.thenatureofcities.com/2013/06/16/valuing-urban-wildlife-critical-partners-in-the-urban-system-or-scary-disgusting-nuisances/
Kiviat, E. and E.A. Johnson. Biodiversity assessment handbook for New York City (Pgs. 1-28). 2013. The American Museum of Natural History. http://www.amnh.org/our-research/center-for-biodiversity-conservation/publications/for-policymakers/biodiversity-assessment-handbook-for-new-york-city
Brashares, J.S., B. Abrahms, K. J. Fiorella, C. D. Golden, C. E. Hojnowski, R. A. Marsh, D. J. McCauley, T. A. Nuñez, K. Seto, and L. Withey. 2014. Wildlife decline and social conflict. Science 345 (6195), 376-378. Science-2014-Brashares-376-8
