More than 2,000 science enthusiasts flocked to campus on Saturday, March 31, for the first Science for March, a celebration of science held on Beckman Mall and featuring outdoor booths and learning stations as well as indoor lectures on seismology, microscopes, space exploration, antibiotic resistance, and other science topics.
Sponsored by the Caltech Postdoctoral Association; the Graduate Student Council; the Center for Teaching, Learning, & Outreach; and other campus affiliates, the inaugural event aimed to make science more accessible to the local community, especially students in grades K–12.
Tara Mastro, a postdoctoral scholar in biology and biological engineering and co-organizer of the event, says it accomplished its goal of engaging the curiosity of visitors, adding that it was especially rewarding to hear "people in the community asking meaningful questions about the concepts we were presenting. … The event was a huge success."
![Participating groups, including several from campus and JPL as well as the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Pasadena City College, and the Los Angeles Zoo, hosted dozens of booths.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT244.width-450.jpg)
![Science for March participant Stella Cook stops to watch a demonstration of Caltech's bipedal robot Cassie at the March 31 event.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT199_-_Stella_Cook.width-450.jpg)
![Alexa and Sasha Boronda were among thousands of visitors to participate in hands-on demonstrations and explore educational booths.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT152-Alexa_and_Sasha_Boronda.width-450.jpg)
![K-12 students, including Ethan Chin, above, got a chance to conduct a wide variety of experiments at the event.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT150-Ethan_Chin.width-450.jpg)
![Participating groups, including several from campus and JPL as well as the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Pasadena City College, and the Los Angeles Zoo, hosted dozens of booths.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT244.max-1400x800.jpg)
![Science for March participant Stella Cook stops to watch a demonstration of Caltech's bipedal robot Cassie at the March 31 event.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT199_-_Stella_Cook.max-1400x800.jpg)
![Alexa and Sasha Boronda were among thousands of visitors to participate in hands-on demonstrations and explore educational booths.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT152-Alexa_and_Sasha_Boronda.max-1400x800.jpg)
![K-12 students, including Ethan Chin, above, got a chance to conduct a wide variety of experiments at the event.](https://caltech-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/main/images/CT150-Ethan_Chin.max-1400x800.jpg)