Join the Boise State Physics Department on Friday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m. in the Science and Education Building, room 112, to hear Dr. Abigail Sheffer, a Senior Program Officer of the Space Studies Board of the National Academy of Sciences, speak about how science can be used to inform policy in today’s complex and often contradictory environment.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide expert advice on some of the most pressing challenges facing the nation and the world. This work helps shape sound policies, inform public opinion, and advance the pursuit of science, engineering, and medicine.
Dr. Sheffer is a senior program officer for the Space Studies Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. In fall 2009, Dr. Sheffer served as a Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Graduate Fellow for the National Academies and then joined the SSB. Since coming to the Academies, she has been the staff officer and study director on a variety of activities spanning a range of space science disciplines and policy topics, including solar and space physics, Earth imaging, small spacecraft developments, education, and planetary science. Dr. Sheffer earned her Ph.D. in planetary science from the University of Arizona and A.B. in geosciences from Princeton University.
At 8:30 p.m. after the presentation, weather permitting, we will stargaze on the rooftop of the Science and Education Building at the newly refurbished Boise State Observatory — guests are warned the observatory is not handicap-accessible, so telescopes will also be set out on the plaza in front of the building.
The event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited; attendees are encouraged to arrive early.
Map of the Science and Education Building (SCNC)