STEM Today -- Fall/Winter 2021 by Innovation & Tech Today

PRODUCT SHOWCASE

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EDUBITS

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TEACHER'S VIEW

t Tam ara Robertson Dr. Tra cy Fanara and Mythb usters Jr. Co-Hos

COMBINING SUPERPOWERS

PLUS: TOP STEM Afterschool Programs SciFest All Access and X-STEM All Access: A Busy Autumn for USASEF Turning Girls Loose to Build

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FROM THE EDITOR

What a time to be a STEM student. While many of us worry ourselves into deep stress with the political, environmental and cultural state of the nation and world, and the many issues we have to tackle with this planet, I’m reminded of what a middle school robotics whiz told me a few years ago: “Okay, we get it that we’re being handed a messed-up world. So we’re just going to fix it.” That’s what I love about this generation of students. I’ve been fortunate to see and interact with Executive Editor Robert Yehling

them up close as an avowed fan of school robotics competitions, a high school cross-country coach, writing educator and employer. I can also relate to them, as my own writing career started when I was a 16-year-old junior at Carlsbad (CA) High School. In my interactions, what I have learned is this: contrary to the belief of some, these students are focused, driven, well aware of

“ You will likely have many careers in this life, and new fields will open up constantly”

the many career opportunities coming available to them. Technology has been in their lives since they were born, so they are also hard-wired to get right to the point, find the information, work on the solution. Recently, at the USASEF’s signature events, X-STEM All Access and SciFest All Access, dozens of the world’s greatest young scientists, engineers, tech experts, educators and doctors presented virtually to thousands of students. When all of the fun, experiments, talks, demonstrations, and discussions were over, and the voices of the presenters still fresh, two messages seemed to rise above as heralds of the events: “You will likely have many careers in this life, and new fields will open up constantly;” and “Time to solve problems and heal the world.” If any generation is going to get us there, it’s Generation Z. They have the greatest innate activist instincts and drive to change the world than any generation since the Baby Boomers of the 1960s. We celebrate this diversity of career choice and this determination to solve problems in STEM Today with a full and fun autumn issue for you. Our cover story features two highly popular and successful scientists, Mythbusters Jr. co-host Tamara Robertson and NOAA scientist Dr. Tracy Fanara, who are fixtures in USASEF events and many other student programs. They also take us into our wall-to-wall coverage of X-STEM All Access and SciFest All Access. We move right into the classroom with three pieces that reflect the diversity of educational opportunities becoming available to STEM students of all ages: a story on Rosie Riveters, which empowers underprivileged kids through learning engineering and building things; Christine Danhoff ’s look at using augmented reality in the classroom; the first part of our two-part series on the Top STEM Afterschool programs; and much more. We hope you enjoy this lively issue. For those who are parents of students, we hope that when you see your child the next time, you stop for a moment and think: This is our future. Because they already know it — and are getting ready to get us there.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

CALLING ALL K-12 EDUCATORS

TAKE A COFFEE BREAK WITH US

SERIES

Join us for 15 minute “sparks” of inspiration videos for teaching STEM in the classroom. Learn more at usasciencefestival.org FREE SERIES ON THURSDAYS:

Nov 11, Nov 18, Dec 2, Dec 9, Dec 16

A PROGRAM OF

PUBLISHER/ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Charles Warner cwarner@goipw.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR Shane Brisson shane@goipw.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR MANAGING EDITORS ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Robert Yehling Patricia Miller Corey Noles Erin James

SENIOR WRITERS

Destiny Nolan Mike Washburn

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Beth Covington

SPECIAL GUEST CONTRIBUTING WRITERS LEAD DESIGNER EDITORIAL CONSULTANT CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Christine Danhoff Katherine Rieder Open Look Design Team Alexa Black Tabor Mary Roche

V.P. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Steven Higgins

V.P. EAST COAST OPERATIONS

Dave Van Niel

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR

Crystal Segovia Gomez

SPECIAL THANKS The entire USASEF Team, Dr. Tracy Fanara, Dr. Tamara Robertson, Brian Boothe/Zoomwerks

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough poses with the Astrobee robotic free-flyers in support of the Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Robo-Pro Challenge). The Kibo-RPC, allows students to create programs to control Astrobee, a free-flying robot aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

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Credit: NASA Image

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STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

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contents ABOUT THE COVER: NOAA Scientist Dr. Tracy Fanara and biomolecular engineer and Mythbusters Jr. co-host Tamara Robertson are empowering thousands of students, and having a ridiculous amount of fun doing it.

FALL ISSUE COVER

16 C ombining Superpowers By Robert Yehling

Cover Photo

DEPARTMENTS 2 From the Editor 8 Teacher's Corner 10 EduBits 44 STEM Product Showcase 46 Coming Next Issue STORIES 24 Science, Science Wherever You Go The USASEF again presented SciFest All Access as a virtual event, but you’d never know it as the presenter energy, programs, swag and experiments were off the hook. Step in and experience a great event once again. By Beth Covington

28 A World of Great Fields for a Field of STEM Students For the second straight year, the USASEF’s X-STEM All Access brought many of the most innovative scientific and engineering minds together for a brilliant week of virtual presentations, discovery and learning. By Destiny Nolan

34 Top STEM Afterschool Programs (Part 1) Now that most schools and programs have reopened after the pandemic, we make the rounds for our annual survey of the finest STEM afterschool programs. By Erin James and Destiny Nolan

38 Turning Girls Loose to Build The 2021 version of Rosie Riveters, named for the iconic World War II poster, allows school girls to build, create and practice critical STEM life skills. By Katherine Rieder

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

NASA Astronaut Zena Cardman shown during her training days, in front of a T-38 trainer aircraft, was one of the highlighted speakers for X-STEM All Access. Learn more about X-STEM All Access on page 28. Photo Credit: Robert Markowitz/NASA/Johnson Space Center

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Teacher’s Corner

Augmented Reality? In Education?

YES

By Christine Danhoff Educators are constantly looking for resources and tools to get students engaged and excited about the content they are teaching. Augmented reality can take that engagement a step further by empowering students to design and create content. The hidden possibilities can provide students with the opportunities, experiences, and skills to take into their future careers or workplace. They can apply it to other experiences such as their own passions, interests, and share them with an authentic audience. Augmented reality can change how we really “see” the world!

CleverBooks takes the experience a step further by creating a webbased, interactive experience called Augmented Classroom. In this space, students can explore and interact with a variety of activities, listen and learn about curriculum, as well as check their knowledge on topics from geography, weather, animals, geometry, and space. An innovative feature of the Augmented Classroom is that students can collaborate and create with other students around the world. These opportunities provide the necessary skills for our students to better navigate their way through their future workforce from an early age.

In K-12 education and beyond, empowerment can be attained by utilizing and integrating augmented reality with students. Augmented reality allows students and teachers to utilize a mobile device or tablet, along with an app, which will then utilize projection-, location-, or recognition-based experiences that bring objects, artifacts, or media into our real-world. Students interact with that content by moving around, getting closer to it, and manipulating the content to research and learn more information.

No matter if students are in-person or virtual, augmented reality can be a hook to get them excited about content, and to inquire and ask more questions. When students can see artifacts, animals, and can interact, listen, watch, and create with augmented reality, their excitement level, collaboration and communication with their peers, as well as creativity levels increase, making the content more meaningful and memorable. Some students may never have the opportunity to leave their country, state, or hometown to visit different historical landmarks, and augmented reality brings artifacts, and the landmarks right into their world in front of them. It also allows students to view content and models of things we can’t see without a microscope or by scuba diving into the ocean. Augmented reality gives students the opportunity to see and interact with plants and animals, sea creatures that live on the ocean floor, as well as many other ways to make learning more meaningful and create those memorable experiences.

Studies have shown that engagement increases with students’ ability to create experiences utilizing a mobile device or tablet to demonstrate their understanding of a particular concept or standard. When students utilize augmented reality during a lesson, they want to dive into the content and don’t want to stop learning or exploring. They are more willing to use critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills to explore what else may be “hidden” in the lesson or activity. In order for educators to achieve this, students can create using web-based sites utilizing their Chromebook or device, as well as create and experience with a variety of apps that correlate with curriculum standards and concepts from PreK-12 and beyond! Not only can augmented reality create empowered students, but it can also spark student curiosity and interest and boost their engagement. Some examples of how augmented reality can successfully be integrated into the classroom and curriculum range from exploring the water cycle with the Merge Cube, re-creating and interacting with scenes from a novel using CoSpaces, exploring ocean animals and space using Assemblr, retelling the story of The Three Little Pigs with Quiver Masks, practicing letter and number writing with Narrator AR, interacting and reading stories with Wonderscope, identifying historical artifacts using Google Expeditions AR, and exploring the world, countries, vegetation and animals using CleverBooks Geography and map.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

As educators, we want to provide our students with opportunities and experiences that they may never have and/or that will be vital to their future. We can bring these opportunities to our students with augmented reality just by being willing to step outside the box and give it a try. You have nothing to lose, and can only gain student interest, engagement and excitement! For a collection of augmented reality resources to try with PreK-12 students, go to https://wke.lt/w/s/ zUbhOP. CHRISTINE DANHOFF is K-12 Technology Integration Specialist, Genoa Area Local Schools in Genoa, OH. She has a passion for integrating AR/VR and computer science into the classroom for student engagement, and to provide opportunities to students that they may never get to experience.

EduBits

Compiled By Erin James & Destiny Nolan

STEM Partnership Program Expands to More Schools During the pandemic, the Lumen Program developed a hybrid form of learning that combines classroom subjects and curriculum with something sorely needed in society today — developing problemsolving abilities.

Lumen now has the reach and plans to work with 10 or more partner schools and a total of approximately 500 new students. The partner schools reach across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. With a year to prepare, AoPS is experimenting with new and refined program elements

The expansions include Art of Problem Solving (AoPS), which produces AoPS Online math courses; AoPS Academy, which dives into math curriculum and physics curriculum; and Beast Academy, which features online and face-to-face courses for elementary grade students. A spokesperson for the AoPS development team said that with the plans to grow the Lumen Program (grant funded program), it will drill in on delivering the best math enrichment classes and curriculum to undernoticed STEM learners.

regarding a direct-to-families approach and the curriculum spread with a

Lumen classes first started in September 2020 in a partner school in Atlanta, GA. Throughout the calendar year, Lumen trainers worked with five different schools and a total of 130 students. In Summer 2021, AoPS conducted a free preparation summer camp that enabled low-income students to enhance their problem-solving mindset. The face-to-face and online courses of the Beast Academy made their introduction in the summer camp.

Lumen community.”

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

gradual release instruction. “One of our big goals is to create strong mathematical thinkers who value a robust math culture,” Chris Smith, director of outreach at AoPS and head of the Lumen program, said in an email interview. “We are building out a mathematics enrichment ecosystem around the program centerpiece-virtual, instructor-led classes- in order to deepen the math culture at school and at home by creating an inter-school

Within the first year, Lumen Program administrators saw higher than expected scores in math interest and identification, also in completing work in and beyond what was assigned. During the next year, Lumen and AoPS plan to add their inter-school math competition pilot to create diversity in middle school math competitions.

Escape! The Afghan All-Girls Robotic Team The Afghan all girls robotic team dazzled the world in 2017. Four years later, they were scrambling for their lives when the Taliban resumed control of Afghanistan. Thankfully, we will get to see their work continue in the world, thanks to an August escape. The team started off with about a dozen girls in the western city of Heart, and grew to more than 20. It was formed by Afghan tech entrepreneur and Digital Citizen Fund (which runs STEM classes for girls) founder Roya Mahboob in 2017. That’s when we in America met the team, when they were recognized during an international robotics competition in Washington, D.C. About 150 high school students in Herat applied for the team competition, joining 163 teams from 157 countries. After a math and science exam, 15 were selected. But only six families would allow their daughters to attend the program. Then it got tricky. The U.S. embassy in Kabul denied visas for the girls earlier that month for unknown reasons. After encouragement from daughter Ivanka, a strong supporter of STEM programs for empowering girls and teens, then-President Donald Trump intervened to allow them into the country for 20 days. The Afghan all girls team finished 114th out of 163 teams and took home a “courageous achievement” award. They then went onto Canada in 2018 to compete in the First Robotics Competition (FRC) season in Ontario. The FRC had been watching the girls and was thrilled the team had accepted their invitation to participate. All of that turned out to be a long introduction to an ubertalented team of students. What they did two years later, when COVID-19 hit, sparkles of their genius. After the pandemic hit, the governor of Herat issued a call for more ventilators. As cases started to rise, the team knew they had to do something. Mahoob reached out to MIT and received assistance in coming up with a design to build ventilators from scratch. And not with typical parts. Instead, the girls were forced to rely on used parts from Toyota Corollas, from which they put together a prototype that only cost around 500 dollars. They were able to use the windshield wipers, which would power the ventilator, gearboxes, motors and some motorbike parts. Once the ventilator was approved, it was rolled out in Afghan hospitals and the design was shared with the World Health Organization. Instead of being seen as national heroes for saving lives with their homebuilt ventilators, though, the girls spent the summer of 2021 fearing for their freedom and lives. Knowing the Taliban fighters would likely take the girls for brides and remove them from their homes and schools, Mahoob and others spirited them out of the country. Some members flew to the neighboring country of Qatar, while others eventually touched down in Mexico.

The Learning Network: NY Times’ embrace of STEM Like nearly all newspapers in America, the New York Times has found itself covering STEM subjects more and more as the century has progressed. However, did you know that the Times has an entire online suite of content-rich STEM articles and lessons directed at students of all ages? Part of the paper’s The Learning Network theme, these aren’t merely articles, photos, some explanation and other 2D fare. Most of these “Lessons of the Day” feature interactive qualities and all of them lead the student to direct application. Even better, the subjects covered are current events, and all require participation and solutions by today’s student scientists. For instance, in a late October call-up of the Times STEM page (https://www. nytimes.com/spotlight/learning-stem), we discovered Lessons of the Day on mapping and positioning future solar and wind arrays to power the country; “See How The Dixie Fire Created Its Own Weather,” referring to the 970,000-acre California fire that was just fully contained; “How Humans Lost Their Tails”; “Women Fighting to Protect Greenland”; and “How an 11-Foot-Tall 3D Printer Is Helping to Create a Community,” in reference to a project in Nacajuca, Mexico; and “Cauliflower and Chaos, Fractals in Every Floret,” in which students learn about fractal geometry through natural plant shapes — and then draw their own patterns. Each lesson begins with an overview. Then there’s a warm-up session in which students look at visuals and discuss prompts, to get their minds on the subject. Questions for Writing and Discussion follow, and then three options on activities to directly apply the lesson learned. FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

EduBits

Giving Science a Boost Flinn Scientific has updated its Science2Go digital learning programs for middle and high school students to reflect the reality in schools across America. With remote programs and virtual learning remaining part of the landscape, even post-pandemic, they have started to go remote. The updated function will put science into the spotlight. It will provide assessments, videos, labs and a new function for teachers. The new update for the 2021-2022 school year provides ten videos to help guide students through the science experiments. Among them are a new “connect to you lab” feature to help understand gathering data, assessments to become a master, and several videos on climate change. With each, students are asked questions that lead them to apply what they learned to lab work. That offering has expanded as well, with lab topics focusing on chemistry, biology, physics, and science.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

EduBits

“The Toolkit of the Future”

Massachusetts STEM Week Upcoming USASEF Events The Spark of STEM is a virtual program that began during the height of the pandemic shutdown. It was so popular that it is now a regular one-minute weekly series on social media (you can access it on their Facebook or Instagram pages). In addition, there are the new Spark of STEM Coffee Breaks, presented by AstraZeneca, which feature 15-minute vignettes for expanded content. features a guest that discusses his or her work, and how it can apply to the classroom. Each program offers a wide array of tips, activities and tools for the teachers. For instance, in the midNovember Coffee Break, renowned mathematician Dr. Padhu Seshaiyer offered instructional tips to redesign the way of teaching math and turn math haters into lovers. He emphasized direct experience, create enjoyment, and make an impact. The Spark of STEM Coffee Breaks will premiere every Thursday through December 16, and each vignette will be viewable on-demand immediately after airing. Both modules offer ideal ways for K-12 educators to stay connected with STEM champions and influencers.

X-STEM San Diego: X-STEM returns to a live setting on April 19, 2022 in San Diego! X-STEM is an Extreme STEM symposium for middle 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. These STEM role models and industry leaders are sure to ignite your students’ curiosity through storytelling and live demonstrations. For more information: https:// usasciencefestival.org/x-stem-san-diego-2022/

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

Thanks to the tremendous work of the USASEF, afterschool programs, robotics programs and other organizations in the past decade, STEM learning is becoming ubiquitous in our education system. It’s becoming so popular, and so vital to developing the kinds of workers our economy will require for the rest of the century, that state governments are now taking up the mantle, too. Take Massachusetts and its fourth annual Massachusetts STEM Week, held the third week of October. Organized by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Education and the STEM Advisory Council, Mass STEM Week boosted awareness, interest, and access in STEM education and career opportunities for learners of all ages and backgrounds. The focus was “see yourself in STEM”, emphasizing the importance of mentoring to bolster confidence in STEM subjects among students from underrepresented groups — including girls, people of color, low-income families, people with disabilities, and firstgeneration students. “STEM is the toolkit of the future, no matter what your interests are,” said Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker. “You can’t think anymore of STEM just being about science, technology, engineering, and math because it’s everywhere. There’s almost no tool, no capability, no thing you need to succeed, that doesn’t involve ... some element of STEM.” One of those is Artificial Intelligence, which is here and not going away… and thus, the latest new tech for kids to learn for their adult careers. To that, Massachusetts STEM Week also marked the launch of Day of AI, a new initiative with MIT RAISE. Day of AI will be an annual educational event for teachers across the country to introduce students of all backgrounds to foundational concepts in artificial intelligence and its role in their lives. “K-12 students across the country will have the opportunity to learn about artificial intelligence, MITstyle — that is, through hands-on activities that will demonstrate the part AI plays in their daily lives,” said Professor Cynthia Breazeal, director of MIT RAISE, senior associate dean for Open Learning, and head of the Media Lab’s Personal Robots research group. The first Day of AI will be on May 13, 2022.

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Combining Superpowers 16

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

NOAA Scientist Dr. Tracy Fanara and biomolecular engineer and Mythbusters Co-Host Tamara Robertson love fashion, the ocean, superheroes and tinkering with things — and are mad comic book publishers. They are empowering thousands of students, and having a ridiculous amount of fun doing it. By Robert Yehling

Tracy Fanara remembers the day she knew what she wanted to do with her life. An elementary teacher was talking about the 1978 Love Canal disaster, in which barrels of chemicals from a toxic landfill dislodged and bled into the Niagara Falls, New York water table and leached into backyards, basements and a schoolyard. The disaster resulted in the creation of the EPA Superfund and a host of new regulations. “That’s what sparked my interest in environmental engineering,” she recalled, “protecting people from natural disasters, making sure they have clean water and food to survive.”

As for Tamara Robertson? First of all, she shared with a caller about a week she’d just spent in Yellowstone, sounding every bit like an excited 10-year-old rather than one of the top scientist-engineers in America. “The bison followed me for like seven miles so I thought I was taking one home!” she chuckled. Which is part of the message: this STEM Superpower team is as much about having fun as creating serious science. Whether it’s an interview, a student session or the latest at NOAA or Mythbusters, they are all-in. Then, she shared her career origin journey. It took a little longer than for

Tracy, but the way it happened was equally random. “I grew up taking things apart — not always a good thing!” Tamara said. “I’ve always been a tinkerer, naturally curious. Only when I was a sophomore in college, did I realize engineering could be an option, but at the time, the only thing I knew about it was that Scotty was an engineer on Star Trek.“ Two amazing careers germinated from these casual early brushes with science — part of the point they make every day in their work with younger STEM students. Tracy, a.k.a. “Inspector Planet,” manages coastal and national modeling efforts for NOAA, a critical responsibility FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

during major sea-level rise and coastal change. Tamara is the co-host of the Science Channel’s Mythbusters Jrs. with Adam Savage, former co-host of Mythbusters 2.0, and Engineering Consultant and Wardrobe Designer — a fascinating combination. Together, they presented a virtual session in the recent X-STEM All Access and SciFest All Access events, produced by USA Science & Engineering Festival; Tamara welcomed SciFest All Access attendees via video as well. But since most kids and teens, and many childlike adults love comics, animation and anime, let’s start with what might be the hottest publishing property floating around STEM World right now: the Seekers of Science comic book series that they co-publish, in which characters use science and scientific application to save various endangered places, species and other situations on earth. Hundreds of thousands of students read each issue. Through Seekers of Science, the USASEF events and their own major outreach and event schedules, the duo is literally combining their superpowers to draw the next generation into STEM-based careers. “SciFest All Access is amazing,” Tracy said. “It’s a great resource for students to get connected with people in the STEM and science fields. Everyone has a unique story, and it’s important to hear of STEM successes, because it’s not all rainbows and butterflies; in fact, there are a lot of obstacles, and it is hard at times. But it’s all worth it in the end. You get through things you might not ordinarily; it builds character and work ethic.” While both women place high importance on mentorship and working with kids — they run a STEM camp together in Florida — Tamara has made it a major part of her life’s calling as a chemical and biomolecular engineer. Besides Mythbusters Jr., she’s a board member for a number of STEM organizations, and devotes much of her consultancy to creating platforms to maximize student involvement — particularly girls and young women. “I wanted to champion women, and I realized during my corporate life, in five tiers of management, there were no women,” she said. “On my own, I did research, and realized so many young girls quit STEM based learning and programs before even entering high school. Something had to be done.” Enter Mythbusters and Superhero Science, which Tamara has championed through ComiCon panels, the live and virtual outreach camps and joint presentations with Tracy, and keynote speeches to

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

inspire more young women to seek STEM careers. “My main outreach is Superhero Science, comic books etc., so as an example of what I love to do, I was doing a science prank show, tied into Mythbusters, at the Clipper SciFest in L.A.,” Tamara recalled. “There was no ability for a full stage show, so we pivoted to a booth and a show floor, with pretty talented kids. You could get a photograph and autograph if you asked a superhero science questions. I became like this Magic 8 Ball. I invited the physics department from UCLA to take up half my booth, worked with the science editor of Big Bang Theory and retrofitted a Jazzercise bike to illuminate light bulbs, to show the amount of energy it takes to light something. Projects like this draw in kids and keep them interested.”

In a world that will need more and more engineers as climate, infrastructure and other challenges continue to mount, Tracy believes the way to the hearts of tomorrow’s scientists — particularly girls — is to tell her story and then put it right to work with students. And within her story is part of the secret sauce to creating value and achieving greatness: find a way to create a better approach or method for the world. “I chose a career in science and the environment,” she said. “With science, you get to see something you’ve never seen every day, and you’re going to lose, often — that’s what happens with experiments. Until you win. When you win, though, you have the potential to change the world. My degrees combine design and environmental engineering, water FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

Combining Superpowers and the environment. If you look at every catastrophe in the U.S., you see scientists and engineers not talking to each other, just staying in their specific corners. Well, I’m an environmental engineer, and I am also a hydrologist and ocean scientist, focusing on coastal resilience; I do both.” At the recent X-STEM All Access virtual event, presented by the USA Science & Engineering Festival, Tracy explained one of her NOAA projects, on which she’s working with NASA: to build an aquaponic system for space travel to clean wastewater using shellfish, shrimp, mussels and snails, a classic application of biomimicry — in which we repeat the natural processes of animals to solve human issues. In this case, shellfish are the ocean’s natural clean water filters, so why aren’t we using them elsewhere… like in their opposite environment, space? A great question — but what separates Tracy from nearly everyone on earth is that she not only had the presence of mind to ask it, but figured out a completely new system to arrive at a revolutionary way to treat wastewater in space. That ingenuity, creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving approach is the same scientific mindset she impresses upon students in what, for her, often feels like playtime in the sandbox. “I really enjoy mentoring students. I had over 40 interns in my previous job, including 13 in one summer,” she said. “The kids did what they wanted to; this was not an internship where they do monotonous tasks. They explore science and learn what drives them. They research and then build the piece, learning they can build the world around them.”

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

Tamara’s career followed an entirely different arc. It began with an inquisitive, I-can-do-it spirit, being a young woman trying to crack career ceilings. She knows both the frustrations of feeling stuck, but also fully appreciates the character skills she absorbed from her parents — a point she impressed. “I grew up in a military family,” she said. “My mother, as a female in a male dominated world, had to work twice as hard for half the accolades, but always forged a path. Dad supported her and showed me the grit and power I would need. They couldn’t afford to send me to college, but instilled other skills in me. “So I can tell military kids, or kids that feel like their only option is to go into the military, that you can go to college and achieve your dreams. I can tell you, as someone who came from a family with no previous college, no engineers, no one to guide you — there’s still a chance. There are resources, funding and mentors out there. And also try to remember your parents are doing so much more than you realize, giving you an example of being the type of human you want to be in life. You have many options outside of the military, and there are lots of scholarships for military kids.” The bulk of Tamara’s early professional work came as licensed chemical and biomolecular product engineer for more than a decade for Fortune 500 companies. Her areas of experience include global tech transfers, process & facilities design, pandemic vaccine manufacturing (Continued on Page 22)

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(a handy skill today, for sure! She worked on a swine flu vaccine team for six months in Liverpool), patented additive technology development, and product design. While working with the likes of Starbucks, McDonald’s and Tupperware, she also launched Women in Leadership mentoring programs, started plant-based product initiatives, and engineered shifts to more sustainability in product design and manufacturing. However, the tireless, diminutive scientist with endless personality also earned something else — a Screen Actors Guild card, initially as a commercial actress. When 2015 rolled around, she made her move into full-time consultancy, speaking and presenting — and eventually onto Mythbusters. “I always had this creative spark, whether choreographing dance, doing art, or being an engineer,” Tamara said. “I did commercial acting in the Southeast while in college, and it’s been a side hobby since, but I was never able to land the roles I wanted, a nerdy science/engineer, you know, Amy Farrah Fowler in The Big Bang Theory. “I’d go for these roles, and they’d say, ‘you don’t look like a scientist or engineer.’ I’d say back, ‘Would you like to see my degrees?’ Instead, I only got ‘girl next door’ roles.” Now, she’s spent the past several seasons on screen, in a much different way than she expected — but it does combine camera and science. “Every engineer hopes to explode conventional myths. What most don’t realize is that Mythbusters really is reality TV. It was a whole new branch of TV that I, as an actor, never knew I would be going toward. I was so surprised. I never thought I’d land in a TV show like it, getting to play while I hosted, getting to tinker with things. Really cool,” she said.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

Photo: iStockphoto.com

Science, Science Wherever You Go: SciFest All Access

By Beth Covington

The second running of the virtual SciFest All Access was a spectacular success, featuring the laughs, hands-on programs, personalities and diversity of programs that said one thing: ‘This is your future. And it’s going to be both very important and fun.’ Imagine waking up one morning knowing you’re going to play all day, and having more choices of activities with more people than you can count. Then imagine that all of that playtime is feeding you in ways that will enrich your life and career down the line, open more possibilities, and creating friends worldwide.

Cargill, The Discovery Channel, U.S. Air Force, Federal Aviation Administration, CACI, U.S. Space Force, ACS, Broadcom, and Stemfinity. SciFest All Access also brought enough scientific, engineering and creative brainpower together to light up a city while the “fun quota” in presentation after presentation was through the roof.

That’s how it felt to step into the amazing virtual world of SciFest All Access, the Virtual STEM Expo held October 18-24. Designed for K-12 students, educators and families, the week of programmed events and virtual activities drew thousands of online participants from the United States and throughout the world.

Stepping up on the STEM Stage to deliver the presentations were a “Who’s Who” of leading young scientists and engineers today. Mythbusters Jr. co-host and biochemical engineer Tamara Robertson joined Justin Shaifer “Mr. Fascinate” to guide participants through the programming, which featured 11 exhibit zones, dozens of activities, and virtual booths from nearly 100 exhibitors.

Sponsors for SciFest All Access included AstraZeneca, Campbell’s, Intel,

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

Along for the ride were an impressive list of companies who made the event possible, all of which hire STEM students constantly: AstraZeneca, Campbells, Cargill, Intel, The Discovery Channel, U.S. Air Force, Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Space Force, ACS, Broadcom Foundation, CACI, and StemFinity. STEM Today is a media partner of both the USASEF and the event. “They’ve really made a beautiful, rich environment, so interactive,” Tamara said. “It’s a lot less talking heads, and more pushing for fun, interactive experiences where you virtually explore and go in and out of the environment with your digital backpack, we guide you to locations where you can add stuff to it. Kids have such a good time. It’s a sneaky approach to teaching — keep it fun and keep them laughing.” In addition, SciFest All Access featured a number of special activities within the overall event, including Girls Invent Lab, sponsored by Intel; the AstraZeneca Educator Resource Lab; Student Project Lab, and the celebration of National Chemistry Week. And just like on campus, teachers had their getaway development “room”, the Educator Resource Center, which was filled with materials related to the presentations, exhibits and activities. For direct experience, students had their own hangouts, too — like Virtual STEM Activities and the STEM Scavenger Hunt, always a blast. “SciFest All Access is amazing,” said NOAA scientist Dr. Tracy Fanara, who presented

another wonderful workshop with Tamara Robertson. “It’s a great resource for students to get connected with people in the STEM and science fields. Everyone has a unique story, and it’s important to hear of STEM successes, because it’s not all rainbows and butterflies; in fact, there are a lot of obstacles, and it is hard at times. But it’s all worth it in the end. You get through things you might not ordinarily; it builds character and work ethic.” It’s also fun. Dr. Fanara’s presentations always feel like a day at science camp, with equal parts instruction, storytelling, experimenting and activities. But what conferees came in part to hear were the experiences of the scientists themselves, not a hard thing for Dr. Fanara, who drew from a striking list — science communicator, storm chaser, builder of models to simulate coastal sea level change, and a woman dedicated to saving humanity through her environmental and ocean sciences work at NOAA. She was not alone. The presentations ranged far and wide, giving virtual students and teachers enough content to fill a curriculum for years. And more than a handful of science labs. Equally important, the way the USA Science & Engineering Festival team programmed the week, parents and students alike received a full look at how diverse science, engineering and tech careers have become — with more to come. The average high school senior can look forward to five or six career changes in their

lives, creating a lifetime of choices. To that, the presenters focused on giving participants as much of a hands-on experience as possible online. They matched their talks with activities in many cases, which showed experiments and examples, cooked up things on the spot, and otherwise made it feel like a wildly fun day in the lab. Among the highlights of the week: • Emmy winning TV host and engineer Nate Ball of the series Design Squad shared how his growing-up years of always taking things apart and putting them together led him to become an MIT-graduated engineer. • STEM advocate Dr. Darryl Lee Banes uncorked one demonstration after another as he dazzled attendees while showing them the fun, entertaining aspects of science — which goes back to Tamara Robertson’s comments about “sneaky learning”. Sneaky… and awesome! • NASA planetary protection engineer Dr. Moogega Cooper discussed the Earth’s current challenges with pollution, climate change and greenhouse gases, and also how today’s students will be even more important than she as they continue to grapple with the scientific challenges of our times. • It was Science Meets Hip-Hop when Mr. D and Mr. Q-U-E stepped on stage. The two South Central Los Angeles middle school teachers, a.k.a. David “Mr. D” Landix and Lamar “Mr. Q-U-E” Queen, hit on using music to help foster

Photo: iStockphoto.com

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

learning and engagement in their math classes. Now, they present music and educational videos to other educators through their company, Music Notes. • Former NASA rocket scientist Kevin J. DeBruin, a spacecraft designer, brought along one of the hottest career paths going today — space. With NASA, Blue Origin, Space X and Virgin Galactic all sending rockets and people into space in the past year, it is party time for those wishing to get into the space program. Kevin further emphasized the vast number of ways to do so, besides trying to squeeze onto the list of those hoping to become astronauts. • The YouTube scientific DIY sensations, brothers Collins and Devan Key, brought the fun and laughs — and plenty of educational moments. Famous for stunts like the Pancake Challenge, the brothers are the most watched family-friendly YouTube channel (or channel anywhere!), with more than 30 million viewers. • Mr. Science was in the house! Jason Lindsey , one of the most respected and interviewed advocates of science and math, got to step amongst his younger peers — future scientists and engineers — and talk about the wonders of science and the world and always being inquisitive, asking questions, learning every day, and trying things out. Jason does it all, as a STEM educator, meteorologist, author and science multimedia journalist — a prime example of the “five to six careers in a lifetime” mentioned earlier. • Robotics superstar Jasmine Lawrence, who is the product manager for the Everyday Robot Project at X, the moonshot factory, had plenty of eager listeners. Robotics is the hottest field on high school campuses today, with millions of participants, and for good reason: as Jasmine noted, robots will be even more common in businesses, classrooms and homes than they are already. The Everyday Robot Project ties directly to education, as she is building a learning robot. • How many times have you heard of an engineer also being a successful singer? And how would that look when you pull it together? Singer/performer and aerospace engineer Roy Moye III, known as

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

Photo: iStockphoto.com

“The Singing Engineer”, rocked the stage with another STEmusic presentation while exploring with participants ways to put seemingly opposite careers together. • The best peer-to-peer presentation came from Harvard biomedical engineering student Harrison Ngue, who is only a couple of years older than the students who flocked to his virtual event. Among other things, he told the story of how his mother’s cancer diagnosis when he was younger ignited his passion for healing others — and with that, the world of the medical researcher and finding cures, to which he plans to dedicate his life. • A lot of music filled the stages, a nod to USASEF’s ability to weave music and entertainment into the program — but also the presenters who continually sent a message through their range of talents: “Diversify and excel at more than one thing. Then see how you can put them together. That’s the future.” Among those delivering it was the HipHop Doctor himself, Maynard Okereke, who uses pop culture to create more fun for students learning STEM subjects and fields.

• Math is one of those subjects most people either love or hate. However, whether STEM students love or hate it, math is a major part of their future. A leading scientist trying to turn math haters into lovers, George Mason University mathematician Dr. Padhu Seshalyer, showed his audience a few of his methods while also talking about his mission to fulfill a childhood dream of helping others through math. Of course, after an event like SciFest All Access that turned a week of their lives into a week in STEM heaven, it’s natural for participants to feel a little let-down. Not to worry. Soon, you can see the SciFest All Access videos on the official site (https://usasciencefestival.org/), and relive the amazing experience. Now we all wait with great anticipation to see if we will be far enough beyond the pandemic for SciFest All Access to go live in 2022. That would be about the only way the experience could improve from what we received online in October. And to have the nation’s hottest young thinking minds in the same virtual room? Priceless.

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

A World of Great Fields for a Field of STEM Students By Destiny Nolan and Robert Yehling

Photo: Shutterstock.com

What do you do when you create a meet-and-greet extravaganza for students across the globe with some of the world’s most brilliant engineering and innovation minds — but no one can actually be together? For the second straight year, the USA Science & Engineering Festival faced this dilemma due to the pandemic. After hurriedly building out a platform to hold a virtual conference in 2020 and holding a solid Spring 2021 event, the USASEF returned with a wonderful X-STEM All Access event, presented by AstraZeneca, the U.S. Space Force and the Discovery Channel. A combination of highly engaging and interactive presentations by renowned STEM champions, accompanying worksheets and other learning tools, networking opportunities and chances to read up on the speakers and their works gave thousands of 6th to 12th grade online participants a look at science, tech and engineering career possibilities from countless new perspectives. “What I love about this event, and SciFest All Access, is they’ve really made a beautiful, rich environment, so interactive,” said X-STEM All Access presenter Tamara Robertson, also co-host of Mythbusters Jr. on the Science Channel. “It’s a lot less talking heads, and more pushing for fun, interactive experiences where you virtually explore and go

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

For the second straight year, the USASEF’s X STEM All Access brought many of the most innovative scientific and engineering minds together for a brilliant week of virtual presentations, discovery and learning.

in and out of the environment with your digital backpack, we guide you to locations where you can add stuff to it. Kids have such a good time. It’s a sneaky approach to teaching — keep it fun and keep them laughing.”

volcano. After discussing how he got into his line of work, his research and discoveries, he shared a discovery he has come across and can’t seem to solve — the decoy spider.

The centerpieces of X-STEM All Access were the presentations (which are available for full viewing on https://usasciencefestival.org/xstem-allaccess-videos/), wildly creative videos with equal parts personality, fun, learning and self-exploration bursting from each. Highlights included:

• In “Real-life Robotics,” a hugely popular topic in a country where millions of students are in robotics classes, Major Adrian Law, Director of Operations, United States Space Force spoke of the newest branch of the armed forces — and the opportunity for people to serve by either flying into space or working in the program. He was followed by Easton LaChappelle, CEO and founder, Unlimited Tomorrow, who has already made a huge impact on the way robotics can help people — and he’s in his 20s.

• In “Wild About Animals”, we heard from zookeeper and wildlife educator Jordan Veasley first. He offered a look into what zookeeping actually is and how he got his start. Then he broke down what the job requires and what needs to be learned — feeding, cleaning, health care, training, and other animal care education. Jordan was joined by environmental engineer Dr. Tracy Fanara (our cover subject in this issue of STEM Today) and her Inspector Planet team with a cool informational rap about climate change. Then came the host of Discovery Channel’s Expedition X, tropical biologist and science communicator Phil Torres. Phil is joining the episode from Mexico, where he was about to go look at a

Next up was the “Brain Break” segment, with speaker Maynard Okereke talking about a ROV (remotely operated vehicle) that works on deep-ocean projects (down to 13,000 feet) that humans can’t do. Jasmine Lawrence joined in to share her journey into robotics and the struggles she faced along the way. She certainly learned how to overcome any and all obstacles: she went onto Microsoft, where she helped create the Xbox. FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

A World of Great Fields for a Field of STEM Students A highly anticipated presentation was Next Gen STEM. Dr. Susan Galbraith, the Executive Vice President, Oncology R&D for event copresenter AstraZeneca, is passionate about developing medicines to improve the outcome for patients with cancer. She shared the program, Generation Health, which reaches more than a million young scientists. Following her was Dasia Taylor, a young inventor and guest on Ellen & the Dr. Oz Show. She used her ingenuity to invent sutures that change color when detecting an infection. The final presenter on the segment, bioinformatics researcher and student Catherine Kim, was awarded the prestigious Young Scientist award for her research to alleviate the severity of adverse drug reactions and pave the way for safer drug design and distribution. How about the highly anticipated return to the Moon, which NASA predicts will happen mid-decade? In “Returning to the Moon,” NASA astronaut Zena Cardman noted, “one of the most important things you

need to know in this field is how to fix things on the space station.” She then listed off her many different trainings, such as flying jets, managing robotics, and learning emergency procedures, then shared about the underwater training sessions in spacesuits, to simulate weightlessness. From the Moon, it’s onto Mars. Dr. Moogega Cooper explained to the participants how NASA chose Jezero Crater on Mars as a destination site: because, about 4 billion years ago, the area looked like a typical river plain on earth. What better spot to look for signs of life? If a single presentation had a universal theme to which all participants could relate, it was “Combining STEM Superpowers,” with great STEM champions (and cover story subjects) Dr. Tracy Fanara of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, and chemical and biomolecular engineer Tamara Robertson, the co-host of Mythbusters. Smart, hip and loaded with personality, Tracy and Tamara have combined forces on the hottest comic book series in STEM world, Seekers of Science, Mars' Jezero Crater Photo: ESA/DLR/FU-Berlin

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

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A World of Great Fields for a Field of STEM Students which has a readership of hundreds of thousands. In it, they use life science applications to save the world, one situation at a time. We’re in an amazing scientific time. Never have we known more about outer or inner space, but from the past 60 years of space exploration and neuroscience discoveries, we’ve also realized we have barely touched the surface. Which brings up “Exploring Our Minds”, which neuroscience engineer Dr. Kafui “Kaf ” Dzirasa hosted. He shared the work he and his lab research team are doing to better understand the electrical codes in the brain that make up feelings, so that they can better diagnose mental illnesses and mental challenges and create effective treatments. X-STEM All Access switched over to creative moment of remembrance, Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, reminisced about the conviction that led the late Larry Bock to found the USA Science and Engineering Festival in 2010. With all of the great career and learning opportunities, science, success stories and material presented, it made sense to wonder, “What drives these people to be so great at what they do — and how do they help others bring out their best?” In the “High Altitude Inspiration” piece, Major Jay Park, U.S Air Force Aviator and Director of Operations of Attachment 1, spoke to young engineers about his journey. The ensuing brain break session led to a very cool science rap math teachers Mr. D and Mr. Q-U-E of Music Notes created, along with how they use music to teach all things STEM related. Then we were treated to living inspiration straight from a STEM classroom: Captain Barrington Irving, aviator & founder of flying classrooms, was the youngest person to fly solo around the world when he did it in 2007 at age 23. By the way, he built the plane himself. Today, he uses his experience to teach kids about STEM. X-STEM All Access is scheduled to return in-person in Spring 2022, which will thrill everyone. Regardless, the USASEF’s attention to content, speaker quality, program originality, diversity and inclusion, from presenters and visitors, makes this a smash hit educational event no matter whether it’s virtual or live.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

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Top STEM Afterschool Programs (Part One) Compiled by Erin James & Destiny Nolan

The pandemic disrupted education in a huge way, but nothing suffered so much as hands-on STEM-based classes — and afterschool programs. Nearly all of them shuttered their doors temporarily, and some never came back… a real tragedy for countless students. But now, afterschool programs are back, along with on-campus learning. Which programs are considered the best? What do they offer? Here’s a look:

ABRAKADOODLE

DRAMA KIDS INTERNATIONAL

Abrakadoodle has been franchised since 2004, with 30 locations in the U.S. This mobile art program solely focuses on creativity. The Abrakadoodle program travels to schools, clubs, parties, community sites and more, where they lead students into creating the art. This program really lets the kids feel like they are in control of their own masterpiece, letting their creativity and imagination run wild. Seeing how much it builds their confidence is amazing.

Franchised since 1989, Drama Kids International has something for kids of all ages. This program offers an array of programs to match the interests of your students and kids, such as theater classes, summer camp programs and online acting lessons. This will help with public speaking, leadership skills, social skills and selfconfidence. They have a curriculum consisting of over 450 unique and detailed lesson plans.

Abrakadoodle also offers adult classes, if you just want to have fun or pursue more of what the art world has to offer. Art Splash has adult art workshops and adult art events. The workshops offer creativity workshops for parents, teacher training workshops and team building programs. Check out https://www. abrakadoodle.com/

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

This program is beneficial to children by challenging them to get out of their comfort zones. Many kids don’t know how to, or are learning to, adequately express themselves and this program will definitely help. Plus, out of every Drama Kids International program seems to emerge students who fall in love with the performing arts! To learn more about this program, visit https:// dramakids.com/.

BRICKS FOR KIDS Bricks for Kids has been franchised since 2009, with over 500 locations around the globe. This is a great after-school program for children who are into Legos. This program will offer a wide range of skills to your children such as teamwork, patience, and communication. Also, while promoting learning through play, the program helps students get more interested in science, technology, engineering and math. This program has so much to offer. They can participate in summer camps if they like. They also have coding programs, robotics, online classes — and Bricks for Kids will even come to birthday parties! It’s a great way to help students with their building, design and engineering skills. Visit https://www.bricks4kidz. com/ for more information.

ROMP ‘N ROLL Franchised since 2006, Romp n’ Roll offers gym, music, and art classes. It’s the full package. Romp n’ Roll is designed for children five and younger to help them achieve milestones like learning, making friends and growing in a healthy environment. Their main focus is student imagination, independence, socialization and more. Parents can also participate and watch. What an amazing program! Every parent wants to know their child is being taken care of and this program will do just that. You know exactly what you’re signing up for. Visit https://rompnroll.com/ to see all the great amenities this program has to offer you.

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

SCHOOL OF ROCK If your child’s passion is music, this program is the way to go. Perhaps the biggest household name among STEM programs, thanks to the Jack Black film, School Of Rock is wildly popular with students throughout the country. School Of Rock offers weekly private lessons in vocals, drums, keyboards, guitar, bass, and live group rehearsals to help your student gain confidence with performing or appearing in public. You can take lessons in school or online. Camps are also offered during school vacations and summer break. This program goes worldwide, with locations all around the country. They also offer adult lessons 18+. They have so much to offer, whatever type of music they are interested in is available to them. I love that it’ll help them further their music career. And what kid doesn’t want to rock out? Visit https://www.schoolofrock. com/ to see all the amazing things they have to offer.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

LITTLE MEDICINE SCHOOL So many parents have dreams of their little ones taking up one of the most noble professions: becoming a doctor, nurse, veterinarian, or healing practitioner. Believe it or not, there’s even a STEM-based afterschool program for that — and even younger students can participate! Little Medicine School will help kids identify what they’re interested in and then developing it, all within the larger umbrella of medicine and healthcare. If they are excited about what is done by a veterinarian, nurse, doctor, or even a dentist, this is your program. It brings in the importance of health and healthcare, science and medicine. Little Medicine School offers afterschool programs, club/competition groups, in-school field trips and many other options. We really like how scientifically-minded kids with a natural inclination to help and heal others now have a focused afterschool program that can set them on their career journey early on. It also teaches the importance of combining fun, goal setting, hard work and totally cool activities in their daily work. Visit https://www.littlemedicalschool.com/ to see what it is all about.

CHALLENGE ISLAND Challenge Island is another highly popular STEM and STEAM program. This adventure themed program offers fun ways to learn such as cross-curricular island destinations, which consist of eight or more action-packed afterschool classes to help your student or child with creative problem-solving skills while working in tribes. One thing that makes this program stand out that should make every parent and teacher happy? Challenge Island operates in a screen-free zone, assuring tactile and direct experiential learning — what it’s all about. To that, they offer virtual programs, in-school programs and more. What kid doesn’t want to take part in a program like this? They get to let their imagination run free. As they learn to trust their imagination, it will help spark so many different interests and possibilities for later in life. We really love the adventure theme, how it helps the kids stay engaged. Visit https://challenge-island.com/

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

Turning Girls Loose to Build

The 2021 version of Rosie Riveters, named for the iconic World War II poster, allows school girls to build, create and practice critical STEM life skills By Katherine Rieder

It’s a typical Pre-COVID Saturday morning. We’re starting a Rosie Riveters four-week STEM program and after a quick, interactive lesson on a scientific concept, our new cohort of Rosie girls, as we affectionately call them, has been set loose to build and create a hydraulic desk lamp. There’s a table full of materials at the front and a few examples of the completed lamps stationed around the room. It’s an atmosphere of possibility; the girls, ages seven to nine, aren’t given formal instructions. Instead, volunteer mentors and the teacher remind them to “look at the example;” it serves as their guide to selecting their materials and building the hydraulic system. Moreover, as long as the lamp uses hydraulics to move in some fashion, the girls can design it any way they’d like. To elementary-school science teachers and nostalgic postsecondary STEM students, it sounds like a dream. Yet the refrain resounding

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through the room is one of “this isn’t fair,” or “it’s too hard,” often accompanied by low grumbles and furrowed brows. This reaction to a relatively unstructured learning activity where the learning process takes priority over finding a concrete and “correct” answer is, in fact, typical with this age group and gender. It results from the mutually reinforcing combination of girls’ decreasing confidence in their innate intellectual ability and the fixed mindset many develop as they move through the early years of their formal education. These same factors are incredibly detrimental to a young woman’s engagement with STEM and a future career in the field. In 2017, Science published a report detailing this devastating confidence drop. Studying a group of 400 children from largely white, middle-class households (although race/ ethnicity/socioeconomic status did not moderate results across studies), the authors

found that at age five, “boys and girls associated brilliance with their own gender to a similar extent.” Yet, a mere year later, girls began to lose confidence in their intellectual abilities, becoming “significantly less likely than boys to associate brilliance with their own gender” and demonstrating less interest in games that were said to be for “children who are really, really smart.” The same study also demonstrated that girls in this age group failed to link “brilliance” with working hard or getting good grades; being “really really smart” was innate and distinctly male. This decreasing confidence and notion of innate, male brilliance is complicated and reinforced by the fixed mindset that many girls develop during preschool and early elementary. As Katty Kay and Claire Shipman described in a 2014 Atlantic synopsis of their book Confidence Code, published the same year, “girls get a lot of praise for being perfect.” They

went on, paraphrasing the seminal work of bestselling author Carol Dweck on mindset, noting, “the result is that many girls learn to avoid taking risks and making mistakes” in an effort to remain “good” while boys, who are constantly criticized and urged to exert more “effort” in order to achieve what girls are capable of in the classroom, become familiar and comfortable with failure. Girls’ developmental advantage – being able to sit still and follow directions – thus turns on them, “fixing” them into a state where failure is feared. Add to that their decreasing confidence in their own intellectual abilities and the simultaneously emerging belief that being “really, really smart” is inherently male, and the result is young women who work hard to attain praise rather than “brilliance,” who avoid situations and subject matter where mistakes are likely to be made, who succeed academically while simultaneously believing that they are not as smart as their male peers. Yet this is the exact inverse of the conditions and factors necessary to reverse the gender disparity in STEM. According to findings in Closing the STEM Gap, a report based on a 2018 quantitative research study conducted by Microsoft and Southern Utah State University, growth mindset and a supportive and encouraging environment – i.e., one that builds confidence – are listed as primary drivers to enhancing girls’ engagement with STEM. While the Microsoft study surveyed girls aged ten and older to arrive at their recommendations, our organization believes, and our classroom experience and the research outlined above corroborates, that these supports must be in place earlier than fifth grade as the conditions that are detrimental to STEM engagement begin at age five. How do we, as an organization, begin to shift this mindset for seven- to nine-year-old girls and move from “this is too hard” to “I can do this”? At the most basic, our programs create a safe place to fail. We are a femaledriven program, the majority of our participants are young women (as are our teachers and volunteers), in order to foster a learning environment where genderdriven comparisons are less likely to be made. Moreover, we are an afterschool, weekend, and summer program. Our participants are not in a school environment, and there isn’t one “right” way to build a project. As the hydraulic lamp project above exemplifies, participants typically have only one criteria they must meet; otherwise they are free to design and create as they see fit. Overall, they aren’t worried about earning a grade and the pressure to achieve the “right” result (i.e., a good grade or a “perfect” project) is removed. FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

When we created the program, we were simultaneously invested in creating a process that would encourage failure while ultimately overcoming it via the project’s design. This takes independence, encouragement, and ample time. As mentioned above, the building portion of our program is based on trial and error. Our participants are given examples of projects to examine and work from and a table full of materials; there are no directions. They will inevitably (and intentionally) fail as they attempt to create their own project from that example, and our teachers and volunteers normalize that failure as a part of the process. With a nearly 4:1 student-to-teacher ratio, there is ample opportunity for individual encouragement and interaction, and the phrase teachers and volunteers repeat over and over again as they examine projects and trouble shoot is “Take a look at the example. What do you see?” Add “You can figure this out” and “keep trying” and you’ve covered the majority of the phrases we use the most when teaching and mentoring. Lastly, participants have ample time to make and correct mistakes; we set aside nearly one-and-a-half hours per session to create, build, and fail. Failure breeds confidence when you’re allowed to figure it out for

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

yourself, and as we repeat the exercise in each session, our participants build confidence and begin to foster a growth mindset. We hear less and less “it’s too hard” and “this isn’t fair” as each week goes by. Our participants and their parents attest that our approach is working. “I have been a part of Rosie Riveters for over four years,” writes one participant, who began attending when she was in third grade. “[It] has given me the chance to explore my passions in STEM...[and] has always been a safe environment for me to learn. While the wonderful volunteers are always available to help us during projects, they teach us that it is better for us to untangle an issue through trial and error ourselves.” As a parent put it, “Rosie Riveters has truly allowed my daughter to feel confident and brave in standing out, and I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be part of such an incredible organization.” And, in the insightful words of a sixth-grader, “I believe that it is vitally important that little kids (especially young girls) be introduced to science at a young age before they [begin to believe that] science isn’t “cool.”’

It is “vitally important” that we begin the work of untangling the dual factors of decreasing confidence and fixed mindset that ultimately prevent so many young women from pursuing STEM – both academically and as a career – as early as possible. Our organization knows how, and as we recite with our participants at the end of each session, complete with arm crooked just like the original Rosie the Riveter, “we can do it.” KATHERINE RIEDER is a co-founder and director of Rosie Riveters, which serves girls from pre-school to middle and high school with STEM curriculum, projectbased learning and creating an enduring growth-oriented mindset. Go to http:// rosieriveters.com.

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Manchester Manchester, the city that drove the original Industrial Revolution in the mid-19th century, is powering innovation across global markets and our journey toward a Net Zero future. With a metropolitan economy worth £62.8 billion (GVA) ($85.6 billion USD), it’s one of the UK’s fastest growing cities and home to thriving business and tech communities — from life sciences to advanced manufacturing and low carbon. The goals: to increase global business opportunities, international R&D influence and local prosperity, while leading the way in more climate-friendly solutions. They’ve met all — yet in the most crucial way, the effort is just beginning. Drivers of Manchester’s stature as a leading international region for innovation must feel like they’ve run an ultramarathon on an obstacleriddled course — having continued to rapidly build upon their globally leading R&D and innovation capabilities despite the pandemic shutting down the UK for vast periods of time. Manchester, a city-region of 2.8 million in the north of England, has emerged with a sway of opportunity, investment and expertise from some of the world’s brightest minds. Here are some of the many big stories behind

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

Powers Global Innovation — Making New Thinking A Reality

Manchester’s rise up the global manufacturing, R&D, and innovation ladder: Advanced Materials Of The Future As home to world-leading institutes, such as the Henry Royce Institute and the Advanced Machinery & Productivity Institute (AMPI), Manchester has grown a strong advanced manufacturing community. There is a significant focus on graphene-based innovation. The superstrong material is a truly Manchester story, with two Manchester scientists awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics for first isolating it in 2004. There has been huge investment since, with over £300 million ($410.1 billion USD) put into world class facilities like the National Graphene Institute (NGI) and the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC), a commercialization and pilot production facility for companies to develop new products. These are led by James Baker, CEO, Graphene@Manchester — a world leader on the subject. From aerospace engineering to digital electronics and biomedicine, the lightweight material can be used in a wide range of applications. Manchester’s investments could transform cities and manufacturing worldwide. Recent breakthroughs include new sustainable construction materials, water filtration

technologies, and revolutionary farming systems. Manchester recently hosted the world’s first exterior pour of graphene-enhanced Concretene — using graphene to produce stronger concrete with reduced volumes of material required and potentially longer lifespan of infrastructure, dramatically reducing the carbon footprint of concrete. Thriving Life Science and Health Tech The city is a strong supporter of healthcare innovation with a history of firsts here, too — including introducing in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment to the world and pioneering the first total hip replacement surgery and bionic eye implants. Today, the innovation continues, and the city is a center of world-leading research with the largest clinical academic campus in Europe. With a £6 billion ($8.2 billion USD) devolved health and social care budget, it is leading innovation for its own healthcare services as well as innovation across the healthcare sector. The

This activity is part-funded by European Regional Development Funds within the 2014-2020 England Operational Programme

Presented By University of Manchester, in partnership with Health Innovation Manchester, the National Health Service, and other partners, recently launched the multimillion-pound Christabel Pankhurst Institute to focus on healthcare collaborations with business around digital health and advanced materials. Work on graphene-enhanced medical and public health innovation is happening, too, including the development of graphene as a medical solution for reconstructive surgery. Mission To Net Zero Innovation With plans underway for the city to reach its own 2038 Net Zero target, Manchester is also developing low carbon innovation for global markets. Retrofitting homes with renewable heat and energy storage, installing solar PV and district heat networks across municipal buildings, and increasing sustainable travel methods in the city, are just a start. For example, as a leader in sustainable and smart packaging, Manchester is well positioned to help the UK meet its goals to make 100% of plastic packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2025. With three quarters of the world’s Top 25 food and drink companies operating in the region, many skilled graduates from the area’s four leading universities are entering the industry and the University of Salford’s Autonomous Systems and Robotics facility is also playing a role here. Already named as one of the most innovative cities in the world, Manchester has reinforced its status across tech, manufacturing, financial services, education, life sciences and healthcare. The city recently introduced Innovation GM — a collaboration with government which aims to create £7 billion ($9.6 billion USD) economic benefit, 100,000 jobs and a boost to R&D investment. This is a city with a clear vision for progress and a solid support network for businesses that choose it as a base. The inward investment agency for Manchester — known as MIDAS — provides free support, consultation, and expertise to help businesses who are expanding in the city region or establishing new roots there.

Some of the current innovations that are being studied in Manchester include; (from top) Vertical farming, hydrogen fuel cells, and healthcare. Photos courtey of Midas

As international attraction to this city continues to strengthen, Manchester’s pace of innovation shows no sign of slowing. ■ To find out more visit investinmanchester.com/ powering-innovation or view our innovation video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W5hH96Quhg

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

LEGO Women of NASA www.lego.com Suggested Retail Price: $45.99 What is more STEM geared than NASA? Or more appropriate and overdue than throwing the spotlight on the great women that helped us get into space — and then did so themselves, in some cases. The most innovative block toy manufacturer in history and sponsor of the LEGO Robotics Series, LEGO, has stepped up and brought us the LEGO Women of NASA. This set includes four mini-figures, which are Nancy Grace Roman, Margaret Hamilton, Sally Ride (the first American woman in space), and Mae Jemison. Each mini-figure has its own building stand that shows the area of expertise from the 4 featured women of NASA. Our future female scientists will be able to construct their own telescope, Apollo Guidance Computer, launchpad, and even the Space Shuttle Challenger. Parents will enjoy the instruction booklet and additional fun fact information that each of the 4 women accomplished in their NASA careers. This LEGO set would be the ideal gift for our young ladies interested in STEM education or as a collectors item they could cherish for a lifetime. Plant the seed with this amazing LEGO set and watch as their minds soar into the future, space and beyond.

STEM PRODUCT SHOWCASE

Compiled by Erin James

Sphero Mini www.sphero.com Suggested Retail Price: $49.99 Robots! Who doesn’t love robots? Sphero has packed a ton of fun into this tiny app-enabled, programmable robot. Although it may be small in size, about as big as a golf ball, don’t let that fool you. The Sphero Mini helps youngsters learn to code, play in drive mode with the 3 traffic cones and 6 bowling pins that are included, and engaging in STEM inspired games, all while inspiring the newest creators of our future. Sphero Mini is powered by the free installable Sphero EDU app, where our kids can create, customize and code their own mini robot in Javascript. Sphero Mini also doubles as a game controller for arcade- style games in the Sphero Play app. Sphero Mini comes with very notable features like its own gyroscope, accelerometer, and colorful LED lights. If I had to choose a beginner robot for my 8-year-old twin girls, the Sphero Mini would be at the top of the list.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

ThinkFun Gravity Maze www.thinkfun.com Suggested Retail Price: $34.95 ThinkFun Gravity Maze promises hours of mind-challenging entertainment with a combination of game logic and marble runs. This game will help develop critical skills such as playing through challenging builds, spatial reasoning and planning skills, and engineering tasks. Included are 60 different challenges, from beginner to expert, a game grid, 9 towers, 1 target piece and 3 marbles. Parents will enjoy the clear, easy to learn instructions in the high-quality instruction manual. Gravity Maze will have children ages 8 and up creating new and different mazes for their marbles to flow through until reaching their target point. Let the fun begin and challenge them to do their very best along the way.

Little Passports https://www.littlepassports.com Price Range: $25 to $70+

MPG Maglev Magnetic Levitating Speaker

In the aftermath of the COVID 19 pandemic, why not give your child the experience of experiencing the world at your doorstep? Little Passports has done just that by offering your child diversity in different cultures, STEM educational material, geography and travel, and toys and games by bringing it to them. Your child can dive into music, technology, new countries, different states, and science experiments all from your living room or kitchen table Little Passports also allows you access to a huge library of free DIY learning materials for children ages 3 to 9+. This monthly based subscription box ranges from ages 3 to 8+ and isn’t as costly as you might think, ranging from $25 to $70+.

https://my-smartgadgets.com Suggested Retail Price: $115.95 Music is something that everyone enjoys. Why not listen to it from the MPG Maglev Magnetic Levitating Speaker? This Bluetooth capable speaker levitates above a magnetic round base. It includes beautiful LED lights that illuminate in different colors. The MPG Maglev Speaker is equipped with 360-degree surround sound and can last up to 8 hours on a single battery charge. The MPG Maglev Speaker also serves as a hands-free calling device that can be connected to any smartphone and can pair with all Bluetooth enabled devices within approximately 30 feet. The round orb is also portable and can be used by itself. As parents, we all know that the older our children get, the harder it is to shop for them. This speaker would be a perfect gift that will surround them with the joy of music for hours.

LeapFrog 100 Animals Book www.leapfrog.com Suggested Retail Price: $19.99 Every little mind is curious and fascinated by animals. Answer their wanderlust and introduce them to exploration and science with the LeapFrog 100 Animals Book. Whether it be sea, grassland, jungle, desert or mountains, the animals that roam each environment are included in this interactive book. The LeapFrog 100 Animals book includes 6 double-sided touch-sensitive pages. Fun facts inhabit each page along with illustrations and photographs, giving your child a visual of the animals and habitats they live within. Three different play modes and 2 different languages will teach our little ones the name and sounds of each animal. Children 18 to 48 months will immerse themselves in enjoyment and giggles with this new addition to their book collection.

FALL/WINTER 2021 | STEM TODAY

COMING NEXT ISSUE WOMEN IN STEM: We return with one of our most popular topics, dropping in on leading women in the business world who are mentoring and presenting programs for girls and young women. How much is the career field for STEM-educated women expanding? How are schools interfacing with business leader/mentors to maximize student readiness for their careers? Who are some of the top voices behind this ever-growing effort? We go far and wide to interview scientists, engineers, doctors, educators and students. MATH, MEET HIP-HOP: South Central L.A. middle school math teachers and SciFest All Access presenters Mr. D and Mr. Q-U-E (a.k.a. David Landix and Lamar Queen have seen a tremendous increase in student engagement, confidence, and grades since introducing music into the classroom. So successful is their approach that they now share educational videos with teachers nationally through their company, Music Notes. We visit the teachers in their classrooms to learn more about their secret sauce. WELCOME TO WONDERSCHOOL: Think of it as NextGen pre-school: a platform that helps educators and childcare providers set up an in-home preschool business while also providing content to enrich early learning to get boys and girls started. Wonderschool creator Ken Marshall weighs in on this latest quality option for parents and young kids. GAMING TIME!: What are the Top 20 STEM-based video games and mobile games rocking students and teachers alike? And which work well with classroom STEM curriculum? We send out the survey team to test, play, explore and tell us what they learned from our chosen games. Get those thumbs, keyboards and joy sticks loosened up! THE DIVERSE DIRECTOR: From the beginning, Darren Aronofsky made sure he wouldn’t become a film director stereotyped by one type of movie or another. He put his Harvard-educated mind and social anthropology studies to work and has grown a magnificent career directing not only great movies, like The Wrestler, Black Swan, the biblically inspired Noah and others, but also writes, produces and directs documentaries and short films with direct educational and ecological value. Darren talks with our Corey Noles about why he’s taken this approach — and the future he sees for moviemaking. ALL OF THIS, plus Teacher’s Corner, Product Showcase, Edubits and much, much more, coming in the Winter edition of STEM Today.

STEM TODAY | FALL/WINTER 2021

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STEM Today -- Fall/Winter 2021

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