Virtual Conferences and Symposia

Upcoming Programs:

April 5-9: "The Promise and Pitfalls of Citizen Science"

A full schedule will be available soon; please find the call for papers here. 

Past Programs:

September 21-25: "Relationships, Reciprocity, Responsibilities: Indigenous Studies in Archives and Beyond"

June 8-12: "Evidence: the Use and Misuse of Data"

Virtual Discussions

Virtual Discussions are held on Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. ET via Zoom Webinar. Recordings of past programs may be viewed on the Society's YouTube channel.

Upcoming Programs:

January 14: Dr. Franklin's Virtual Birthday Tour. Register here to attend. 

January 27: "Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution" with Michael D. Hattem. Register here to attend.

February 17: "Race and Nation in Puerto Rican Folklore: Franz Boas and John Alden Mason in Porto Rico" with Rafael Ocasio

March 10: "André Michaux in North America: Journals and Letters, 1785–1797" with Charlie Williams, Walter K. Taylor, and Elaine M. Norman

March 31: "The Deviant Prison: Philadelphia’s Eastern State Penitentiary and the Origins of America's Modern Penal System, 1829-1913" with Ashley T. Rubin 

April 28: "Revitalization Lexicography: The Making of a New Tunica Dictionary" with Patricia Anderson

May 19: "Digitizing Jefferson's Weather Records" with James McClure

Science on Tap

For more information on topics, speakers, and how to register, see the Science on Tap website. 

Upcoming Programs:

2021 Calendar coming soon!

Past Programs:

April 27: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party: Janine Boldt and Emily Margolis, National Treasure

September 14: Penn Museum hosting

September 28: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party with the Wagner Free Institute

October 12: Mutter Museum hosting

October 26: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party with the Mutter Museum

November 9: Academy of Natural Sciences hosting

December 14: APS hosting with Dr. Janine Boldt

More information about Science on Tap, here

Virtual Brown Bags

Virtual Brown Bags are open to APS Staff, Fellows, and area scholars. All Virtual Brown Bags meet at 11:00am ET on Zoom. To receive the link to attend, contact Adrianna Link, Head of Scholarly Programs, at alink@amphilsoc.org.

Spring 2021

January 5 – Renee Wolcott (Associate Conservator, American Philosophical Society), "Restoration, Rebinding, Conservation: Changes in Collections Care over 275 years at the APS Library"

January 12 – Ezelle Sanford III (University of Pennsylvania), "Segregated Medicine: How Racial Politics Shaped American Healthcare"

January 19 – Brian Carpenter (Curator of Native American Materials, American Philosophical Society), "Creating the Indigenous Languages Manuscript Interface through the Tunica Language Transcription Project"

January 26 – Max Flomen (West Virginia University), "Mountains beyond Mountains: War, Revolution, & Alternative Emancipations in the Borderlands, 1650-1850"

February 2  – Meg Roberts (University of Cambridge), “Domestic Caregiving in the American Revolution”

February 9 – Jenna Tonn (Boston College), "Alexander Agassiz’s Newport Marine Laboratory: Collecting Invertebrates, Romantic Partners, and Gilded-Age Gossip in the Field"

February 26 – Sonia Tycko (University of Oxford)

Indigenous Studies Seminar 

Inspired by the work of the Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR), the APS Library & Museum's Indigenous Studies Seminar Series serves scholars and researchers in the Greater Philadelphia area working on projects in or aligned with Native American and Indigenous Studies.

The seminar meets monthly from 3:30-5:00pm ET via Zoom. Most meetings center around a pre-circulated paper, which will be made available for download two weeks prior to the event. To attend, please contact Adrianna Link, Head of Scholarly Programs, at alink@amphilsoc.org

Spring 2021:

January 22: Patrick Lozar (University of Victoria), “'Home was, part of the time, north of the line, and part of the time south of it': Belonging, Status, and Division in the Borderlands." Register here to attend. 

February 12: Mary McNeil (Harvard University), "The Factory of Genocide: Deer Island’s Carceral Geography"

March 19: Elizabeth Ellis (New York University)

April 16: Thompson Smith (Séliš-Ql̓ispé Culture Committee, Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes, Flathead Indian Reservation)

May 14:  Katrina Srigley (Nipissing University) and Glenna Beaucage (Culture and Heritage Department, Nipissing First Nation),  "Contributions to Ngodweyaan (Family) and Ezhidaayang (Community) on and beyond Nbisiing Nishnaabeg Territory"

At Home Activities

Check out the APS at Home page for crafts and activities. 

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Explore our Pinterest page with activities we love and other activities from our Education department. 

Educator Workshops

January 19: Dr. Franklin, Citizen Scientist (Virtual Tour & Resources). Learn more and register here. 

Digital Resources

Benjamin Franklin's American Enlightenment

From transcription to post office records, explore these resources to learn about science and scientific learning in early America through the many works and communities of Benjamin Franklin. 

Career Chats

This series brings you real conversations with APS staff on their careers and education and how they came to work at the Society.

Educational Resources - Digital Galleries & Exhibitions

Start here before checking out our many digital galleries and exhibitions. This page will help you sort through them based on grade level and keywords. 

A Malignant Tale - Yellow Fever, 1793 Epidemic

This lesson and activity use letters and sensory experience to talk about Philadelphia's 1793 yellow fever epidemic.

Letter Writing - Templates for Social Life

Lessons and activities that explore 18th century (and modern) letter writing practices. 

Editing the Declaration

Learn about copies of the Declaration of Independence, from how they were edited and when to what that all means. 

Other Educator Resources

Though you can't visit the Museum or Archives, our collections are still searchable!