The goal of the education and outreach activities on this research expedition is meant to inspire and motivate young African American scientists-to-be so we can insure a diverse pipeline to the scientific community with bright, enthusiastic minds for generations to come, and to provide scientific information in a format that is accessible.

There is an increasing awareness among scientists that we need to be more engaging with the public through outreach activities.   A recent Pew Research Center survey (2009) has indicated a widening gap between scientists, the process of science, and critical scientific peer evaluation and how the public perceives scientific issues such as global warming and evolution. It is therefore critical to bring science from scientists to the public in a way that is understandable and appealing, to generate interest by the public in order to narrow the gap in knowledge between what occurs in a scientific setting and how the public perceives scientific knowledge and the scientific process.