More signs of the end times...

[jay]

Pop star Lance Bass of NSYNC will serve as World Space Week 2003 Youth Spokesperson to promote science and math education. Um... what's the connection, again? Other than he has $25M available to buy a Soyuz ticket?

Comments

[brooksmoses]

Well, apparently at least some youth are predisposed to listen to him -- which is probably a good aspect in a youth spokesperson. :)

I suspect that if the intent is to interest kids who aren't already interested, it's probably more important than having actual expertise -- the kids who will be impressed (or, for that matter, even interested) by expertise are already sold on the matter. This is for the kids who think math and science is boring, and who would automatically tune out anyone who seemed sufficiently different from them to be making a living at it.

And apparently Lance is at least interested enough to take the job; I can't imagine it pays well at the rates he's used to....

[archway.livejournal.com]

Well, there IS that $25M.

Personally, I don't think I would worry about the kids that will be put-off by Lance Bass. They are intelligent enough to understand he is simply a face guy. (Let's be frank. America rallied once around a monkey for NASA, too!)

I think they chose him for the young girls. By the time most girls are in 5th grade, there is a frightening number of them that lose interest in science and math. This is the same age range that will take note of NSYNC. It may be a shallow spark, but it is a spark nonetheless.