Let’s start with the good!

It’s pretty tough to keep up with all the media coverage of swine flu, but a few standouts from recently deserve mention here.

First, from the Daily Show.  I was so, so happy when this came on that I had to do a few laps around the living room.  Hooray for John Stewart and all the writers on the Daily Show.

Way to be, Daily Show.

Then there’s Amy Wallace’s Wired article, which many of you have probably already seen, but it was so great that it should just get even more attention.  Wallace outlines the history of the anti-vaccine movement’s “War on Science,” interviews Paul Offit, and even offers a basic lesson in skepticism: » Continue reading “The Good, The Bad, and the Frustrating”

So many posts to write, so little time. But enjoy this little gem in the meantime.

As I’m sure most parents have now heard, Southwest Airlines flight attendants kicked a cranky two-year old child off their plane last week. Mother and son were flying together from Amarillo, Texas to San Jose, California, and the toddler started shouting and crying before the plane took off.

Pamela Root’s 2-year-old son was screaming for the Southwest Airlines plane to “Go! Plane! Go!”

“I want Daddy!” Adam shouted. Over and over again.

Despite her embarrassment, the stay-at-home San Jose mom remained confident that once the plane took off and she fed him, Adam would calm down and take a nap–just as he had on the half-dozen other plane rides with Mom.

The flight crew wasn’t willing to find out.

Many parents have expressed outrage over this. But, I’m a little surprised at this mother. She couldn’t give the kid a few small snacks to keep him quiet before takeoff? He’s hungry, in a strange space, and screaming, and she decides not to give him anything. Huh? I’m assuming they were not the only two passengers on the plane. Did the mother not care at all about anyone else around them? I’m not saying the airline should have kicked them off the flight, but come on, lady. When it was obvious her son wasn’t calming down, her common sense should have kicked in. Giving him something small may have distracted him and prevented the whole episode. Instead, she was asked to de-plane and then had to spend additional funds for an unexpected night in Texas.

Traveling with kids is exhausting and challenging. I have taken many flights with my two small girls and most have gone well. However, I’ve had others that were a bit rough. On every single flight, though, I have done absolutely everything in my power to keep my kids entertained and quiet. That included snacks and treats I wouldn’t normally let them have, more videos than they normally watch in one day, schlepping books and toys, and breaking out my own entertainment repertoire that involved everything short of standing on my head. It’s not always perfect, but I gave it my all.

Yes, it is our right as parents to bring our children with us on trips. But, it’s also our responsibility to minimize any disruption to the other passengers. It seems pretty rude to expect everyone else on board to wait it out while the parent does nothing.

Let’s hear what you think. How do you keep your kids happy during travels?

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It’s the crazy irony of modern Astronomy: While we’re seeing more and more amazing pictures from space telescopes, we have less and less connection with the night sky in our daily lives. Since we’re surrounded by constant outdoor lighting, the constellations are no longer familiar patterns, but have become something we learn about in books or on the Internet.

Astronomers have been making an effort to rebuild the connection — especially for kids — that these gorgeous astronomy pictures you see on the Internet are just more detailed images of things that you can see yourself with your own eyes. During the “100 Hours of Astronomy” (which I wrote about here), my kids and I got to see Saturn through a telescope for the first time! And, let me tell you, it’s an exciting experience to look at a dot of light in the sky, learn that it’s actually Saturn, and then see with your own eyes (through a telescope) that it really has rings, just like the pictures! Ditto for seeing the details of the moon (which we also saw that day), and seeing the moons and surface stripes of Jupiter (which we saw at a recent public observing at Princeton University)!!

But what about kids and parents who aren’t aware of such opportunities? Who might be inspired by seeing the planets through a telescope, but just haven’t thought of it? Well, that’s where Halloween comes in!! » Continue reading “Best Halloween Idea Ever!”