Yale Bulletin and Calendar

September 28, 2001

Volume 30, Number 4

Brave souls are invited to lunch on cricket fricassee and sample a surprise insect dessert at the Peabody event.

Insects are special of the day
on Peabody Museum menu

Insects -- they are pests to some and, well, appetizing to others. In taste, that is.

At "Edible Insects 2," a family program of events at the Peabody Museum of Natural History on Saturday, Oct. 6, those with courage, and even those without, will be invited to try a bite of cricket fricassee and sample a dessert made with an insect yet to be revealed (it's a surprise).

Noted WNPR (National Public Radio) host Faith Middleton will join local chefs Ann Rossi and Ken Ayvazian in two cooking demonstrations and tasting opportunities. These will take place at noon and 1:30 p.m. Museum guests will also learn about insects, their variety, anatomy and potential for artistic inspiration, as well as the cultural and social aspects of insects as food. The event, which is sponsored by New Haven Savings Bank, is free with museum admission.

A storytelling hour at 10:30 a.m. and an insect horror film presentation at 3 p.m. will be held in the Peabody Museum auditorium. Tickets to these shows will be distributed at the door on a first-come, first-served basis. Half-hour tours of the Peabody's entomology collections (see related story) will be available to museum members at 10: 15 a.m., 11 a.m., 2:15 p.m. and 4 p.m. Pre-registration for the tours is required, as space is limited.

Other activities being held throughout the day include face-painting, crafts, insect displays, a live insect "zoo" and the insect "art gallery" featuring sculpture, jewelry, drawing and painting. Museum visitors will also be offered opportunities to have a close-up view of various insects. Up-to-date information on Lyme disease and West Nile virus will also be available.

Those planning to attend are invited to bring in insects they have found -- dead or alive -- in a container for "Stump the Entomologist," in which an expert panel will attempt to identify the finds.

While "Edible Insects 2" will offer a rare opportunity for insect-tasting for most of those attending the event, the eating of insects -- called entomophagy -- has been practiced for centuries throughout most of the world. In Africa, Asia, Australia, the Middle East and Central and South America, people have eaten insects as part of their regular dietary regime for centuries.

The Peabody Museum of Natural History, 170 Whitney Ave., is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children ages 3-15 and senior citizens. Yale affiliates with a valid I.D. are admitted free. Parking is available in the Peabody Visitor Parking Lot, one block north of the museum on Whitney Ave. For directions, events or other information, call (203) 432-5050 or visit the museum's website at www.peabody.yale.edu.

T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S

Yale will proceed with Tercentennial celebration

Peabody's insects inspire fascination in scholars far and near

Talk by philanthropist surgeon to open United Way appeal

Service of Remembrance

J. Lloyd Suttle is appointed deputy provost

Benefit concert to help families of tragedy's fallen

Convocation to celebrate Yale's long tradition of theological education . . .

Grant supports professors' study of dwindling voter turnout

Panelists share experiences on matters of gender

Famed Bolshoi Theatre ballerina describes a life devoted to dance

Forest management certification program is launched

Students win grants for environmental research around the world

Insects are special of the day on Peabody Museum menu

Remembering the struggle

Trumbull Lecture will examine 1828 treatise on liberal education

Employee Day at the Bowl

Campus Notes