Post by Eric Palkovacs

On this 250th Fourth of July, it is worth remembering that science has always been part of the American story. 🇺🇸 🗝️⚡ Benjamin Franklin was both a founding father and one of the most famous scientists of his time. Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark west not only to explore, but to observe, document, and learn. Abraham Lincoln created the National Academy of Sciences in the middle of the Civil War. Theodore Roosevelt used science to conserve America's public lands. For 250 years, the pursuit of knowledge through observation, evidence, and discovery has been one of America’s defining traditions. Science is not separate from the American story. It is woven into it. Image: Benjamin West's "Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky" (c. 1816), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons