USA Science & Engineering Festival
carlyo | December 18, 2013
Image from National Academy of Engineering
This past week, the USA Science and Engineering Festival lost a dear friend and advisor —and America lost one of its true visionaries in education, engineering and technology. Dr. Charles M. Vest was a tireless advocate for research and science in roles as President of the National Academy of Engineering and President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He passed at home of pancreatic cancer at the age of 72.
Dr. Vest was best known as the 15th president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, serving from 1990 to 2004. He led…
carlyo | December 10, 2013By F. Mark Modzelewski
When you were in class, did you ever wish you could ask an astronaut what space was like? Or have a world renowned mathematician explain how they approach a problem? Or find out what inspired a storm chaser to pursue her passion? That’s X-STEM!
The USA Science & Engineering Festival, supported by presenting host sponsor Lockheed Martin, is kicking off another groundbreaking event with X-STEM - presented by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune. It’s an Extreme STEM Symposium for students featuring interactive presentations and workshops by an amazing group of…
carlyo | December 6, 2013X-STEM - presented by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune - is an Extreme STEM symposium for elementary through high school students featuring interactive presentations by an exclusive group of visionaries who aim to empower and inspire kids about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). These top STEM role models and industry leaders are sure to ignite your students’ curiosity through storytelling and live demonstrations.
Our spotlight on our X-STEM Speakers continues with Acoustical Scientist Dr. James West:
Looking back on his childhood days in Prince…
carlyo | November 27, 2013A big thanks to Mike Rowe for taking time out of his very busy schedule to share his enthusiasm for the USA Science & Engineering Festival!
Mike Rowe will give a keynote address and host a panel discussion at the Expo surrounding the topics of skilled trades/alternative education and STEM. Mike will also host the first ever mikeroweWORKS Pavilion at the Festival, aimed at inspiring students interested in pursuing a skilled trade!
carlyo | November 22, 2013Chien Shiung-Wu -- Experimental Physicist
One of the foremost physicists of the twentieth century, this Chinese-born American researcher was often called the "First Lady of Physics" for her pioneering work, which included radically changing scientific views on the behavior of nuclear particles
Chien Shiung-Wu once said: "I sincerely doubt that any open-minded person really believes in the faulty notion that women have no intellectual capacity for science and technology. Nor do I believe that social and economic factors are the actual obstacles that prevent women's participation in the…
carlyo | November 19, 2013By Stacy Jannis
Connecting bright young minds with the tools and techniques they need today is the first step towards developing our work force tomorrow. Businesses and government have issued a challenge to educators to help this next generation acquire the creative high-performance STEM skills they need to better transform the world. The evolution of learning technologies, combined with new frameworks for learning standards, will help equip and propel our students forward towards this goal.
So how could our "Science in Fiction" video contest help students practice and refine these much…
carlyo | November 15, 2013You could call them child or teen prodigies – wunderkinds, who at remarkable young ages have already begun making their mark upon science and technology as innovators and visionaries. The USA Science & Engineering Festival not only applauds such young achievers, but is recruiting some of the best of them to serve on its new Youth Advisory Board.
The achievements of these recently-appointed board members will not only help us further excite, inspire and reach out to more students during Festival 2014, but will also call attention to the impressive cadre of young talent that is on the…
carlyo | November 14, 2013C.V. Raman – Physicist
First Indian scientist to win the Nobel Prize in Physics. Known for his pioneering work in the scattering of light, now commonly called the "Raman Effect"
In 1930, at a time of limited opportunities for Indian scientists, his groundbreaking work in optics and the scattering of light led him to become one of the most renowned scientists that India has ever produced!
C.V. Raman (born Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman in 1888 in Tiruchinapalli, Tamil Nadu, India) was raised in studious home environment. His father was a lecturer in mathematics and physics. C.V. would go on to…
carlyo | November 13, 2013
Guest Blog by Cody Kangas
After nearly twelve months of planning, twelve Michigan Tech Mind Trekkers and three staff flew West to the 2013 Bay Area Science Festival, held in AT&T Ball Park (San Francisco, CA). No crew had ever flown to an event, let alone traveled further West than Minneapolis, and thus began a new era for Mind Trekkers. This marked the second stop on the USA Science & Engineering Traveling Festival tour, powered by Michigan Tech Mind Trekkers.
On Friday, 11/1, our shipping crate filled with festival supplies and equipment arrived from Houghton, and everything made…
carlyo | November 7, 2013Vera Rubin -- Astronomer
Often called one of the most gifted but underrated astronomers today, her work confirmed the presence of dark matter in the universe, and since 1978, she has researched and analyzed over 200 galaxies
Born in 1928 in Philadelphia, Vera Rubin was 10 years old and living in Washington, DC when she first fell in love with the night sky, peering up at the heavens from her bedroom window. It was rare for a woman to study science at the time, but she was determined to make her mark. Vera earned a B.S. in astronomy from the prestigious women's institution of Vassar College…
carlyo | November 5, 2013X-STEM - presented by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune - is an Extreme STEM symposium for elementary through high school students featuring interactive presentations by an exclusive group of visionaries who aim to empower and inspire kids about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). These top STEM role models and industry leaders are sure to ignite your students’ curiosity through storytelling and live demonstrations.
Our spotlight on our X-STEM Speakers continues with Biochemist Dr. Robert Tjian from Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).
Ask…
carlyo | October 31, 2013By F. Mark Modzelewsk
Effort will highlight STEM’s massive impact on vocational education and careers
The USA Science & Engineering Festival (www.USAScienceFestival.org) is pleased to announce that mikeroweWORKS (mikeroweworks.com) will be hosting the “mikeroweWORKS Pavilion” at this year’s Festival. Today’s trade careers are being driven by hardworking, technologically-skilled workers and one of the goals of this partnership is to shine a spotlight on them at the Festival and to encourage young people to explore a multitude of career options in industries with millions of job openings.…
carlyo | October 30, 2013The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) – a maestro at making science come alive for K-12 students, teachers and the public – will once more bring its magic to the Festival next year, returning as a major sponsor and presenting a reprise of its wildly popular "Meet the Scientists" and "Science of Our Senses" hands-on encounters at Festival Expo 2014 – but this time with an added twist!
One of the founding sponsors of the USA Science & Engineering Festival, AAAS – the world's largest general scientific society – has long been a Festival partner, sharing common goals…
carlyo | October 28, 2013Join us TODAY- Tuesday October 29th at 5:30 EST, for our very first Google Hangout on Air! In preparation of our "Science in Fiction" Kavli Video Science Contest launch (Nov. 1) we are hosting a "Science of Monsters" Hangout! We have recruited an incredibly talented team of zombie and monster experts that have graciously dedicated their time to participate in the Hangout.
With Halloween just days away, enjoy our spirited live Hangout on Air by listening to our experts tackle questions like "Why are zombies hungry all of the time? What regions of the brain change in the fictional zombie? What…
carlyo | October 25, 2013Nikola Tesla -- Electrical and Mechanical Engineer, Inventor
One of science's most amazing visionaries of all time, Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla
was considered a mathematical phenomenon since childhood, being able as a high school
student to perform integral calculus in his head, which initially prompted his teachers to believe that he was cheating!
This famous engineer and inventor was known for developing the alternating-current (AC) electrical system widely used today and the discovery of the rotating magnetic field. Tesla also proved that the Earth can be used as an…
carlyo | October 23, 2013
Now entering its third year, the Kavli Science Video Contest, an international middle and high school student competition that is held as part of the USA Science & Engineering Festival, will begin accepting entries for the "Science in Fiction" contest on November 1st! Our Kavli Science Video Contest Advisors, including an array of zombie and monster experts, have graciously offered their time to participate in the"Science of Monsters" Google Hangout on Tuesday, October 29th at 5:30 EST! Just in time for Halloween, our experts will dive into the science behind zombies, monsters, vampires…
carlyo | October 17, 2013Guest Blog by Fuel Your School
This fall, Fuel Your School makes it easy for local communities to help generate funding for public schools in 19 markets.
From Oct. 1 through Oct. 31, 2013, the Fuel Your School program will donate $1, up to a total of nearly $7.1 million, to help fund eligible classroom projects when consumers purchase 8 or more gallons of fuel at participating local Chevron and Texaco stations in 14 U.S. markets. Chevron also supports similar marketer-funded programs in Ector County, Texas and Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake and Mendocino counties (North Coast), California, as…
carlyo | October 16, 2013X-STEM - presented by Northrop Grumman Foundation and MedImmune - is an Extreme STEM symposium for elementary through high school students featuring interactive presentations by an exclusive group of visionaries who aim to empower and inspire kids about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). These top STEM role models and industry leaders are sure to ignite your students’ curiosity through storytelling and live demonstrations.
Our spotlight on our X-STEM Speakers continues with Venture Capitalist and Broadway Producer, Mr. Kevin J.Kinsella.
He's sometimes called…
carlyo | October 11, 2013By F. Mark Modzelewski
World's Largest STEM Event to Excite and Inspire Educators, Administrators, Students & Families
The USA Science & Engineering Festival (www.USAScienceFestival.org), supported by presenting host sponsor Lockheed Martin, is pleased to join forces with the U.S. News STEM Solutions (http://usnewsstemsolutions.com/) to host their National Conference April 23-25, 2014 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. The combined Festival and Conference will bring together educators, scientists, performers, business and government leaders -- as well as…
carlyo | October 8, 2013
The Northrop Grumman Foundation returns as a major Festival Sponsor, and will be significantly enhancing the Festival's focus on STEM through impressive activities at the Expo -- including exciting new competitions in cyber defense and robotics!
"The Northrop Grumman Foundation is committed to helping advance STEM education and sparking interest in young people," says Sandra Evers-Manly, vice president of Global Corporate Responsibility and president of the Northrop Grumman Foundation. "Our mission is to fund educational projects that make a difference in the lives of our country's students…