Experts in the Field
Are your students studying standards that have you stumped for substance? Could you cultivate some kicking content with Curatorial Collaboration? Then consider a Videoconference Connection with The Cleveland Museum of Natural History and let your class learn from real scientists! This series of 40-minute Q & A sessions with our Collections and Research staff will allow you access to the inside scoop on science today.
Cost: $120, 40-minute program.
Scheduled as experts' time permits; we recommend you call with a month's notice for us to arrange the program.
Today's Offerings of Experts and Topics:
Dinosaurs
Dr. Michael Ryan, Coordinator of Research and Curator and Head of
Vertebrate Paleontology
Meet a real dinosaur hunter who travels the world to research Late Cretaceous dinosaurs. Do your students like ceratopsian (horned) dinosaurs? Dr. Ryan has identified and named several new horned dinosaurs. Check out his blog for more…
David Chapman, Casting Technician, CMNH Vertebrate Paleontology Casting Lab
When you visit a museum and see spectacular skeletons towering over your head, do you wonder where they come from? David Chapman has been part of the Casting Lab team since 1986, and his talents amaze our visitors every day. His work involves art and science combined!
Birds
Dr. Andy Jones, Curator and Head of Ornithology
One of Dr. Jones' special interests is using museum specimens and DNA sequences to understand the evolutionary history of birds. He also invites participants to discuss with him the spectacle of migration. Our feathered friends find their way for thousands of miles without a map or GPS! Gather a flock of students and find out how they manage this feat.
Insects
Dr. Joe Hannibal, Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology
Joe Hannibal is offering a program on "Extreme Arthropods." Hannibal specializes in researching some of the gigantic invertebrates that crept and crawled around our world before reptiles and mammals got around to trying out extreme body sizes. Tracks of an 8-foot myriapod from New Mexico? He's studied them. Dr. Hannibal is a highly entertaining speaker, having presented numerous short courses, workshops, and field trips for professional geologists, teachers, students, and the general public.
Rocks and Minerals
Dr. David Saja, Curator and Head of Mineralogy
Do your students dig the discovering of rocks and minerals and smashing open their physical properties, or does this topic leave them stone cold? Dr. Saja can walk you through the identification of common rock and rock-forming minerals to help understand the world around us. Knowing the structure of rocks helps engineers build buildings, and knowing the chemistry of rocks and minerals helps botanists grow plants. Find out how mineralogy can help artists, medical doctors, crime-scene detectives, historical preservationists, potters, and even contestants on "Survivor"!
Humans
Ann DuFresne, Associate Curator of Archaeology
Ann DuFresne offers your students a healthy serving of information about Prehistoric Ohio Indians, bringing selections from our teaching collections to the conference. How were people able to live in ancient Ohio and get all of their food, clothing, and shelter from the environment around them? How do the museum's archaeological collections reveal answers to these questions?
Mark Kollecker, Youth Programs Coordinator, Science Instructor,
Archaeologist and Flint-Knapper
Mark Kollecker has extensive experience in the prehistoric and historic archaeology of Ohio and surrounding states. He has instructed many students and adults on digs throughout the area. To better understand prehistoric lifeways, Kollecker became interested in experimental archaeology. Today he is proficient in flint-knapping, coiled basketry, cordage making using natural fibers, brain tanning of hides, and a variety of ancient weapons including the atlatl (a spear throwing device), blow gun and sling. Kollecker believes that there is no better way to learn about ancient peoples than to try your hand at doing the things they did in their everyday lives. Kollecker was featured in the News-Herald demonstrating the ancient art of making stone tools. Click here to see Mark in action!
Dr. Jeff Day, Junior Medical Camp Coordinator and Health Educator
Dr. Day is an enthusiastic science educator with broad interests including health, natural history and art. After graduating from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Day was excited to meld all these interests with the Museum. Some of his interesting sidebars include the publication of a children's book on dangerous wildlife that he authored and illustrated (Don't Touch That!), studying native plant medicine in Hawaii, and spending a year in Australia learning zoology and volunteering for wildlife surveys. Dr. Day has developed programs on the Natural History of the Flu, guided virtual dissections and discussions on the heart, brains, and eyes, and is a highly skilled videoconference presenter with CMNH.