InfoTrak: Sally Ride

InfoTrak interviewed Dr. Ride in 2006 and this week presents a look back at this American icon, who recently died of pancreatic cancer. In elementary school, roughly an equal number of girls and boys are interested in science and math. But around sixth grade, more girls than boys begin to drift away from these subjects. Dr. Ride explained why she was so energized to battle this trend. She also offered ideas for parents who would like to encourage their daughters to pursue careers in engineering and the sciences.

InfoTrak: Being Prepared

In the aftermath of the horrific shooting incident in Aurora, Colorado, former US Navy SEAL and sniper instructor Brandon Webb,, outlined ways the average person can prepare themselves to react to a similar situation. He said before any type of emergency occurs in public places or at home, it is critical to analyze your environment and think about how you will react. He also talked about the importance of proper training for people who chose to own and carry a gun.

InfoTrak: Not Ready for the Boomers

Sandy Markwood, CEO of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging shared the results of a study that found that most communities are making no preparations to deal with the coming wave of retiring Baby Boomers. She explained what types of government planning is necessary and how local volunteer groups may be able to help.

Sally Ride

Ride was an American physicist and astronaut. Ride joined NASA in 1978 and, at the age of 32, became the first American woman to enter into low Earth orbit in 1983. She is also the first known astronaut to have been in a long-term same-sex relationship. In 1987, she left NASA to work at Stanford University\'s Center for International Security and Arms Control. She served on the investigation panels for two space shuttle disasters, Challenger and Columbia, the only person to serve on both. Ride remains the youngest American astronaut to be launched into space.

Sally Ride Science

Brandon Tyler Webb

Brandon Webb is a former U.S. Navy SEAL with combat deployments to southwest Asia, including Iraq and Afghanistan. His proudest accomplishment in the US Military was his role as Course Manager for the elite US Navy SEAL Sniper program. This is arguably one of the best and most difficult sniper qualification courses in the world. Webb has received numerous distinguished service awards throughout his career, including the Presidential Unit Citation (personally given to him by President George W. Bush) awarded to his SEAL platoon after their Sept 11th, 2001 deployment to Afghanistan.

After the Navy, he worked briefly with a three letter agency overseas, then left to focus on other work within the defense industry.

He was formerly a contributing editor for Military.com, and now heads up SOFREP.com (Special Operations Forces Situation Report) as the Editor-in-Chief. SOFREP is the number one site for timely and accurate information regarding the Special Operations community globally. As a former Navy SEAL and Editor of SOFREP.com, he is regularly featured in the national and international media for his Special Operations industry expertise.

Brandon’s writing has been featured in both print magazines and blogs worldwide. He is the author of The Red Circle (St. Martin’s Press) and co-author of Navy SEAL Sniper (Skyhorse Publishing).

Webb enjoys speaking with professional organizations of all sizes. His main topics have to do with over coming adversity, mental toughness, leadership and the dedication and drive it takes to make it through one of the toughest Special Operations training programs in the world.

He is an avid surfer (and member of the legendary Windansea surf club), free diver, private pilot and open ocean swimmer. When he’s not in the water or airborne, he splits his time between Lake Tahoe, NV and La Jolla, California.

Brandon\'s Website