 Our
Vision
What
To create a new, state-of-the-art science center and
visitor attraction that will inspire, amaze and engage
those who visit. A place like no other, where curiosity
is nurtured and discovery is rewarded -- a place where
we lose ourselves in the depths of the ocean and the
farthest reaches of space.
The goal is not to be another museum but a destination
where visitors will explore our earth, oceans and space
through deepening levels of involvement, ranging from
traditional gallery tours, to hands-on experiments,
to participation in activity-based "missions."
Why
INFINITY really aspires to be in the life-changing business. We have two target audiences. First are students. We believe the formula for attracting young people to science and engineering careers must include inspiration. There are many influences that steer and shape a young person’s career choices. INFINITY seeks to be one of those influences by providing inspiration, nurturing innate curiosity, and providing compelling role models through the scientists and engineers of the present generation who have spent their lives well making important discoveries.
The need to inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, technicians as well as the next generation of math and science teachers is real and desperate. The National Academy of Science’s committee report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future, (2007) lays out the urgency of this need.
Students from surrounding areas plan a moon tree
“Having reviewed trends in the United States and abroad, the committee is deeply concerned that the scientific and technological building blocks critical to our economic leadership are eroding at a time when many other nations are gathering strength. We strongly believe that a worldwide strengthening will benefit the world’s economy—particularly in the creation of jobs in countries that are far less well-off than the United States. But we are worried about the future prosperity of the United States. Although many people assume that the United States will always be a world leader in science and technology, this may not continue to be the case inasmuch as great minds and ideas exist throughout the world. We fear the abruptness with which a lead in science and technology can be lost—and the difficulty of recovering a lead once lost, if indeed it can be regained at all.”
The committee notes that the nation is unlikely to receive some sudden “wakeup call as was the case with the launching of Sputnik signaling the Soviet Union’s space technology superiority in the late fifties.” The problem is one that is likely to evidence itself gradually but over a surprisingly short period. In South Korea, 38% of all undergraduates receive their degrees in natural science or engineering. In France, the figure is 47%, in China, 50%, and in Singapore, 67%. In the United States, the corresponding figure is 15%.
For the first time in generations, our nation’s children could face poorer prospects than their parents and grandparents did. We owe our current prosperity, security, and good health to the investments of past generations.
In addition to inspiring the next generation of scientists, engineers and mathematicians, we must also work deliberately to inspire the next generation of teachers who will teach math and science. Laying a foundation for a scientifically literate workforce begins with developing outstanding K–12 teachers in science and mathematics. We believe INFINTY can play a critical role in helping to also inspire the next generation of math and science teachers.
The second target group is the general public. We must nurture a populace that will support national commitments to basic scientific research. Beginning in 2007, the most capable high-energy particle accelerator on Earth has, for the first time, been located in a country other than the United States. The danger exists that Americans may not know enough about science, technology, or mathematics to significantly contribute to, or fully benefit from, the knowledge-based society that is already taking shape around us. Moreover, most of us do not have enough understanding of the importance of those skills to encourage our children to study those subjects—both for their career opportunities and for their general benefit.
Our battle to regain scientific prowess is waged on two fronts. We must showcase the importance of scientific research and exploration in a way that the general public can “get it”. And, we believe INFINITY will be the kind of place where a student may walk in convinced that they are going to be a rock star; but after the experience, walk out saying, “I think I might like to study rocks—on the moon or Mars.” Jeffrey R. Immelt, Chairman and CEO of General Electric said, “If you want good manufacturing jobs, one thing you could do is graduate more engineers. We had more sports exercise majors graduate than electrical engineering grads last year.”
In Sync with Schools
The impact of INFINITY promises to be vast and will prove a vital learning experience for the millions who travel I-10, plus the school groups from throughout the tri-state region of Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. The project’s feasibility study indicates INFINITY would approximate over 350,000 annual visitors.
Fred Haise gives a tour during construction
INFINITY’s exhibitions will target the 296,000 primary and secondary school-age children who live within a 75-mile radius of the Science Center. The recent focus on STEM subjects (STEM= science, technology, engineering and math) in schools was born of the discouraging statistics across the United Statess, and Mississippi and Louisiana lag behind the national average.
INFINITY’s exhibitions are designed to work within the realities and constraints of the educational system. Bringing school children to INFINITY will not be an “extra”- curricular experience, but rather INFINITY is designed to be “on” curricular or co-curricular. After weeks of preparation prior to the visit to INFINITY, using materials supplied by INFINITY and in sync with the teachers’ science curriculum, students arrive ready to take on real science challenges. These “missions” investigate a particular phenomenon utilizing the scientific method. The class is divided into groups, each investigating one of several hypothesis. They gather data through intranet and internet connected workstations; they build models; they run experiments and they finally draw conclusions. The capstone of the experience is a docent-led (typically a retired volunteer scientist) discussion of the various hypotheses and why one may help us understand the phenomenon better than another.
On start up, INIFNITY will have six missions, two of which run each day:
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