As part of the Building Cultural Bridges program at Pearl Hall Elementary School, Canadian physician and NASA consultant Dr. Christian Otto recently spoke to second, third, and fourth graders about his 2008 journey to the summit of Mount Everest.  

Otto invited Pearl Hall students along for a “virtual climb” last spring as part of the Canadian Mt. Everest Medical Operations Expedition in 2008. The students were able to follow Otto’s entire journey through his website, www.cdneverest2008.com. Otto’s trip allowed Pasadena ISD students an excited glimpse at life in remote parts of the world.

Throughout his trip, Otto conducted various medical experiments, including human performance in remote locations, along with telemedicine and cardiopulmonary and brain function at high altitudes.

As students asked questions, Otto explained how dangerous and adventurous it was trekking Mt. Everest. 

“It felt like walking on ladders in huge climbing boots across the different valleys on the mountain, breathing at 26, 246 feet in the air,” he said. 

Otto thanked students for the encouraging artwork, papers and the two songs that the fourth grade choir recorded for him while he was away. All of the students work is on posted on Otto’s website. He selected one student’s artwork and presented him with an autographed flag. In return, the students presented Otto with a picture drawn by Pearl Hall student Reagan Jones. 

Otto currently serves as an emergency physician at University of Ottawa’s Ottawa Hospital and is a regional medical director for the Ontario Telemedicine Network. He is also a NASA funded life scientist, a consultant to the Canadian Space Agency, and member International Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research.  

The BCB program provides a bridge between the worlds of music, classroom curriculum, and brings learning to life by connecting kids to the "real world" through unique partnerships with the Houston Symphony, NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, other international space agencies and The Society for the Performing Arts. For more on the BCB program go to http://www.tmea.org/027_Magazine/BuildingCulturalBridges_Feb2007.pdf