In our quest to bring you interesting virtual experiences during this Covid pandemic, we have planned a wonderful talk on Thursday, October 1, 2020 at noon via Zoom.
Michal Meyer is the editor of Distillations Magazine at the Science History Institute, and she will be giving a talk on DDT entitled “Communicating Risk: DDT Past & Present”. She will give a 30 minute talk and can then take questions. Her talk includes many images from the Science History Institute’s collections and tells the story of DDT.
If you would like to attend the Zoom meeting, please go to this link: http://bit.ly/SCALACS-DDT
The link takes you to the RSVP page, where you can register to attend. Once registered, you will be given the meeting link and an opportunity to add it to your calendar. You will also receive an email confirmation with the video meeting link.
Here is Dr. Meyer’s biography and abstract:
Biography: Michal Meyer grew up in Israel, Australia and New Zealand. As an undergraduate she studied physics and then joined the New Zealand Meteorological Service as a weather forecaster. Forecasting was followed by a stint in journalism, which was followed by a PhD in the history of science and then a job as editor of Distillations magazine at the Science History Institute in Philadelphia.
Abstract: There are many people today who understand DDT in one dimensional terms, who, if they think about it, view it as the chemical essence of evil, a stand in for all that has been problematic with our relationship with the natural world. However, DDT has had a three dimensional past, one that involves scientists, advertisers, mothers, gardeners, and others. I will be exploring how risk was understood by these different groups from the creation of DDT as an insecticide to its banning via the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.