Iowa State’s theme for this academic year is “Advancing technology to become the best,” and this semester the university will attempt to prove it’s serious about that goal.

Skip Derra, a science writer for ISU News Service, said one of the goals of this semester’s science programs is to show that technology is everywhere.

“Look around you. Your computer, the phone, your car — that is all technology,” he said. “Our lives are always affected and even sometimes governed by that technology, and understanding it is important.”

Derra said it is a natural fit for Iowa State to celebrate technology due to its long history of technological innovations.

“Iowa State has played a big role in technology development. The fax machine was made more practical by an ISU student in the 1970s; the computer was built here; the list goes on,” he said.

A lecture by NASA historian Deborah Douglas, “The End of Try and Fly: The Origins of Evolution of American Aeronautical Engineering through WW II,” will serve as the kick-off event for this semester’s programs. It will be held Jan. 18.

A film festival of “Jetsons” episodes will be held Jan. 27. The presentation will feature an introductory discussion by Larry Genalo, associate professor of materials science and engineering. It will focus on the technological advances portrayed in the popular animated television show.

“The original ‘Jetsons’ only ran in 1962 and ’63. It is interesting to look at what appeared over 30 years ago and compare it to today,” Genalo said.

Pat Miller, program coordinator for the Committee on Lectures, said the film festival will be a part of a series focusing on television and America. That series will be sponsored by the Institute on National Affairs and the Government of the Student Body.

The annual Ames Laboratory/ISU Science Bowl will bring in high school students to compete in a science trivia competition Jan. 29. Next, the ISU Science and Technology Fair will be held from March 31 to April 1. An astronomy seminar also will be held during the fair.

Derra said three distinguished ISU astronomers will present “To the Edge of the Universe: New Telescopes, New Tools, New Discoveries,” a program designed to demonstrate how technology has influenced and developed astronomical discovery.

The semester’s events, which will all be open to the public, will be stressing the point that technology is part of everyday life, Derra said.

Other scheduled events include the 100th birthday celebration for Marston Hall, the home of the College of Engineering; the June opening of C6, Iowa State’s newest virtual reality theater housed in Howe Hall; many lectures on how technology has changed communication and a presentation by Norman Augustine, retired head of Lockheed Martin Corp., one of the top aeronautics companies in the world.

John McCarroll, director of University Relations, said the technology celebration began in the fall, and the planning of the events began nearly a year ago. He said the College of Engineering especially has been at the forefront of the yearlong festival of technology.