Time to Nerd Out
Back on my old website, I wanted to acknowledge why I chose the domain name “STEMpirecentral.com”. When I first decided to start a website, it was still back in the day when most classroom teachers didn’t have a dedicated online presence, and I felt like I was pretty progressive for starting my own to host class materials. I agonized for a long time over what my website name should be. A good friend of mine suggested “STEMpire”, since I was gunning for a nerdy pun on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and I loved her suggestion, especially since it made me immediately think of Star Wars too.
As the years have gone by, teacher websites have become commonplace (and mostly mandatory, actually) and I’m not even a classroom teacher right now. But my business cards still say “www.stempirecentral.com”, so by golly, I’m keeping the name. Below is a really heartfelt piece I wrote a while back to give a further explanation for the name. It’s cheesy as hell and I almost didn’t want to post it, but I figure this will just add to my motivation to be prolific with my blog posts so this one gets buried quickly.
“Welcome to the STEMpire, Alison’s awkwardly earnest attempt at having an online presence that also doubles as public proof that science teachers can’t resist lame puns and plays on words. So, where does the name "STEMpire" come from, anyway? It developed over time as her way of thinking about the role of educators as actively recruiting for membership in a society of shared values.
Unlike the Ottoman or Galactic Empires, the STEMpire has no physical boundaries, or even a flag or currency. It's simply the collection of folks who are united by a deep appreciation for the STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics). They don’t have to be professional scientists or engineers, just people who care about critical thinking, logical reasoning, and using science and technology for the betterment of humanity.
The STEMpire exists wherever these people are, and maybe you’re realizing you’re already a member! As a STEM communicator and educator, Alison has spent her career doing her best to enlist new citizens and expand the realm of the STEMpire in opposition to the anti-science sentiments that continue to have an alarmingly significant influence on our modern society.”
This explanation was always accompanied by the following Carl Sagan quote. Hoo boy, I’m glad he’s not around today to see the state of things…
"I have a foreboding of an America in my children's or grandchildren's time -- when the United States is a service and information economy; when nearly all the manufacturing industries have slipped away to other countries; when awesome technological powers are in the hands of a very few, and no one representing the public interest can even grasp the issues; when the people have lost the ability to set their own agendas or knowledgeably question those in authority; when, clutching our crystals and nervously consulting our horoscopes, our critical faculties in decline, unable to distinguish between what feels good and what's true, we slide, almost without noticing, back into superstition and darkness." ~ Carl Sagan