PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF RESEARCH (PUR): IODP, MINNESOTA MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND JAPAN'S NATIONAL MUSEUM OF EMERGING SCIENCE AND INNOVATION (MIRAIKAN)

Effectively communicating to the public the sense of discovery and cooperation between scientists as they make new discoveries can be a daunting task. This is especially true when the science is as far from daily concerns as determining the formation and structure of ocean crust.

In February 2005, the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program United States Implementing Organization (USIO) and Joint Oceanographic Institutions (JOI) were invited by the Japan/US Public Understanding of Research (PUR) delegation to develop a cooperative pilot program designed to: 1) Expand the USIO's capacity for teacher research experiences to include both the US-sponsored drilling vessel (e.g. the JOIDES Resolution) and the Japanese drill ship, Chikyu, and 2) Link public audiences to Earth and ocean science research.

The successful pilot program took place on Expedition 312 in late 2005, the 3rd expedition to core at Site 1256 west of Panama. The goal of this drilling on fast-spreading ocean crust was to penetrate the extrusive layer and recover in situ gabbro, an objective of 40 years of scientific ocean drilling. This international expedition with representatives from 14 countries included 2 PUR educators, who were to: 1) Communicate shipboard Earth and ocean science activities to museum-based teacher, and 2) Translate shipboard experiences through various museum and/or classroom learning activities

The Science Museum of Minnesota (http://ltc.smm.org/buzz/museum/ocean_drilling) and Japan's National Museum Of Emerging Science and Innovation, (http://www.miraikan.jst.go.jp/e/miraikan/) were the participating institutions. The US sailed a geoscience professor with extensive ocean drilling experience. The Japanese participant was a museum educator with a background in biology and no experience with ocean drilling. The US scientists spoke no Japanese and the Japanese scientist limited English. Although the language barrier hampered collaboration between the educators, a larger barrier was the difference in background. The lack of geoscience background for the Japanese educator provided both humor and awareness of the daunting task for geoscience education through his question, “Is gabbro something you eat?” Geoscientists need to continue to place a priority on communicating their science to the general public.