Happy Pride Month, friends.  Here are some LGBTQ+ folks who are doing great work in science right now.

John Pham is a molecular biologist.  He is the editor-in-chief of the well-respected science journal Cell.  He has been recognized for the major role he has played in making the journal more inclusive.

Joan Roughgarden is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist.  She is considered to be the most notable trans scientist in American history.  She has engaged in theory and observation of the Anolis lizards of the Carribean.

Jack Andraka created an early testing system for pancreatic cancer when he was just 15 years old.  His sensor system, similar to diabetic test strips, won the Gordon E. Moore award in 2012.

Biologist Rochelle Diamond is the Director of the California Institute of Technology’s Flow Cytometry and Cell Sorting Shared Resource Laboratory.  She has been an activist for LGBTQ+ rights since being forced out of a professional role due to extremely homophobic behavior from a lab colleague.

Gregg Gonsalves is a global health activist and epidimiologist.  He is best known for his work on AIDS and HIV research.

Jeanne Marazzo is an physician-scientist and infectious disease specialist.  She is the sixth director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious disease.  She is considered to be an expert in HIV prevention.

Jay Keasling is a professor of chemical engineering and bioengineering.  He is considered one of the foremost authorities in synthetic biology.

While on the ISS, astronauts spend months in space doing science experiments and maintaining the space station.  But before they become astronauts, everyone on the ISS had another job.  Here are the people who are currently on the ISS and what they did before (and sometimes during) their time as astronauts.

Did you know that your local planetarium probably organizes star gazing parties?  In fact, Clark Planetarium in Salt Lake City has all kinds of cool events going on for kids this summer.  Most of the events take place at the planetarium, and you can check out their schedule here.  But the next Star Party is this Friday at Flight Park in Draper, UT!

This will be an all ages event.  Space is limited, so please register ahead of time with the planetarium!  Keep checking the schedule for more cool activities.  If you aren't local to Utah, see where the nearest planetarium is to you and let us know what they have going on for kids!

Happy summer break, everyone!  We have vacation on our minds (and STAR Camp, of course!).  The ocean is one of Earth's last unexplored frontiers.  The ocean is still a huge mystery to us!  We have only explored about five percent of the ocean.  It is tricky because it is difficult to design technology that can withstand the pressure exerted by ocean water.

Here are some ocean-themed STEM activities that you can try!

Ocean Currents
What you'll need:
9x13 inch glass dish (or something similar)
Ice pack or baggie with ice in it
Food coloring
Water

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