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PEOPLE Retired paleontologist pens novel for children Keeping sciences torch burning T BY SEAN he miniature model rocket exploded on the launchpad with a thun derous bang followed by an eerie silence Thats when the dogs began barking York Region author and retired paleontologist Chris McGowan said he still vividly recalls the various science experiments he attempted in the back yard as a child growing up in England He was bitten by the science bug at an early age I wasnt all that successful with those and more often the rockets simply became explosives he said with a laugh I remember the dogs barking and then my old mom stuck her head out the window to see what was left of me but of course I was fine because Id set it off with a fuse Despite the occasional misad venture Mr McGowan never lost his love for science and learning new things He was especially fond of animals and attempted to get into veterinary college but instead wound up obtaining a degree in zoology It may just have been a bless ing in disguise Mr McGowan says thoughtfully I really dont know how long I would have been happy using rectal thermometers on peoples dogs and cats he says Mr McGowan fell in love with zoology but discovered after grad uation the field offers very few avenues for employment Eventu ally he found a niche and became a teacher at a high school close to London Almost everything about it I liked but the thing that drove me batty was the staff room he said adding a number of his colleagues at the time were focused on the wrong aspects of the profession People sometimes ask me if I miss teaching and I think that what I miss the most is the teaching I did at the University of Toronto While still holding down a full- time teaching job Mr McGowan began doing his PhD in paleontol ogy It was quite a workload he said especially given it wasnt long after he started that he and his wife Liz had their first child He earned his PhD and then set about trying to find employment in his newly chosen field As it turned out he quickly found out the openings for paleontologists were about as common as those for zoologists Still Mr McGowan persevered and kept applying for positions at museums and universities around the globe He returned home from one interview to find a telegram from the Royal Ontario Museum wait- ing for him heralding an offer of STAFF PHOTOSUSIE Retired paleontologist Chris McGowan has penned a new novel he hopes will encourage young readers to remain interested in science employment He hadnt actually applied for a position at the ROM but had instead applied to the University of Toronto At the time the two institu tions were linked and his resume had been passed along from the university to the museum So at that Mr McGowan made the move to Canada in 1969 and started working at the ROM All in all the job at the ROM proved to be a dream come true he said I thought Im going to get paid to do research to work on saurs and Im going to get to build a new gallery Mr McGowan said I thought This is going to be fun And it was Over the years Mr McGowan It seems like were on the Titanic and thinking that blue bins and curly light bulbs will save the day Chris McGowan author had a long and prosperous career writing numerous books doing field work and also branched into teaching at U of T It was this latter pursuit that brought him some of the greatest joy he said Now retired the 25year York Region resident still digs the past but is most concerned with the future namely what he describes as the dumbingdown of scientific education All too often students seem to be taught solely from the textbook without the benefit of performing the handson type of experiments that were so crucial to his own edu cation growing up he said Lthink the only way to under- stana it is to do it Mr McGowan says Enter Abacus Mr McGowans first novel whose 12yearold pro tagonist discovers a timetravelling device that allows him and his sister to visit historical periods Throughout the book he puts to use his scientific knowhow to solve problems To the ancients however his science appears as nothing short Mr McGowan and his Abacus Extrav aganza science show will be at the Royal Ontario Museum from March 13 to 19 at 11am noon 1 30 pm and 230 pm daily The ROM is at 100 Queens Park and the show is free with admission To learn more about Abacus visit abacusadventurecom and to purchase the book go to amazonca or chapters indigoca of sorcery Its a story more than 10 years in the making he said We were driving up to a cottage in 1999 and Liz worked at Scholas tic then and I just started to lay out the whole plot Mr McGowan said Liz said This is a good idea you should really do something with it Mr McGowan took the encour agement to heart and during the past decade did extensive research into the various time periods that would be featured in the novel It went through various incarnations and Mr McGowan also took the unorthodox step of having students at Recency Acres Public School and St Andrews College read an early draft and provide feedback Im very interested in history and Ive actually been to all of the places Ive written about Mr McGowan said Im not doing it secondhand To keep with the theme of pro moting handson science educa tion Mr McGowan has created a section at the back of the book where readers can follow steps to duplicate the science employed in the story With luck Abacus will be the first book in a series he said And that would suit him just fine With Abacus now finished Mr McGowan isnt about to just rest on his laurels as has another book on paleontology due out next year Ultimately it will be the youth who will have to contend with the challenges facing the environment today and that makes ensuring they get good science education all the more vital he added It concerns me that it seems like were on the Titanic and thinking that blue bins and curry light bulbs will save the day Mr McGowan said adding the number of species threatened with extinction is ter rifying Its the kids who are going to make the difference I see that spark in my grandchildren and I know they get it but I also know that by age 12 to that spark could get extinguished unless theres some thing there to keep it going