Why America\u27s Failing Science & How We Can Turn It Around

The STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) drive America’s economy: it’s no accident that Apple, a tech company, is the world’s biggest corporation. Science and technology fuel the country’s commerce, defense, and business. But American test scores, graduation rates, and STEM dominance have been declining steadily for 20 years. Fewer than a third of elementary and high school students have a solid grasp of science. Half of American college students start out majoring in a technical subject, but somehow, only 470, 000 graduate in those majors. What’s going on? And how can we compete if we don’t fix the situation, fast? In this fascinating, cutting-edge presentation, David Pogue looks at our chances for turning around America’s science future. Bio David Pogue is the anchor columnist for Yahoo Tech, having been groomed for the position by 13 years as the personal-technology columnist for the New York Times. He’s also a monthly columnist for Scientific American and host of science shows on PBS’s “NOVA.” He’s been a correspondent for “CBS Sunday Morning” since 2002. With over 3 million books in print, David is one of the world’s bestselling how-to authors. He wrote or co-wrote seven books in the “for Dummies” series (including Macs, Magic, Opera, and Classical Music); in 1999, he launched his own series of complete, funny computer books called the Missing Manual series, which now includes 120 titles. David graduated summa cum laude from Yale in 1985, with distinction in Music, and he spent ten years conducting and arranging Broadway musicals in New York. He’s won two Emmy awards, two Webby awards, a Loeb award for journalism, and an honorary doctorate in music. He’s been profiled on “48 Hours” and “60 Minutes.” He lives in Connecticut with his wife and three children. His web site is davidpogue.com