Saturday, January 7, 2017

[Yasmin_discussions] A is Athletics in STEAM and a call for amphibians

yasminers
ramon guardans are you lurking ?

happy new year- the STEM to STEAM discussion has been very active
and I look forward to working with the discussants to carry these debates
forward over the next few weeks-

email discussion lists are problematical compared to face to face discussions
and i would just mention that Paul Thomas is organising a STEM to STEAM
workshop at the Balance UnBalance conference in plymouth UK this year:
aug 21-23 http://i-dat.org/balance-unbalance-2017/

Clearly one of the problems we have as we carry this discussion
further is emphasized
by Ken and a number of others is that we need more conceptual clarity about
what the focus ( conceptual, metaphorical, epistemological, terminological)

I just read this wonderful article in Science magazine by Elisabeth
Pennisi about the realisation
that many many species actually hybridise and old ideas of species not
interbreeding needs to be rethought

Elizabeth Pennisi, Science 18 Nov 2016:, Vol. 354, Issue 6314, pp.
817-821, DOI: 10.1126/science.354.6314.817

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/354/6314/817


In 2010 a comparison between a Neandertal genome and genomes from
people today turned up evidence of ancient liaisons, a discovery that
belied the common idea that animal species can't hybridize or, if they
do, will produce infertile offspring—think mules. Such reproductive
isolation is part of the classic definition of a species. This
discovery brought credence to other work in plants, Darwin's finches
in the Galápagos Islands, tropical butterflies, mosquitoes, and a few
other animals showing that hybridization was not just common, but also
important in shaping evolution. The techniques that revealed the
Neandertal and Denisovan legacy in our own genome are now making it
possible to peer into the genomic histories of many organisms to check
for interbreeding. As more examples are discovered, researchers are
questioning the definition of species and rethinking whether the tree
of life is really a "net" of life.

Perhaps at the metaphor level we have a similar problem that when
think disciplines we think tree of knowledge-
when the STEM to STEAM movement is led by hybrids and ambphibians ( to
switch metaphors)- and yes indeed a net of knowledge ( i dont know if
ramon guardans is lurking in this discussion- but as biologist he
warns us about false transfer of metaphors and analogies between the
biological sciences and human behaniour)

just to amuse you this STEAM + space + Athletics was brought
to my attention

https://spacegamesfederation.com/about-us/

Beginning with an inaugural Space Games Challenge launching in the
fall of 2016, SGF invites competitors of all ages, genders, and levels
of ability or disability to design and develop their own games to be
played in zero gravity. This is the extraordinary new world in which
games like Quidditch become a reality. Submissions will be judged and
voted on, with finalists vying for the ultimate grand prize of
Official Space Game, to kick off the very first season of league
selection and game play.

https://spacegamesfederation.com/about-us/

clearly developing games and sports for outer space can only be developed
with STEAM approaches !


Roger F Malina

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