11 March 2014

Calling for Science-Themed Limericks: Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Style!

Posted by Olivia Ambrogio

By Olivia V. Ambrogio

Sure, some people use it as an excuse to wear green, pinch those not wearing green, or drink themselves into a stupor—but we know that the best way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day is to write a science-themed limerick—and get it featured on The Plainspoken Scientist.

Those intrepid souls ready to craft a clever paean to science or a funny phrasing of facts will have their works posted on this blog on St. Patrick’s Day (Monday, 17 March)—where they will, of course, achieve instant fame.

Those unfamiliar with the genre can find a quick definition of the form here. And if you need some inspiring examples, look no further:

Storm clouds are hard to explain – The thunder, the hail and the rain! Converging air rises, Increasing cloud sizes, Zeus is out playing again. -- Mary Catherine Adams, Public Information Specialist at AGU. Photo by NASA.

Storm clouds are hard to explain –
The thunder, the hail and the rain!
Converging air rises,
Increasing cloud sizes,
Zeus is out playing again.
— Mary Catherine Adams, Public Information Specialist at AGU. Photo by NASA.

Ice Cap

Debating the climate’s inane
The ice caps are starting to drain.
With seas ever higher
And deserts now drier,
It’s time for a science campaign!
— Erik Hankin, Public Affairs Coordinator at AGU. Photo by NASA.

So contact your muse, get in touch with your poetic side, and get writing! (We also encourage the submission of a non-copyrighted image to accompany your limerick.)

Please send your limericks to me by Fri., March 14. Include your name and, if you’ve sent a photo/image, permission to use it. (The nitty-gritty on visuals: If you are not the person who created the image, you must provide us with the creator’s permission to post the image. Also, if it is a photograph and someone other than you is featured, we need permission from the person featured in the photo in order to post it.)

– Olivia Ambrogio is an AGU Strategic Communications Specialist and coordinator of AGU’s Expert Outreach Network