YEAR ONE OF 'TREE TIME' AT INDIANA UNIVERSITY'S SCIFEST

"Did you know that paleontologists study more than dinosaurs?" This question served as the starting conversation for the 'Tree Time’ activity table at the Science Festival (SciFest) on Indiana University's Bloomington campus. It invited children, teenagers, and adults of all ages to examine their preconceived notions of paleontology and learn about dendrochronology, the study of tree rings through time. All participants were asked to write the year they were born on a flag and place it on the corresponding aged ring on the 'tree time' poster. It facilitated the introduction of the varied information provided by the characteristics of tree rings, specifically examples of how they can record droughts, fires, and insect infestations, through smaller rings, fire scars, and insect scars respectively. The vast majority of participants (~40%) were ten years old or younger, while the 21 to 30 year-old demographic was least represented at the event (~6%). This poster presents the first year's data for 'Tree Time' and discusses how participation in this activity may serve to establish an outreach activity focused on dendrochronological education that can grow through assimilation of data on a year-by-year basis. Future years of this activity will be augmented with further examples of ancient, fossil tree rings, petrified wood, and modern trees and the connection they form between the present and the past.