Burlington Science Center Blog

This past week, The Burlington Science Center hosted the January meeting of the North Shore Science Supervisors.  This organization is comprised of greater Boston Science Directors, Science Teachers, Museum Personnel, College Professors and Administrators from the Science Department at the Massachusetts Department of Education.  All of the members share the mutual goal of making Science an exciting learning experience for children and adults.

The Burlington Science Center is viewed as a pathfinder in the world of high-powered Science education.  Visitors attended the meeting to catch a glimpse of what makes the Science Center a special place for learning.

Dr. David Lyons, president of the group, chaired the meeting and shared the agenda with Mr. Vinnie Loughlin of Flinn Scientific.  Flinn sponsored the meeting and showcased some of their new products with the group.

One of the concerns shared by the group dealt with the lack of Earth Science being offered at the High School level across the State of Massachusetts.  The discussion focused on the fact that the MA Dept. of Education doesn’t offer an Earth Science exam at this time.  The result is that many Public High Schools in the State have dropped their Earth Science courses.  The group intends to share these concerns with the leadership at the Massachusetts Department of Education. The number of students entering college in the Earth Science related areas has dropped off significantly on a National level. Hopefully, our concerns will result in an increased number of High Schools offering a variety of Earth Science courses.

Ms. Pavlicek, Dave Luther, Dr. Lyons and John Papadonis demonstrated the Science Center’s famous Tesla Coil

 

 

African Grey Parrot

 

 

 

Name: Crystal

Gender: Female

Age: 9 years old

Hobbies: Watching TV, listening to the radio, eating peanuts

 

Crystal was given to Science Center from U.S. Fish and Wildlife in 2001.  She was taken from her mother in Africa to be sold in the pet trade and confiscated coming into the country at an airport.  These parrots can sell for over one thousand dollars.

 

Crystal visits Burlington classrooms throughout the school year.  The Science Center uses her in many educational programs, focusing on the characteristics of birds and animal adaptations.

 

African Grey parrots are known to be some of the most intelligent animal species.  They have amazing vocabulary and voice mimicry skills. Check out the link below to watch an AMAZING African Grey parrot on the Animal Planet show “Pet Star.”

 

http://animal.discovery.com/beyond/index.html?playerId=203719213&categoryId=210013718

 

At Harvard University, Dr. Irene Pepperberg has done many psychological studies on the intelligence of African Grey Parrots.  Check out the website below:

 

http://www.alexfoundation.org/Alex_and_me.html

 

To learn more about African Grey Parrots:

 

http://www.waza.org/virtualzoo/factsheet.php?id=218-003-055-001&view=Psittaciformes