Science On Screen presents The Blue Butterfly

Inspired by a true story, The Blue Butterfly tells the extraordinary tale of a 10-year-old boy diagnosed as terminally ill, whose dream is to catch the most beautiful butterfly on Earth, the mythic and elusive Blue Morpho. His mother persuades a renowned entomologist (Academy Award winner William Hurt) to take them on a trip to the Costa Rican rain forest to search for the butterfly, leading to a journey of courage, redemption and love that will transform their lives. The themes in this 2004 film are timely and relevant: With the destruction of our planet’s rain forests, are we also destroying plant and animal species that may hold the key to our own survival? Do the rain forests hold the keys to unlock medical mysteries, and provide new, lifesaving drug therapies?  The speaker for this program is MJC Professor Derek Madden who is doing important work in the tropical rainforest of Costa Rica. “Rainforests can not only help provide new medicines, they can help us understand how the human body was built to move. For example, monkeys that live in zoos tend to suffer from joint diseases that are not common to those living in the wild. By watching monkeys stretching, reaching and bending as they move through rainforest canopies, we can understand what types of movements help maintain knee, hip and shoulder joints. With this information, we can then design physical activities for aging humans in our modern world of concrete and steel,” Madden says. There will also be Blue Morpho butterflies on display in the lobby when SOS turns to the topic of the importance of tropical rainforests.

Science On Screen at The State Theatre is made possible through a grant by the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This pioneering program creatively pairs Hollywood films with notable experts from the world of science, technology, mathematics and medicine. Included in the program are  random drawings for great prizes, lots of interactive activities and displays in the lobby from 2 to 3 p.m., followed by  the presentation and film, and a Q&A following the film. This family-friendly program is appropriate for junior high and high school students as well as adults.

Doors and interactive activities at 2; presentation and film at 3 p.m.; Q&A to follow film 
Admission: $8 & FREE for student with ID