Thomas Edison Assemblies and the Future of America

Thomas Edison and Science Assemblies

  Wow! I just finished reading a fascinating article on Thomas Edison in a recent issue of Time Magazine devoted to the great inventor. Did you know that Edison patented more than 1000 mechanisms and processes?

  The article makes some interesting points about inventiveness and America and our future. The writer asserts that throughout the history of the United States, from Ben Franklin all the way up to the computer geeks of Silicon Valley, one of our strongest assets has been our ability to innovate and invent within the scientific world. But he also goes on to mention that we are in danger of losing this competitive edge.

  While nations like South Korea and Japan are investing heavily in research and development, the percentage of our GNP devoted to R&D is actually declining. And while Japan and China are graduating science and engineering majors at rates of 63% and 53% our own rate of graduation in those fields has fallen to less than 40%. Half the doctorates awarded in engineering and science in the United States in 2007 went to foreign nationals, and this number is growing!

  The point is that we losing interest in the very things that allowed our country to grow strong.

  As parents and educators, it is important to try and shape an interest in our children in the world of science. And science is exciting! School assembly programs showing real science in a positive, fun and awesome light can motivate kids to think about these fields as possible career paths. Chemistry and Physics offer very entertaining and extremely exciting demonstration
opportunities to amaze kids and dazzle them with possibilities. From the freezing world of Liquid Nitrogen to the explosive nature of chemical combinations, the world of chemistry is a fertile breeding ground for the imagination of children. And what young boy or girl can resist the siren call of a Van der Graaf generator as it summons the force of static electricity to stand their hair on end?

Similarly, school assemblies focusing on the lives of great inventors like Thomas Edison and Ben Franklin and examining the enthusiasm they shared for the joys of experimenting, discovering and creating, may similarly motivate children to explore these areas themselves.

  Too often, science and history are thought of in today's culture as “boring”, when, in fact, they can be truly exciting. When presented by talented and professional performers, assemblies dealing with these subjects can be awesome motivational tools!