The Cambridge Science Festival, an annual week-long community celebration of STEM, will return this year September 23-29. Featuring activities, workshops, tours, debates, contests, talks, and more, the festival attracts over 50,000 visitors of all ages and backgrounds each year. The Festival Guide lists dozens of events for each day, including a demonstration of quantum mechanics through juggling (9/23 4-5PM), a panel on democracy in the age of AI (9/24 7-9PM), interactive talks with neuroscientists (9/25 2-5PM), a biotechnological escape room (9/26 1-9PM), exciting science demonstrations (9/27 3:30-4:30PM), a kayaking educational tour of the Charles River (9/28 1-6PM), and an electromagnetic art workshop (9/29 12-4PM). Admission is free.
MassRobotics Robot Block Party (Sept. 28)
The seventh annual MassRobotics Robot Block Party will feature robot demonstrations and hands-on activities on September 28 from 10:45AM-4PM at 88 Seaport Blvd, Boston. It is free and open to the public.
Russian School of Math – Open House (Sept. 28)
The West Newton branch of the Russian School of Mathematics (60 Austin Street, Newtonville) will host a Back2School Bash open house on September 28 from 4:30-6PM. Register here.
NSHS Science Team offers Summer Science Program for Grades 6-10, Jul. 29-Aug. 30
The Newton Summer Science Program offers a series of week-long STEM courses taught by student members of the Newton South High School Science Team to inspire middle school students to explore engaging topics in science beyond the school curriculum. Additionally, the program offers courses in grades 9-10 math and science for high school students to begin the school year feeling prepared.
Online courses will be taught free of charge, and in-person courses at Newton North and Newton South High Schools cost $20 (which goes to Newton Community Education to pay for space and registration costs).
See the full schedule and full course syllabus, then register here.
The NSHS Science Team also gratefully accepts donations (recommended: $15 per one-week course) that will support the team throughout the school year, to pay for competition fees and study materials. Checks may be written to Newton South High School with “Science Team” in the memo line, mailed to:
NSHS Science Team c/o Gerald Ng
Newton South High School
140 Brandeis Rd.
Newton, MA 02459
Harvard Museums of Science & Culture offer Week-Long Courses for Grades 4-6, Jul. 29-Aug. 9
The Harvard Museums of Science & Culture are offering weeklong half-day courses for students entering grades 4-6. A few openings remain for Grab Your Sketchbook (July 29-August 2), in which students will draw animals from diverse locations, and Invertebrate Investigators (August 5-August 9), a course dedicated to exploring the world of insects, arachnids, and other invertebrates. Courses cost $210 for museum members and $235 for non-members, and will take place Monday-Friday, 9:30AM-12:00PM. Register here.
Summer Science Discovery Program for Ages 6-12, Aug. 12-30
“e” inc.’s Summer Science Discovery Program offers week-long camps for ages 6-12, August 12-30. This program includes both fun and educational activities, including arts and crafts, outdoor adventures, and team-building exercises, and explores topics ranging from natural forces to means of transportation. The camp costs $450 per week and runs from 8:30AM-3PM, with a daily optional aftercare until 5:30PM. Openings are limited.
To register, download and complete the forms on the website and email forms to camp@einc-action.org.
LigerBots at the FRC World Championship
The LigerBots, Newton’s dual-high-school FIRST Robotics team, traveled to Houston April 17-20 to compete in the FIRST World Championship — an international competition that caps the FIRST robotics competition season. This was the first time in six years that the LigerBots had qualified for “the Worlds” — joining 600 other teams from 58 countries.
The LigerBots qualified for the FIRST Championship by exceling in tough qualifying events and the New England District Championship:
- At the Greater Boston Event, the team won the FIRST Impact Award, the most prestigious award in FIRST.
- In the New England District Championship, the LigerBots with their two alliance partners scored the highest number of points in the whole competition.
At the FIRST World Championship, the LigerBots achieved 6th place out of 75 teams in the Johnson division qualifying rounds, which qualified the team to be a 5th seed alliance captain in the playoffs. They formed an alliance with teams from Bolton (MA), Laurens (SC), and Australia. In fiercely competitive matches, their alliance emerged victorious in several rounds and unfortunately concluded with two close losses.
While in Houston, the LigerBots explored the event’s Innovation Expo full of booths from colleges and leading technology companies, with opportunities to interact with a 3D milling machine and to try welding on a high-tech simulator. Some team members took on roles as FIRST student ambassadors, guiding VIP guests around the venue, while others volunteered to reset fields or served as judges in different divisions. Some explored NASA’s Johnson Space Center while others visited Houston’s aquarium.
Congratulations to all LigerBots students and coaches for an impressive year of dedication, achievement, and fun.
Many thanks to LigerBots student leader Davis for providing essential information for this article, which originally appeared in Fig City News.
MITES Symposiums: High-school students present their work, May 4
MIT Introduction to Technology, Engineering & Science (MITES) provides transformative experiences to bolster confidence, create lifelong community, and build foundations in STEM for highly motivated students in Grades 7-12 from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds in Boston, Cambridge, and Lawrence. More than 100 MITES students will be presenting their final projects on May 4, 10AM-3PM, at the Stata Center (MIT Building 32, Vassar Street, Cambridge). Please register by April 29 to assist planning. Areas of focus:
- 7th grade: Engineering Design
- 8th grade: Environmental Engineering
- 9th grade: Architecture
- 10th grade: Robotics
- 11th grade: Biological Engineering
- 12th grade: Engineering Design
MassBay Student STEM Expo in person May 8, virtually May 6-10
MassBay Community College will hold its Student STEM Expo on Wednesday, May 8, 1PM-2PM in the Wellesley Hills campus cafeteria (50 Oakland Street, Wellesley Hills), and virtually May 6 – 10. Students will showcase their STEM work to the MassBay community, local STEM professionals, and the general public.
Online visitors can watch prerecorded videos from individual students and student teams. Viewers may leave comments and ask questions, and students will answer incoming inquiries and engage in conversations with visitors about their projects.
Broad Discovery Series: From “hit-or-miss” for psychiatric diagnosis and care, May 21
The next presentation in Broad Institute’s Broad Discovery Series of free, public lectures will be on May 21, 6PM-7PM at the Broad Institute Auditorium + Lobby (415 Main Street, Cambridge). The topic will be Moving from “hit-or-miss” toward a brighter future for psychiatric diagnosis and care. Scientists from the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research will join peers and family members from the community to discuss how genetics and biology are shaping an improved understanding of psychiatric conditions, how that might address community concerns, and what it could mean for diagnosis and care now and in the future. Register here.
This talk will be held both in person and virtually. Those attending in person are invited to a reception with refreshments in the Broad Discovery Center following the talk.