Astronaut Catherine “Cady” Coleman will be the keynote speaker at Inspiring the Future: 30 Years Since Challenger, 5-6:30PM on January 28 at Framingham State University. Admission is free, seating is limited, and advance registration is required.
Monthly Archives: January 2016
Let’s Build! Engineering Extravaganza at Needham Science Center, Jan. 30
Let’s Build is a family volunteering initiative bringing engineering into Needham’s elementary schools by training family and community volunteers to support classroom design challenges. Its major fundraiser, the Let’s Build Engineering Extravaganza, will be held January 30, 10AM-2PM at the Needham Science Center within Newman Elementary School (1155 Central Ave. in Needham). Activities include a take-apart table, catapults, demonstrations by Needham HS robotics, an egg drop, Olin’s 3D printer, bridge construction, a cantilever challenge, kite-making, and interaction with local scientists and engineers. Admission is $5 per family (or free for volunteers and their families).
Boys & Girls Club: After-School STEM Classes Starting Now
The John M. Barry Boys & Girls Club has a few spaces left in two after-school STEM programs. Club membership and class registration are required.
Keep an Eye Out for… Science!: This program fosters Grade 3-5 students’ innate curiosity through observation, evaluation, and creative thinking to explore the environment while creating terrariums, making fossils, and investigating ocean creatures. Wednesdays, 4-5PM for 10 weeks starting January 18.
The Human Body and Brain: Pass the Scalpel, Please: Grade 6-9 students explore organ systems, muscle tissue, cells, and the brain: How neurons enable learning, how brain chemistry shapes personality, and how to dissect organs. Tuesdays, 4-5PM for 10 weeks starting February 2.
Newton Library: Robots are People Too: Artificial Intelligence and the Law, Feb. 2
On February 2 at 7PM, the Newton Free Library will host emerging-technologies attorney John Frank Weaver discussing the technological changes coming soon in what MIT’s Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee call The Second Machine Age. Weaver, who is author of Robots Are People Too and a contributing writer with Slate, will also explain why our laws are so important during this period. Drawing on precedents between the Industrial Revolution and the emergence of wireless communications, he will analyze current government efforts and provide strategies for future legislation.
Register for Library’s February-Vacation Teen Tinker Club, Feb. 17-19
The Newton Free Library offers a special three-day, February-vacation Teen Tinker Club for Grades 6-12, at 4PM on February 17-19. Tinker with LEGO WeDo on Wednesday, Scratch on Thursday, and combine them on Friday by coding the LEGO WeDo using Scratch. Online registration for all three sessions opens January 27.
Science Club for Girls: Grades 6-12 Apply for Spring Programs by Jan. 29
Science Club for Girls fosters excitement, confidence, and literacy in STEM for girls, particularly from underrepresented communities, by providing free, experiential programs and meaningful interactions with women STEM mentors. This spring, openings are available for girls in Grades 6-8 in Roxbury on Saturday afternoons, and for girls in Grades 8-12 as Junior Mentors in Roxbury, Dorchester, and Cambridge. Applications are due January 29. Contact Corinne Jager, Boston Program Manager, at cjager@scienceclubforgirls.org with questions.
Register for Science on Saturday (Cryogenics) at MIT Lincoln Labs, Feb. 6
Registration is now open for two Saturday-morning sessions of Science on Saturday, on February 6 at MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory (244 Wood Street in Lexington). The topic will be Cryogenics & Liquid Nitrogen, presented by Lincoln Laboratory’s Dr. Richard Williamson. All children (5-17 years) must be escorted by an adult, and every adult must be escorted by a child or children. Children under 5 are not admitted. Admission is free but each person attending must be registered. Space is limited, so register online soon for either Session 1 (9AM to 10:30AM) or Session 2: 10:45AM to 12:15PM). Adults must bring government photo identification. See other rules on the registration pages.
MIT Edgerton’s ‘Science on Saturday’ for Grades K-12, Feb. 6: Rockets and Flight
MIT’s Edgerton Center holds free Science on Saturday programs five times a year for elementary, middle, and high school students — as well as their parents and teachers. On February 6, the program will be focused on Rockets and Flight. Kids under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. The program includes a one-hour presentation at 10AM followed by hands-on activities at 11AM. No pre-registration is necessary but seating is limited and first-come, first-seated. It’s held in MIT’s Kresge Auditorium, 48 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge.
“Language of Climate Change” Summit, Mar. 9
The Massachusetts Environmental Education Society will convene a summit, Language of Climate Change, 8AM to 4PM on March 9 at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. It’s for K-12-college educators (including classroom teachers and outdoor/environmental educators) to discuss how to talk about climate change. After a keynote by David Sobel, workshops will be offered by the National Network for Ocean and Climate Change Interpretation (NNOCCI), a collaborative effort led by the New England Aquarium with funding from the National Science Foundation’s Climate Change Education partnership. Registration is $75 before February 3, $90 afterwards, or $25 for students in high school or college.
Northeastern Summer STEM Programs for Middle- and High-School Students
Northeastern University’s Center for STEM Education offers summer STEM programs for middle- and high-school students.
NUSSP is a free, three-week academic program (July 11-14, 18-21, and 25-28) for students currently in Grades 5-7 who have an interest in STEM, live within 30 miles of Northeastern, and are in historically under-served and underrepresented groups with limited opportunities. The program builds STEM knowledge and skills, introduces participants to college life, and stimulates interest in STEM careers. Applications (including 250-500-word essay and recommendations) are due April 15. Up to two students per school and three students per district or town will be accepted. For more information, call 617-373-8380.
The Young Scholars Program, running June 23-August 4, is for current high-school sophomores and juniors who live within commuting distance of Northeastern (with priority given to students who have low access to similar programs). It offers selected students laboratory research experience, career exploration and counseling, and an introduction to college life. Applications (including short essay questions and teacher recommendations) are due March 31.