Alliance For Science - Education

Announcing 2008 Contest Winners and Topic for 2009

Sat, 10 May 2008 12:34:49 -0600

The 2008 Essay Contest Winners Are...

Place	Student	Essay Link	Grade	School	City	State	Teacher
1st	Neal Desai	1st Place Essay	10	The Pembroke Hill School	Kansas City	MO	Kathy Ketchum
2nd	Frances Ellerbe	2nd Place Essay	12	Heathwood Hall Episcopal School	Columbia	SC	George Scouten
3rd	David Martorana	3rd Place Essay	11	Iolani School	Honolulu	HI	Dr. Carey S. Inouye
4th	Marleigh Higgins	4th Place Essay	11	Brookline High School	Brookline	MA	Ms. Plati

Note: Views expressed in these essays are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Alliance for Science. Very minor typographical changes have been made to some essays.

We salute these exceptional students for their outstanding efforts, and thank their teachers for their dedication and support. We again thank the many generous contributors who have supplied our prizes. See the 2008 essay contest prize list to see all the prizes that we will be sending out over the next few weeks.

Click Here to see the top 10 finalists of our 2008 essay contest.

Please donate to support the 2009 contest

We have a special essay contest planned for 2009 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin (details below). But we need your help! The Alliance for Science is a 501c(3) non-profit organization that depends entirely on donations. We do not charge an entry fee for our contest, nor do we solicit students or teachers for donations. We are all volunteers and our administrative expenses are very low.

To donate by credit card, please click on the Donate button in the upper-left corner of this web page. If you prefer, you can send a check or money order payable to the Alliance for Science, P.O. Box 5122, Arlington VA 22205-9998.

2009 Contest Theme: "In Darwin's Footsteps"

Many of the comforts and benefits of civilization that we enjoy today would be impossible were it not for the efforts of scientists to help us understand and manage the forces of the natural world. Think about it -- cell phones, airplanes, antibiotics, laser eye surgery – we take these for granted nowadays, but if it weren’t for the hard work of scientists and engineers through the centuries we would have none of them. The progress resulting from scientific research is truly one of the triumphs of civilization.

Announcing Our Top Ten Essay Contest Finalists!

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 19:48:58 -0600

The Alliance for Science is proud to announce the Top Ten Finalists for the 2008 National High School Essay Contest. The essays written by these finalists are now being reviewed by our judging committee to determine our top four prize winners. All of the finalists will receive an award certificate and a previously unannounced book prize (details below).

28-April Update: Finalist awards were sent out via priority mail today.

The finalists are (in alpabetic order by student last name):

Student	Grade	School	City	State	Teacher
Neal B. Desai	10	The Pembroke Hill School	Kansas City	MO	Kathy Ketchum
Frances Eugenia Ellerbe	12	Heathwood Hall Episcopal School	Columbia	SC	Dr. George Scouten
Brandon Hall	10	Pottstown High School	Pottstown	PA	Mary Ann Murrow
Marleigh Higgins	11	Brookline High School	Brookline	MA	Ms. Plati
Christine Kelly	12	Academies at Englewood	Englewood	NJ	Claire Kennedy
David Martorana	11	Iolani School	Honolulu	HI	Dr. Carey S. Inouye
Elen Miteva	10	Bergen County Academies	Hackensack	NJ	Victor Samarakone
Brian V. Monahan	9	Bergen County Academies	Hackensack	NJ	Dr. Judith Pinto
Sami Rahmani	11	Lawrence Central High School	Indianapolis	IN	Anne Marie Milligan
Susan Tan	12	Bronx High School of Science	Bronx	NY	Richard Lee

Evolution: Education and Outreach journal 2nd issue published

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 12:54:41 -0600

The second issue of the Evolution: Education and Outreach" journal has been released. Like the first issue, this one is packed full of materials of interest to science teachers and anyone with an interest in evolution education. There are 24 articles in this issue, ranging from an article by Niles Eldridge on the "evolution" of "punctuated equilibria" to a debate on the merits of using "Inherit the Wind" as a teaching tool. Other notable articles include one by the NCSE's Eugenie Scott and Glenn Branch on the pitfalls of "Opt-Out" policies as a misguided compromise on evolution education.

Free Short Course: New Views on Darwinism and Religion

Sat, 26 Jan 2008 12:54:11 -0700

All too often, the relationship between religion and science is portrayed as two rival armies, dug-in deeply, lobbing shots at one another whenever a target presents itself. On the creationist side, we have groups like Answers in Genesis (operators of that dubious ‘Creation Museum’ near Cincinnati) that would lead people to believe that evolution is the root of all evil and is utterly incompatible with any theistic belief. Among scientists, there are those like Richard Dawkins, who has made a lasting contribution to the advancement of evolutionary biology, but whose atheistic philosophy as promoted in books like The God Delusion, has reinforced the perception of implacable hostility between religion and science.

Evolution: Education and Outreach Journal Online

Sun, 30 Dec 2007 11:29:47 -0700

A new Journal, Evolution: Education and Outreach is now available online. It features an excellent collection of articles, including some by famed scientists such as Niles Eldridge and Ian Tatersall. The articles are short and to the point. One article by John N. Thompson dicusses the need to use the word "evolution" wherever it fits and not use synonyms or euphemisms. There Are Two Ways To Enter
You have the option to submit your registration and your essay via email, and that is what the Alliance for Science encourages you to do if at all possible. If you are unable to enter via email, you may enter via U.S. mail. It is a lot more work for our volunteers to process mailed-in essays, so please be considerate and submit vie email if possible. Your email address will not be given to anyone and will only be used for purposes directly related to this contest (such as informing you that you are a winner!).

How to Enter by Email

Prizes for the 2008 National High School Essay Contest

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 19:06:05 -0700

Prizes for Students

First Place	Second Place	Third Place	Fourth Place
$300	$200	$150	$100

Incentives for Sponsoring Teachers

At the Alliance for Science, we understand that being a high school science teacher is a tough job, and helping students with a contest like this can be a lot of extra work. We show our appreciation by offering these incentives for the teachers who sponsor the winning students:

CASH PRIZES. The teacher of the first place essay winning student will receive a check for $150.00. Second place is good for $100.00. These prizes are intended to help teachers buy teaching materials and supplies for their classrooms.

2008 Essay Contest Finalists Have Been Announced!

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 17:57:36 -0700

15-May-08 Update: Final contest results will be published later today - please check back!

Click Here to see the top 10 finalists of our 2008 essay contest.

For our second annual National High School Essay Contest we invited students to submit essays of not more than 1,000 words on one of two topics -- "Climate and Evolution" or "Agriculture and Evolution." Click on the links below for more information.

Submission deadline is February 29, 2008.

14-JAN-08 Update: Is the essay you are about to submit as good as last year's winning essays? Gregory Simonian, Merve Fejzula, Shobha Topji, and Linda Zhou wrote excellent essays, and this year we expect even more competition, so give it your best effort.
13-JAN-08 Update: More prizes! We have received a pledge for four copies of Kansas Vs. Darwin, a documentary about the Kansas Evolution Hearings. Click the link for more details including a video trailer. Also see this review by Alliance Board Member Jerry Jellison.

Six Tips on How To Write a Winning Essay

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 05:10:36 -0700

By Dick Lessard,
Alliance for Science Essay Contest Director

When I’m learning a new game, I skim rapidly over the instructions until I get to the part that says “How To Win.” That part I read very carefully. So, for those of you who work the same way, here is your “How To Win” tip sheet for this essay contest. Following these tips won’t guarantee that you’ll win, since there are likely to be many strong contenders. However, if you pay attention to these guidelines, it will definitely help your essay make it to the “playoffs” – the final round of judging where the winners are decided.

Agriculture and Evolution - Essay Ideas

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 10:57:00 -0600

Important Note: The questions and ideas discussed below are only suggestions of some possible issues students may explore. There is no requirement to address any of them. If you have a better idea for a winning essay, you are encouraged to pursue it, provided it fits within the general topic of agriculture and evolution.

Farmers face ever-changing threats like crop-destroying insects, harmful weeds, and new molds and viruses. Ranchers must be concerned with a variety of animal diseases, such as “mad cow disease” and avian flu. Some plants and animals have evolved remarkable ways of protecting themselves, but the threats keep evolving. Farmers and ranchers try to help themselves by selective breeding, crop rotation, antibiotics, pesticides, and other methods. Now genetically modified crops are another way that people might choose to meet the food needs of a growing population. Are the changes brought about by genetic engineering fundamentally different from those that evolution has brought about naturally?

Second Annual National High School Essay Contest

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 10:03:37 -0600

23-DEC Update:  Watch those word counts! We have seen a number of essays among our early submissions that have no word count on the registration form, or the word count is over 1,000. Read the Official Rules - essays must be no longer than 1,000 words!
10-DEC Update:  Please read Six Tips on How To Write a Winning Essay.
8-DEC Update:  Official Rules amended to allow any U.S. student grade 12 or below to enter (not restricted to high school students only), and to disallow entries from contest judges or their family members.
4-DEC Update:  New DVDs and books (some author-signed) added as teacher incentives.
2-DEC Update:  Email address for questions, clarifications, etc.: essaycontest@allianceforscience.org.

The Alliance for Science is pleased to announce our second annual National High School Essay Contest. We invite interested students to submit essays of up to 1,000 words on one of two topics -- Climate and Evolution or Agriculture and Evolution. Click on the topic names for some possible ideas to explore in your essay. Submission deadline is Feb. 29, 2008.

Guaranteed Cash Prizes! 1st Place $300.00, 2nd Place $200, 3rd Place $150, and 4th Place $100. Teachers click here for additional prize information, including a cash reward of $150 for 1st place $150, and $100 for 2nd place.

"Judgment Day" is at hand!

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 09:26:36 -0600

Update: If you missed the original airing, check your local listings for rebroadcast times. Also, the video will be available on the NOVA website.

On Tuesday, November 13th, participating PBS stations will air a special two-hour episode of NOVA called "Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial" on the Kitzmiller versus Dover Area School District trial. It includes reenactments (there were no cameras in the courtroom) based on trial transcripts. Full details, including an online preview, are available at the PBS NOVA website.

PBS NOVA Program "Jewel of the Earth"

Sun, 10 Jun 2007 07:26:48 -0600

Start: Jun 12 2007 - 8:00pm

End: Jun 12 2007 - 9:00pm

Timezone: Etc/GMT-5

This Tuesday NOVA is rebroadcasting "Jewel of the Earth", hosted by celebrated naturalist Sir David Attenborough. The program explores the beautiful and intriguing microcosms of ancient life trapped forever in amber. Forty-million year old samples from the Baltic region of northern Europe are examined with the help of University of Gdansk biologist Elzbieta Sontag. George and Roberta Poiner of Oregon State University show a reconstruction of an entire ecosystem from 20 million year old samples of amber from the Dominican Republic.

Updated COPUS Site

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 20:47:41 -0600

The Coalition for the Public Understanding of Science (COPUS), of which the Alliance for Science is a member, has a newly expanded and very attractive website. You will find a searchable list of science education events of all kinds throughout the U.S. Have a look at the COPUS website today!