EurekaFest is a two-day celebration of invention and engineering sponsored by the Lemelson-MIT Program and highlighting the results of selected high-school InvenTeams from across the country. (Newton North HS participated in 2013.)
Jr.Tech will offer these STEM co-ed camps on Cape Code this summer:
Edge on Science, which offers summer STEM programs, recently sent a newsletter describing EyeWire.org, a free online gaming environment that facilitates mapping neurons for brain research. The newsletter explained, “[Sebastian Seung’s] lab at Princeton University has been building 3D models of neurons [and] continuous groups of them. … The computer image processing is not perfect and [with EyeWire] thousands of citizen scientists have contributed to correcting and filling in the connections and completing the 3D models, neuron by neuron.” You can read this description and sign up to play the game.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute and WGBH will present Touch Tomorrow — a festival of science, technology, and robots — on Saturday, June 9, 10AM-4PM at WPI (directions). It’s family-friendly, fun, free, and open to all ages — with a particular focus on what’s interesting for middle- and high-school students. Programming includes hands-on activities, exhibits, presentations, and the movie, Dream Big. WPI faculty and students will open their labs and share their work and engage the public in hands-on activities and demonstrations. Registration beforehand is appreciated.
WGBH will host the Design Squad Team Challenge competition for teams of 2-6 students in Grades 5-8 to design and build a wind turbine that can lift heavy objects. See a video hint and register your team. Choose your preferred round (11AM or 2PM).
Newton North HS has once again won first place in the 31st annual Massachusetts Envirothon competition and will represent the state at the North American competition, July 22-28 in Pocatello, Idaho. After a year of intensive preparation and study, the team traveled to the Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park in Uxbridge to compete against 26 other high schools in an all-day schedule of written tests and hands-on activities assessing knowledge of soils, forests, water, and wildlife. Each team also gave a presentation about its research into its own community’s water infrastructure resources and needs, identifying a partnering opportunity and making specific recommendations for action. This is the sixth time in seven years that Newton North HS has won this honor.
This weekend the LigerBots participated in the two-day Battlecry 19 post-season FIRST robotics competition at Worcester Polytechnic Institute with 59 other teams from the region. The LigerBots ended the Qualifying Rounds with a record of 5-3-0 and were invited to join an alliance headed by The Bionics from Billerica. This alliance advanced to the quarter-finals, where they were defeated by the alliance that eventually won the competition.
The ever-community-minded LigerBots plan to bring their robot to events in May and June, including the Newton Memorial Day Parade on May 27, Newton Highlands Village Day on June 10, and Tour de Newton on June 17. The team will also host an evening meeting for all parents and potential coaches (all are welcome!) to learn about FIRST LEGO League (FLL) on Wednesday, June 20, 7-9PM, at the Newton North High School Film Lecture Hall. And the team is starting the process of recruiting new students for the 2018-2019 school year.
MassEcon will hold its annual conference, World of the Future: Key Drivers of Change, on June 1, 7:30-9:30AM, at the Newton Marriott hotel. Speakers include:
Stay in MA, sponsored by Flybridge Capital Partners, aims to foster entrepreneurship and innovation by offering scholarships of up to $100 for full-time college students in Massachusetts to attend business and technology networking events such as this one. Apply for a scholarship to offset the $85 conference fee for those who are not members of MassEcon.
Tufts University’s Center for Engineering Education and Outreach (CEEO) still has room in its High School Workshop, July 23-27, for Grades 9-12 to explore simple machines, aerodynamics, robotics, and maker tools using woodworking tools, laser cutters, the EV3 robotics platform, and microbit controllers.
Jane Street Capital — a quantitative trading firm — will host its sixth annual Women in STEM event July 29-31, inviting selected women between senior year of high-school and freshman year of college to learn about the firm and how it uses math, computer science, and probability in its business. Travel, hotel, and meals will be paid by the company. Apply by June 29 , including your resume and a statement (up to 250 words) about yourself and why you’d like to attend. Email womeninstem@janestreet.com if you have questions.
UMass Amherst is accepting applications for a range of residential summer programs for high-school students. STEM topics among the courses (spanning 1, 2 or 6 weeks between July 1 and August 11) include:
There are also opportunities for 6-week research placements for high-school students in the Research Intensives program. Apply early, since programs fill up on a rolling basis, and no later than mid-June.