The MIT Edgerton Center offers one-day, hands-on Maker workshops for teachers (of all grade levels) to obtain skills in Making. All materials are provided, and no prior experience is required. For more information, email edgerton-k12-maker@mit.edu.
The MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center invites high-school teachers to bring two outstanding students for the Center’s annual Outreach Day, December 14. The event will discuss plasmas, harnessing fusion energy, large magnets, and sources of intense microwave and millimeter-wave power. Students will observe plasmas in a glow discharge tube, perform hands-on demonstrations with superconductivity, and see MIT’s tokamak, the Alcator C-MOD. The program begins at 9AM and goes to 1PM, when there will be an optional information session and tour of MIT at 3PM. Bring a lunch. Registration is first-come, first-served and closes November 21. For further information, email Paul Rivenberg at rivenberg@psfc.mit.edu.
Enrollment is now open for spring computer-science classes at CSRecititations in Natick (4 Mechanic Street, Suite 102). Their small classes draw students from a wide area.
Yesterday middle- and high-school students and 18 STEM mentors braved the storm to meet at the Newton Free Library for Newton’s third Think Big! STEM gathering. After each mentor gave a brief introduction, the crowd talked in ever-changing small-group discussions over ice cream provided by the generosity of Cabot’s Ice Cream & Restaurant. Newton’s LigerBots talked about their award-winning robotics team and helped out in many ways. Students wanted to know from the mentors: What’s exciting about your job? What do you do all day? What’s the hardest part? What impact are you hoping to have? What success have you had in that? How did you get to where you are today? What would you have done differently? What advice would you give to your young self? The event was sponsored by the Newton Free Library, the John M. Barry Boys & Girls Club, and NewtonSTEM. Stay tuned for the next one!
On October 30, 5:30-7:30PM, the Boston University School of Medicine’s Division of Graduate Medical Sciences will host What Does a Scientist Look Like?, a panel discussion for undergraduate STEM majors in underrepresented minorities (URM) to explore various pathways into graduate STEM education, particularly in biomedical fields. It will take place at the BU Photonics Center (Rm 901, 8 St. Mary’s Street, Boston). Panelists include Ph.D.-level URM graduate students. Registration is free.
The Harvard Undergraduate Science Olympiad will host its first Division B (middle school) invitational Science Olympiad on February 10. Middle schools must register teams by 11:59PM on October 31. Space is limited, and registration does not guarantee participation. Schools may register up to two teams, and each school’s first team will have priority over any school’s second team. Successful registrations will be confirmed within one week and a fee of $200 per team will be due two weeks after registration is confirmed. Each team must have two adult coaches, at least one of which must supervise an event at the tournament. Email div.b@harvardscioly.org for more information.
Boston Tech Mom (“a parent’s guide to raising a future techie”) is a great resource for all things STEM around Boston — including her monthly posts about free or low-cost STEM Events for Kids in Boston. Here’s her November list of STEM events.
Empow Studios has announced its 2019 schedule for camps with a 15% discount available through October 31. This includes vacation camps in February and April (in Brookline, Lexington, and Newton) as well as summer camps (in Belmont, Back Bay, Brookline, Franklin, Lexington, Natick, Newton, Shrewsbury, and other locations coming soon). Camp themes include Tech & Design, Java Coding, and Minecraft.
Every November and March, the MIT Museum celebrates women in STEM by offering hands-on activities, informal talks, and demonstrations for Girls Day. This November 3, 11AM-4PM, the event will focus on neuroscience. It’s recommended for ages 10+ but all are welcome. Admission to the museum is required.
Yesterday the Newton high-school robotics team, the LigerBots, competed in an off-season event, the Bay State Brawl, at Whitinsville Christian School. The team assigned all rookie students to drive the robot, and after the qualifying rounds this team was selected into a three-team alliance that won the event, going undefeated in the semi-finals and finals. About 15 students, including 8 rookies, participated in this event with 10 other teams.