We applaud the first-ever USA Science & Engineering Festival, to be held October 10-24 in Washington, D.C., not only because it gives young people a way to celebrate and learn about science in a new way, but because its organizers tested the idea with a “pilot” festival held last year in our own home state, California.
Today, as much as ever, there’s a need for students to study the “hard” sciences that contribute to basic research, to new products and breakthrough innovations that go beyond the flashy world of consumer electronics and software. Festivals like this one are common in other countries, particularly Europe, where young people are exposed in entertaining and hands-on ways to the exciting possibilities of science and engineering.
An event like this honors the sciences as much as we honor art, or sports. It’s the kind of inspiration that can lead students into careers that benefit future generations in lasting ways, and can help keep America competitive in hotly-contested global markets, where a nation’s technical and scientific brainpower can be its best advantage.
