STEM
carlyo | March 21, 2014Get ready as Festival Expo 2014 introduces you to a growing number of women innovators who are spearheading efforts to create exciting ways to inspire the next generation of female scientists and engineers! This includes designing STEM-inspired toys for young girls, immersing them in positive experiences that dispel the ¨nerd¨ stereotype that STEM-motivated females often encounter, and writing books featuring amazing STEM heroines.
Titled "Meet the Women Leaders Spearheading Cool and Fascinating Ways to Inspire Girls in STEM", this must-see performance panel in April will be moderated by…
carlyo | March 19, 2014When it comes to wowing young learners with a wide array of exciting hands-on experiences in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), the Chevron STEM Zone exhibit ranks among the nation's best! Get ready when the "STEM Zone" lives up to its reputation during its debut at the Festival Expo in April, bringing to visitors a smorgasbord of dynamic, interactive science demonstrations in one 3600 square-foot location.
Chevron, which joins the Festival this year as a major sponsor, has used its STEM Zone with great success as a popular science outreach extravaganza throughout the…
carlyo | March 18, 2014By Shawn Flaherty
The first ever X-STEM: Extreme STEM Symposium—presented by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune—kicks-off the 3rd USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo and Book Fair, hosted by founding and presenting sponsor Lockheed Martin. Being held on April 24th at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in DC, X-STEM is a “TED-style” event for kids with talks by 50 of the nation's most noted science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professionals representing top universities, corporations, non-profits, and governmental agencies.
“X-STEM is the perfect…
carlyo | March 17, 2014Renowned publication Scientific American is returning to the Festival as a key Media Sponsor, ready to wow students, teachers and the public with a wide assortment of activities based on content from the magazine as well as other divisions of its parent company, Macmillan Science & Education.
Under the theme, ¨Helping Curious Minds Achieve Great Things," Scientific American's exhibit is set to inspire visitors across a broad spectrum, from K-12 learners and teachers to college students to the general science enthusiast. The activities are designed to inspire a lifelong journey of…
milhayser | March 14, 2014Testing behemoth ETS announced a re-revised SAT for 2015, trying to stay one step ahead of its rival and the legions of teenagers who game standardized tests. Suggesting the vocabulary section was intended as "a proxy test for wide reading," Chad Orzel says memorizing obscure words is "dumb and pointless, but probably takes less time than getting a large vocabulary the 'right' way." Indeed, in the contemporary college prep atmosphere of clubs, sports, musical instruments, and hours of homework, who has time to read anyway? Even English students are likely to stick to SparkNotes (whose…
carlyo | March 13, 2014
By Larry Bock
Co-Founder of USA Science Science & Engineering Festival
No doubt, the influences that move individuals into their chosen field of science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) are often as different as night and day, but one thing seems constant: most STEM professionals, in remembering how they made their selection, can trace that ¨A-ha!¨ moment back to a pivotal experience in their lives that connected them on an emotional level for the first time with their chosen line of work.
That moment for scientist James E. West, inventor of the foil electret microphone,…
carlyo | March 10, 2014By Jeri Moses, Lockheed Martin Engineer
When I tell people I work at Lockheed Martin, they often assume I work in finance or human resources. This is a strange assumption considering more than 50 percent of Lockheed Martin employees are technologists and engineers. But, females are underrepresented in engineering, particularly in computer science. I may be biased, but I think girls that code are cool.
According to Girls Who Code, 74 percent of middle school girls express interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), and yet this is not translating into higher education…
carlyo | March 7, 2014
By Larry Bock
Co-Founder of USA Science Science & Engineering Festival
Engineers are some of the most necessary problem solvers on the planet. They conquer the daunting technological challenges -- both immediate and long-range -- that stand in the way of human progress and quality of life. You don't have to think long and hard to realize what our daily existence would be like without these innovators. Their imprint is everywhere - ranging from the water we drink, the cars we drive (and the roads and bridges on which we travel) to our iPhones and computers, and the programs that…
carlyo | March 5, 2014
By Stacy Jannis
The Kavli Science in Fiction Video Contest challenges Gr 6-12 students to examine the science in fiction, including science fiction movies, TV shows, and games. Our contest advisors include science educators , scientists, and Hollywood scifi visual effects experts. Follow #SciInSciFi on twitter for contest updates.
Joanne Manaster is a faculty lecturer teaching online biology courses for the Master of Science Teaching-Biology program at the School of Integrative Biology at the University of Illinois, and has taught lab courses in Bioengineering and Cell and Developmental…
carlyo | March 3, 2014STEMconnector®, "the one-stop shop for who's doing what in science, technology, engineering and math", has joined the Festival's growing cadre of Sponsors, bringing to the event a proven ability to keep professionals, students and the public abreast of STEM news and updates across a broad spectrum.
"STEMconnector® is proud to be a partner for the USA Science Festival as we support and endorse the largest gathering in the world celebrating science and engineering," says Edie Fraser, CEO of STEMconnector. "We couldn't be happier than to see young people interested in STEM and believe in the…
carlyo | February 27, 2014By Shawn Flaherty
What is the universe made of? What does science have to do with extreme sports? And how would you survive a zombie invasion? The answers to these questions and more are at the 3rd USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo and Book Fair, hosted by founding and presenting sponsor Lockheed Martin. Designed to inspire the next generation of innovators, the Festival Expo is a free, family-friendly expo that allows kids and adults to participate in more than 3,000 hands-on activities and see more than 100 live stage performances.
“Science is amazing…that’s our message to kids…
carlyo | February 26, 2014New Scientist, the world's most-read science and technology weekly, returns to the Festival as a key Media Partner, once again greatly enhancing our ability to reach out globally to the growing number of ultra-inquisitive Festival fans who just can't get enough insight into science's new and emerging frontiers!
Known as the magazine for "people who ask why", New Scientist, with its solid team of writers and experts, brings a comprehensive and inquisitive approach to reporting on a wide array fast-developing and futuristic developments in science and technology --from space, technology and the…
carlyo | February 24, 2014By Barri Gurau, Corporate Energy InitiativesLockheed Martin
How long do you think it took for the world’s population to reach 1 billion? It took more than a century for the world’s population to double to 2 billion, which we reached in the 1930s. Since then, the population has grown at an incredible rate to more than seven billion and by 2050, an estimated nine billion people will inhabit the earth.
So how do we meet the demand for energy, food and water?
The world needs new and different solutions to support the growing population and to continue to drive amazing new technologies. Doing the…
carlyo | February 12, 2014Archibald A. Alexander – Noted Design and Construction Engineer
Best known for designing Washington, DC's Tidal Basin Bridge and Whitehurst Freeway; first black graduate of the University of Iowa's College of Engineering; served as territorial governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands
Growing up in Iowa during the late 1880s, Archibald "Archie" Alexander remembers being warned that engineering was not something he could expect to succeed in as a black man. But he pushed forward anyway, later graduating in 1912 with a bachelor's degree in engineering from the State University of Iowa (now the…
carlyo | February 3, 2014George Washington Carver – Botanist, Inventor and Educator
One of the most phenomenal scientists of the early 20th Century. He found amazing uses for the peanut, sweet potato and soy bean that continue to enrich our lives. And against racial obstacles, his achievements paved the way for generations of young African American scientists
The ultimate agricultural botanist and chemist, George Washington Carver, from his early years, was known for his curiosity and his "burning zeal to know everything", especially about nature. He soon became fascinated with how to use botany and other sciences…
carlyo | January 30, 2014No doubt, extreme sports – ranging from competitive big-wave surfing and downhill skiing to the rigors of the Ironman Triathlon – represent some of the most challenging, intense and risky undertakings around. Get ready for a behind-the-scenes look this April at how some of the world’s most daring X-athletes use principles of science to achieve their amazing feats that leave us in awe! In an interactive presentation, sports legends from the ZOZI Guru™ team –including Chris Lieto, three-time Ironman Triathlon champion; extreme surfing champion Maya Gabeira and Tao Berman, rated by Sports…
carlyo | January 28, 2014Gerty Theresa Cori -- Biochemist
Often considered one of the greatest women scientists of the 20th century. The first American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine; known for her discovery (with husband Carl Cori and physiologist Bernardo Houssay) of how the body metabolizes glucose
Born Gerty Theresa Radnitz in 1896 in Prague (then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, now the Czech Republic), Gerty grew up at a time when women were marginalized in science and allowed few educational opportunities. However, at age sixteen and influenced by her uncle, (who was a professor of…
carlyo | January 27, 2014Guest Blog By Melissa Rhoads, biotechnology strategist at Lockheed Martin
Every New Year’s Eve, my siblings and cousins wrote down what we wanted to be when we grew up, and year after year, I dreamed of becoming a veterinarian. It was not until I cleaned manure all day at a volunteer zoo event that I realized I wanted to explore other options.
So how did I find my passion? Well, I love to solve problems, and at its core, engineering is problem-solving. It is a way of thinking. As a result, while I started as a biology major, I graduated college with a degree in electrical engineering.…
carlyo | January 23, 2014By Larry Bock
Co-Founder of USA Science Science & Engineering Festival
Seemingly as fast as the speed of technology, another new year is upon us, leaving us to ponder and predict what the next 12 months will bring. You only have to view a recent issue of Popular Science which lists the top 100 innovations that occurred in 2013 to realize that 2014 will undoubtedly continue to belong to those with the courage, talent, vision and tenacity to innovate – especially in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
So, to all you young students with the desire to be the next Elon…
carlyo | January 21, 2014Sonya Kovalevsky – Russian-born Mathematician
One of the world's best mathematicians of her era; established first major result in general theory of partial differential equations; first modern European woman appointed to full professorship; advocate of women's rights
Sonya Kovalevsky (also known as Sofia Kowalevski) was born in Russia in 1850 and became a noted mathematician in spite of a father who "had a horror of learned women," according to historical accounts. As a young woman, she could study math and physics only in secret. She married a man she did not love just to get away from her…