Eureka! Discovering Science Philly Style

Thankfully, Brad Lidge is back in rare form. Watching the Phillies’ NLCS win over the Dodgers, I wondered how he hurls that nasty slider. My son, a pitcher, explained that it’s all about grip, arm angle and release point.

Every pitch is a lesson in science, which plays a key role in my teenager’s life—even if he denies it vehemently.

So today, I’m excited. Not only because our beloved Phillies have won it again, but because my child is finally accepting the importance of science. And because I get to tell that story for our great client, PNC, which just launched Grow Up Great with Science.

In another show of incredible corporate citizenship, the PNC Foundation is giving more than $500,000 to the Academy of Natural Sciences and The Franklin Institute for preschool science education. The money will send their experts into classrooms to aid teachers with preschool science lessons, and the kids’ families will get free admission to the science centers.

PNC is also funding the first planetarium show for preschoolers. Called One World, One Sky: Big Bird’s Adventure, it made its Philadelphia debut yesterday at the Fels Planetarium.

My older sister’s chemistry set was strictly off limits, but that never stopped me from sneaking her microscope, and asking why & how—questions I use every day as a PR pro. I might have grown up to be a creative type, but I’ve never lost the sense of wonder about the world around us.

After all, science is everywhere, from the Phightin’ Phils to a preschoolers’ classroom.
-Bev Volpe