Good news: they’ve been given $10,000 by the Stiefel Freethought Foundation to improve science education for kids in low-income neighborhoods.
Ayanna Watson, President of BAAm, says she’s excited to get started in the fall. “We’re in the process of selecting nearly a dozen schools to donate equipment. We were able to give squid dissection kits, DVDs, and other materials to the students, allowing them to learn about their own waterways and wildlife. We want to do this kind of thing for other students around the country.”
Notice: Atheism + science → squid. It’s inevitable.
Great news!
I hope other organizations take notice and make their own donations for better education.
Of course, this should not be needed. All the basics (at least) should be covered by the government.
Squid dissection kits?
Makes sense. Squid have tentacles and neurones have tentacles so you can improve your intelligence by stuffing your head with squid.
Works for PZ
Wouldn’t squid worshipping kits be more appropriate?
A little aquarium, a little altar, some food shaped like humans …
Seriously, yay for the project and all involved.
Atheism + insert subject here (except peas or horses) → squid and cheese and bacon and MUSHROOMS!
Awesome stuff, go BAAm! :D.
We were lucky enough to do things like extract our own DNA(which is a great experiment to do with your own kids as you can use stuff around the house) to keep in a vial pendant on a necklace. We also got to use a powerful microscope, look at different pollens in different honeys and identify the species, to see if the flowers used by the bees were the ones the honey producers claimed they were on the jars. I would have exploded from glee if we had squid dissection kits.
The most effective science outreach I’ve seen has involved outer space, dinosaurs, and stuff blowing up. I’m not sure where squid fits in that list. But still, this is a good thing to be doing.
@blf: What are you cooking?? I’ve seen bacon added to calamari, and I suppose you could add some fried mushrooms and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano …
Squid dissection is the important process by which squid become thai salad.
Great to hear some good news here especially today.
Congrats BAAm. Good on ya and good wishes for the future.
(Raised beer salute.)
Great stuff, BAAm!
Excellent! Good for you, BAAm!
Congratulations Black Atheists of America! Way to go!
My fondest memory of Junior High is my Life Science class. As part of our travels through the different phyla of the animal kingdom, the teacher brought in fresh squid from the grocery store, we dissected it and learned some cool stuff about them. Then she plugged in a hotplate and proceeded to cook the squid and let anyone who wanted to have a taste. I wasn’t brave enough to try it, but I thought it was amazing that people actually ate squid. :)