In honor of Human Rights Day on December 10, I’d like to share an article by Jeffrey H. Toney, who for years has done a great job of representing Sigma Xi on the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Science and Human Rights Coalition. In “President-Elect Trump and the Human Right to Water,” Toney discusses the coalition’s January meeting that will focus on the human right to water, how Sigma Xi members can get involved, and what is known about Donald Trump’s plans to support access to clean water.
Kids Science Reading Corner
The United Nations lists the right to education among the basic human rights. A pair of new books, and a recently reissued gem, tell inspiring stories of youngsters from an earlier era who gained their education against the odds. Younger readers will find spirited accounts of a mathematician widely regarded as the first computer programmer in Ada Lovelace, Poet of Science, written by Diane Stanley and illustrated by Jessie Hartland (ages 4–8), and Ada’s Ideas, by Fiona Robinson (ages 6–9). Lovelace, born in 1815, flourished as an advanced mathematics student, an unconventional subject for young women then.
George Washington Carver, by Tonya Bolden (ages 10+), brings the brilliant, multifaceted botanist to life. He found ways to obtain an education and had an outstanding research career at a time when such opportunities for African Americans were extremely rare. You can read a review of the book here.
I hope you consider sharing these resources with the young readers in your life.
Sincerely,
John C. Nemeth, PhD
Executive Director and CEO
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society
Publisher of American Scientist
Sigma Xi Speaks is a monthly series of information that we hope you share with others.