Top 5 STEM Inspiring Movies
The weekend’s just around the corner, so for today’s blog post we thought it would be fun to make a Top 5 list of movies focusing on STEM topics that can inspire interest in the topic in viewers young and old alike. So, in no particular order:
Apollo 13: From director Ron Howard, this dramatization of the failed Apollo 13 lunar mission stars Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon as the three astronauts on the ill-fated expedition. A love letter to American ingenuity and space exploration, it offers an inspirational tale of what scientists and mathematicians can accomplish.
Jurassic Park: Steven Spielberg’s dinosaur epic still packs a wallop more than 20 years later. The much imitated story about an exclusive theme park where guests can see real living dinosaurs can raise interest in two different STEM fields. All the talk of cloning dinosaurs can inspire an interest in genetics, while the two archaeologist leads have captured many viewers’ imaginations. Laura Dern’s down-to-Earth Dr. Ellie Sattler has already become something of a role model for women in the field.
A Beautiful Mind: Another from director Ron Howard. This biopic of the esteemed mathematician and Nobel laureate John Nash from his college years through his cryptology work for the Pentagon to his recieving the Nobel Prize in Economics, all while suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. This movie deserves praise just for making complex mathematics engrossing for average viewers.
Big Hero 6: It’s hard to think of a better advertisement for robotics than this charming Disney film. Focusing on a team of kid and teen scientists who, along with the lovable healthcare robot Baymax, become superheroes to save their city, this is bound to inspire audiences of all ages.
Temple Grandin: Claire Danes won an Emmy for her portrayal of the world renowned inventor and advocate. Diagnosed with Autism at a young age, the film follows Grandin’s life as she works towards a degree in Animal Science, developing more humane ways of handling livestock, and ultimately becoming an advocate on behalf of the autistic.
