Margaret Lowman, who also goes by the nickname “Canopy Meg,” is chief of science and sustainability at the California Academy of Sciences. Her research focuses on life and ecosystems at the top of the forest canopy in far-flung places, including the Amazon and Ethiopia.
In a Google Science Fair Hangout On Air conversation with me, she discusses how she became fascinated with what is happening at the tops of trees, what kinds of studies she has done on her treetop walkways and with hot-air observation balloons and other new technologies, her hardest challenge as a researcher (hint: it’s not what you’d think), and how kids can make a positive difference in ecosystem health and awareness.
Mariette DiChristina, Steering Group chair, is dean and professor of the practice in journalism at the Boston University College of Communication. She was formerly editor in chief of Scientific American and executive vice president, Magazines, for Springer Nature. Follow Mariette DiChristina on Twitter Credit: Nick Higgins
Meet the Science in Action Finalists, Part 3: Wearable sensors to aid the aging, a device that helps people with developmental disabilities communicate, and converting wasted heat from a kitchen stove into electricity
