In Dallas this past June, everyone knew when the Mavericks won the NBA Championship. Children sported jerseys of their favorite Mavericks players, visitors to Dallas from all over the globe mentioned the Mavericks in their small talk, and teens congratulated the Mavs in their facebook statuses.
This past October, Dr. Bruce A. Beutler, director of the Center for the Genetics of Host Defense at UT Southwestern, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (he actually shared it with two other guys). A Nobel Laureate so close to home, yet who wore a buttoned-up shirt or tie with "Beutler" printed on it? Who mentioned his achievements in understanding the immune system in their small talk? Who posted facebook statuses about him?
The sad reality is, people are increasingly lacking enthusiasm for accomplishments in science, technology (with the exception of anything related to the latest Apple product), engineering, and mathematics--also known collectively as STEM subjects. In academia itself, really.
