Tip of the week

If you're a regular reader of the newspaper, you've probably seen something about Take a Child Outside Week, an effort to get kids (and their parents) to log off, turn off and get off their duffs and out into the sunshine.

Well, here's an idea for getting kids outside and giving them a taste of scientific exploration at the same time.

For 24 hours, from sunup Saturday to sunup Sunday, local families are invited to join scientists and natural historians to inventory animal and plant life at Mason Farm Biological Reserve, part of the N.C. Botanical Garden at UNC-Chapel Hill.

BioBlitz, as the event is called, will allow researchers to assess the biodiversity of the reserve. It's a joint project of the Botanical Garden and UNC's Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, and it's free.

Children age 7 and older may participate on a BioBlitz team, though they must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver. Younger children and their families may participate in a Habitat Walk at 10:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. Saturday or other activities.

Participants should register for the 24-Hour BioBlitz in advance. A schedule of teams and times, along with registration information, is available on the Morehead Planetarium Web site, www.moreheadplanetarium.org. For more information, send e-mail to bioblitz@unc.edu.

(If you have a tip for the week, contact editor Richard Stradling at 829-4739 or richard.stradling@newsobserver.com, or send it to The N&O, 215 S. McDowell St., Raleigh, N.C. 27602.)