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Inspired by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) building, which turned 100 in 2024, sixth-grade students at the Alain Locke School in West Philadelphia created the Promethean Sparks mural. The students collaborated with artist and educator Ben Volta to imagine how scientific imagery in the NAS building's Great Hall—from the Prometheus mural by Albert Herter and the golden dome by Hildreth Meière—might look if recreated in the twenty-first century. Their vibrant mural was exhibited alongside a timeline of the NAS building, which depicted the accomplishments of the Academy in the context of US and world events over the past century. The timeline was curated by Alana Quinn and Alexandra Briseno in consultation with historians Ruth Schwartz Cowan and Peter J. Westwick.

Publication information

13 pages · 8.5 x 11 ·
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99310-5

Suggested citation

National Academy of Sciences. 2024. Promethean Sparks & NAS Building Timeline. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

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Promethean Sparks & NAS Building Timeline (2024)

Chapter: The Making of Promethean Sparks

Publication information

Suggested citation

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Promethean Sparks & NAS Building Timeline (2024)

Chapter: The Making of Promethean Sparks