Liberty Science Center

SciTech Scity’s Healthcare Innovation Engine hosted its fourth roundtable on March 4th, 2025, at Liberty Science Center, with presentations by industry experts on the mental health epidemic. Key speakers included Dr. Thomas Insel, former Director of the National Institute of Mental Health and author of Healing: Our Path from Mental Illness to Mental Health, entrepreneur and psychiatrist Dr. David Mou, and Dr. Terri Timberlake-Briscoe, psychologist, former Director of Adult Mental Health for the State of Georgia, and Manager of Government & Public Sector at EY. Healthcare Innovation Engine partners also discussed updates to the ongoing pilot initiatives of three digital health startups, in collaboration with RWJBarnabas Health in Jersey City. Partners then heard pitches from emerging mental health startups. “At a time when mental health is one of the most urgent public health crises of our generation, the SciTech Scity Healthcare Innovation Engine is creating a unique space where hospital systems, payors, government leaders, and entrepreneurs come together to move beyond talk and drive real solutions. There is probably no other space that digital health has quite the same potential to transform how care is delivered—making it more accessible, equitable, and effective for all communities” said Alexander Richter, Executive Director of SciTech Scity. The evening marked another milestone for this first-of-its-kind public-private partnership, demonstrating how hospital systems, payors, government, and innovators can pioneer scalable solutions to the nation’s most pressing healthcare challenges, and helping to establish New Jersey as a national test bed for healthcare innovation. The event concluded with dinner and exclusive access to Liberty Science Center’s new Titanic exhibition.

On September 25, SciTech Scity's Healthcare Innovation Engine hosted its third round table, where partners discussed upcoming pilot initiatives in Jersey City involving collaborations with digital health startups. “Our goal is to create a focal point for digital health innovation here in New Jersey. That includes both helping local companies succeed nationally in what is a very big and competitive market, as well as bringing some of the best inventions from across the world to patients in our region, as exemplified through our collaboration with Sheba Medical Center, Edge Medical Ventures and others,” said Alexander Richter, SciTech Innovation Hub Executive Director. “And in the process, we’ll help improve health outcomes for the people of New Jersey through our partnership with RWJBarnabas and Jersey City Medical Center, ensuring access to these technologies among communities that need it the most.” In addition to exploring future focus areas and addressing current challenges in healthcare, the session featured an engaging Payment Innovation Panel. Distinguished speakers included NJ DHS Commissioner Sarah M. Adelman, EY Managing Director and former Commissioner for the Georgia Department of Community Health Frank Berry, CMS Innovation Center Chief Informatics Officer Dr. William Gordon, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ’s CIO and SVP of EBTS Heather Staples Lavoie, and RWJBarnabas Health System CFO (Central and Southern Region) Nik Alexiades. Moderators Alex Richter and Hunter New, Senior Director at EY, led a dynamic discussion on trends in value-based healthcare and innovative payment models aimed at improving care delivery. It was a remarkable night of collaboration, highlighting the collective vision of enhancing patient outcomes through technology and innovation.  “The path forward for healthcare transformation lies in a robust partnership between and within the public and private sectors, where policy alignment between the different players paves the way for innovation,” said Lavoie. “We need to align on shared goals and outcomes we want to drive, and that reward proactive, patient-centered approaches—especially in leveraging digital health technologies to close care gaps and improve overall health equity.” “Every American has the right to high-quality healthcare,” Berry added. “With an aging population, persistent workforce shortages, and significant disparities, digital health technologies will be instrumental in ensuring high-quality care is accessible and equitable for every community.”

Today we wish happy birthday to John H. Scully, the visionary behind our exhibition The Great Train Set! 🚂 Mr. Scully gathered an expert team to create one of the most elaborate and detailed model railroads ever built, a glimpse into his childhood in the 1950s when he was fascinated by trains and train travel. Now it has a permanent home at LSC! Have you experienced The Great Train Set yet? Visit lsc.org/train to learn more!

“I really love the idea of having our work continually grounded in heavy research.” Do you know about Liberty Science Center’s ongoing collaboration with Rutgers University to conduct childhood research with kids and families at LSC? Check out our new video, and be on the lookout for the Rutgers team on one of your future visits to LSC! Learn more about the program at https://lnkd.in/ge_k5qTZ.

If you heard a boom, felt a shaking, or saw a fireball in the sky on around 10:00 am to noon Tuesday, it may have been from a meteor! Meteors, also called shooting stars, are rocks that enter Earth’s atmosphere and burn up from friction, creating a bright streak of light across the sky. In this case, NASA officials estimate the rock to be approximately one foot wide. The meteor entered the atmosphere above New York city at 38,000 miles per hour, traveling west above the Statue of Liberty and Liberty Science Center, before totally disintegrating above Union County. Meteors like this pose essentially no danger to us. Due to their small size they burn up or fragment into much smaller pieces before making it to the surface of Earth. Tuesday’s meteor didn’t leave behind any meteorites—fragments of meteors that actually reach the ground. For this fireball to be visible during the day is rare. Meteors are much more often seen at night when fainter streaks of light stand out against the dark sky. If you want to see meteors in the night sky, the Perseid meteor shower will be most visible on the nights of August 11, 12, and 13! LSC's Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium is the region’s best place to learn what to look for in the night sky! Visit lsc.org/planetarium to see what's playing and get tickets now.

It’s been HOT lately, but just be glad you’re not living on the blistering surface of Venus, where the temperature is 860 degrees F due to an out-of-control greenhouse effect! 🥵🔥 Cool off with us this week in the Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium! Head to lsc.org/planetarium to see what’s playing and get tickets.

T.REX 3D begins this weekend at LSC! 🦖 T. REX 3D tells the true story of the young fossil hunters who made the discovery of a lifetime when they spotted a large fossilized leg bone on a walk on public lands in North Dakota! This 3D film intercuts the remarkable fossil dig, with cutting edge computer graphics that bring the iconic T. rex – from hatchling to hulking adult – to life. Narrated by Sam Neill from Jurassic Park! View showtimes at lsc.org/trex3d. 

Happy Fourth of July! 🎆 Liberty Science Center is OPEN today from 10 am - 4 pm, and our tower is lit up red, white, and blue tonight! 😁🇺🇸 Stop by and explore our new BARBIE exhibit, discover the world’s largest animal in the new BLUE WHALE exhibit, soar through space in the planetarium, and so much more! 

Our 170-foot-high Robert Wood Johnson III Tower is lit up rainbow all weekend in honor of Pride Month! 🏳️🌈😁 Keep your eyes peeled when you’re driving by tonight and Sunday night! 

Check out our gorgeous new staircase! 🐋 #BlueWhale #NowOpen