MIT admissions congratulations

Congratulations to...

Lisa Wang (2004 Germantown Academy InvenTeam: Fort Washington, PA)

for gaining admission to MIT, Class of 2009. Lisa now joins three other InvenTeams students accepted into the Class of 2009 and fellow 2004 Germantown Academy InvenTeam member, Lindsey Pete, Class of 2008.

InvenTeams Teachers -- please let me know about your students' college admissions and post-high school plans. We want to hear about the amazing things your students are doing following InvenTeams!

2/3: Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior HS (Miami, FL)

Project: Kinetic cells

Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School is newly built -- just four years old -- and already bursting at the seams. Intended to house 2,500 students, now some 4,100 attend!

Dr. Michael M. Krop HS
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

I was greeted in the parking lot by several members of the InvenTeam, all wearing white lab coats embroidered with "Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams". A tour of the school brought me past a butterfly garden (the brainchild of one of the InvenTeam members), some aquaculture tanks and an impressive performing arts facility.

As the principal was out for medical reasons, I met with the assistant principal and the head of student affairs. The students and school, much like North Miami Beach Senior High School (2004 InvenTeam), are highly involved in community activities and benefits.

The project idea has evolved from a human kinetic cell (e.g.: a power source for MP3 players) to a kinetic cell for a specific application at the school -- a speed bump leading into the school's parking lot that will power an LED message sign.

The InvenTeam has built several kinetic cells in an attempt to make smaller models. With the specific parking lot application, however, size may no longer be as important.

I sat-in on a sophomore chemistry class in which the InvenTeam gave a presentation on their project and tried to build a just-in-time kinetic cell (not easy to do). Presenting to other classes not only makes for good practice, but helps recruit students for subsequent years and invention projects.

The InvenTeam is made-up of juniors and seniors, all of whom are highly ranked and involved at the school. On the day I arrived, news broke that a member of the InvenTeam had been named school valedictorian and several members were preparing for the following weeks' International Science Fair.

Here's something all schools should have --

Teacher of the year
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

2/2: Phoenix Charter School (Greenville, TX)

Project: Wind-powered water pump

My first trip to Texas and I fly-in during a snow emergency warning! I upgraded my rental vehicle to a SUV for added protection from Texas drivers unfamiliar with driving in snow. Less than one inch of snow fell!

Greenville, TX is a forty-minute drive northeast of Dallas.

Phoenix Charter's theme is art and science. From talking with students, I formed the impression that students sometimes move between Phoenix Charter and the town's traditional high school several times during their careers. The school is about six years old and serves students from Kindergarten through 12th grade in its four buildings. The school was built on a swampy area and the school's waterlogged quad is the inspiration for their InvenTeams project (see photo).

Phoenix Charter's puddle and invention inspiration
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

After school I spoke with a few students (grades 8-11) involved with the project. The InvenTeam is still in the research and early design part of the process -- investigating different shapes of blades to capture wind energy, researching average wind-speed in the quad and building a scale model. They had just made a design discovery relating to the optimal depth and angle of the pump's screw.

In addition to Anne Casey, the InvenTeams teacher and a MIT alum, I met with the school's principal and several other teachers, including the art teacher who will help the students think about the aesthetics of their invention (after all, it will be in the middle of the school's yard).

The InvenTeam is working closely with engineers from L-3, located close to the school.

1/31-2/1: Colfax High School (Colfax, CA)

Project: Storm-drain waste remover

Colfax is a small town about one hour northwest of Sacramento, CA.

Jonathan Schwartz, the InvenTeams teacher was kind enough to host me at his family's house.

I sat-in on a number of Jonathan's math classes and fielded questions on Lemelson and MIT. Jonathan has a unique set-up for a math teacher -- his class (essentially a classroom/computer lab) is attached to a large wood shop -- and is probably ideal for an InvenTeams project.

Colfax HS InvenTeam students and Josh
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

The Colfax HS InvenTeam is a small and talented group -- all boys.They have an early wood prototype of their device that performs some of the desired tasks (see photo). A recent issue the team confronted was how to power the conveyor that brings refuse from the drain screen to the attached garbage can...the students think that hydro-power might work!

Colfax HS InvenTeam's early prototype storm-drain waste remover
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

The students are eager to introduce new elements from their many design ideas and test/experiment with physical models. The team was featured on the local news (KCRA Channel 3) last December and is working with local/regional water authorities.

Jonathan has invited Mrs. Lemelson (Incline Village is about one hour from Colfax) to visit his school.

1/27-1/28: West Salem High School (West Salem, OR)

Project: Watermelon ripeness evaluator

West Salem is a forty-five minute drive from downtown Portland. West Salem High School was built four years ago (see photo).

West Salem HS
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

On a clear day, Mt. Hood is visible from the school.

Michael Lampert is a physics teacher at West Salem. The InvenTeam is composed of students of all years, including Michael's two children (Benjamin and Beth) who joined the InvenTeam so they could spend more time together.

The team is broken up into several groups, including the aptly named "Sugar Babies" who are testing sugar levels in watermelons, programming, hardware, and marketing/PR (see photo).

West Salem HS InvenTeam and Josh
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

At the moment, the InvenTeam is doing research that will hopefully show a useful correlation between how sound waves behave in a watermelon and the melon's sugar content. During my visit, I was shown the early stages of an experiment to determine the speed of sound through watermelon. At Michael's encouragement, the InvenTeam decided to grow its own test fruit and constructed a watermelon patch in the classroom (see photo).

West Salem HS InvenTeam's watermelon patch
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

The students are enthusiastic and clearly enjoy learning the science behind what some might think is a whimsical endeavor. I was delighted to meet the student who came-up with the project idea (yes, he used to work in a supermarket and was tired of testing watermelons for curious shoppers).

We discussed who the real potential beneficiary/customer of the device -- farmers or shoppers -- and wondered if watermelons ripen after being picked.

The InvenTeam will participate in April's Lemelson-MIT Prize Ceremony at Portland's OMSI and at the upcoming Oregon State Fair.

1/26-1/27: Roosevelt High School (Minneapolis, MN)

Project: Portable smoke detector for the hearing-impaired

Roosevelt High School is a large urban school in Minneapolis. The student population is composed mostly of minority students and the children of recent immigrants from Somalia, Mexico, Vietnam and Russia.

Jim McComas-Bussa teaches math to mixed classes of sophomores, juniors and seniors. Jim is part of a team of teachers that encourage a real-world approach to teaching math and employ weekly exercises that involve highly practical applications of math. The day I was there, the students were charged with a budget exercise that led students to the hourly wage they would need to support their desired lifestyle. It was an interesting exercise.

The Roosevelt HS InvenTeam is composed mostly of sophomores and juniors. The project is the basis of the school's first attempt to establish a robotics club.

I met several people at the school, including a physics teacher who, once he heard where I was from, happily produced a copy of a Lemelson Center video! He may apply for InvenTeams next year.

After sitting down with the InvenTeam and going through my presentation, we went to The Bakken (http://www.thebakken.org/). The Bakken was established by the founder of Medtronic and focuses on teaching about electricity and magnetism and for a fee, provides workshop space and mentoring to student groups. It's an amazing place and reminded me of MIT's Edgerton Center (see photo).

The Bakken
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

Jim worked at The Bakken during his recent sabbatical.

At the Bakken, the a sub-set of the team worked with their mentor on building an early prototype, trying to attach the different components in the correct sequence and program them to communicate -- to send a signal to vibrate and flash LEDs on a portable device. They were successful that afternoon in making the device vibrate, but neither the mentor nor I were convinced they knew why they were successful or if they could repeat it the next time. The InvenTeam is not yet working with the potential beneficiaries of their invention. I hope my visit will inspire them to do so.

Worth noting: There are several companies in the Minneapolis area that could sponsor InvenTeams, including 3M, Target and BestBuy.

1/25-1/26: Saginaw Career Complex (Saginaw, MI)

Saginaw Career Complex InvenTeam students, teacher Bruce Isotalo and Josh
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

Project: Robotic field striper















Saginaw is about 30 minutes from Flint, MI and experienced similar economic woes and population flight as its infamous neighbor.

Saginaw Career Complex (SCC) is a technology magnet school for the greater Saginaw area. SCC and the district's traditional schools don't always see eye-to-eye -- the more students SCC attracts to its programs, the more dollars flow from the traditional schools to SCC.

Sophomores, juniors and seniors from the two sections (morning and afternoon) of Mr. Bruce Isotalo's technology class make-up the SCC InvenTeam. With an impressive shop, I was not surprised to learn that the group is also involved with US FIRST Robotics and solar car competitions.

I was able to meet with students from both sections and see their robotic test-bed (see photo below). The test-bed allows the students to experiment with their prospective robot's communication and programming. The team was in the midst of developing a smaller-scale prototype to experiment with line following and programmed courses.

SCC InvenTeam's test bed
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler

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The exterior design of the invention is still under consideration. For their Invention Statement, we talked about weather conditions and the number of fields they would want the robot to stripe and at what time of day/night.

The SCC InvenTeam is composed of a diverse group of students and includes several students from underrepresented groups in engineering. Unfortunately, most minority members of the InvenTeam were seniors and not eligible for MITE2S. This finding led me to call Karl Reid (Director of Special Programs, MIT School of Engineering) and inquire about opportunities for such students -- with the exception of programs like MIT's Project Interphase for accepted MIT students, there are few programs focus on the post-high school/pre-college summer.

While I was there I met Julie Walker (SCC's principal) and was interviewed for the school's TV station by Cindy Powell (SCC's PR coordinator/Job Developer). I also learned about an award-winning truck design project students undertook the year before.

Mr. Isotalo has a number of motivational displays to keep students interested in the project, including a photograph I took in the parking lot behind our offices, hinting at another application for their invention (see photo below).

Photo about line-painting in MIT Parking lot
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

Worth noting:
The Harlem Globetrotters were in Saginaw on January 25th and stayed at the same hotel.
The taxi driver who brought me to SCC shared with me how proud he was of his granddaughter, a student at SCC.

2005 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams site-visits

InvenTeams banner
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

On January 25, I began site-visits of the 2005 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams. To date, my travels have brought me to eleven states, where I've met terrific educators, involved parents and supportive school administrators, seen the diversity in our nation's public schools (all of this year's InvenTeams are from public schools) and eaten some great, regional foods. Most importantly, however, the site-visits have allowed me to meet and spend time with some amazing young people enthusiastically working on challenging invention projects.


At each school, I gave a presentation that touched on the legacy of Jerome Lemelson, the missions of the other members of The Lemelson Foundation family, and the history of the Lemelson-MIT Program and InvenTeams. I made a point of pitching MIT, MITE2S and NCIIA and suggested that they present their project to classes at their school and other schools, the PTA/PTSA, School Board and local government bodies. For fun (and learning), I took the students through several Invention Statement-related exercises that should help them focus their project efforts.


Nearly all of the InvenTeams have at least one early physical prototype of their invention and are running tests and experiments to help them finalize their design. Although most teams have received some media attention by this time, all would benefit from greater exposure.

I am encouraged by what I've seen and hope the continued expansion of Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams will bring the opportunity to invent to even more high school students in the years to come!


The next few blog entries will detail my site-visits.

InvenTeams development -- debit cards for teachers

creditcard
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

In response to some of last year's frustrations and project delays, we decided to issue each InvenTeams teacher a MIT debit card to use for project-related purchases. We still issue grant checks for teacher stipends and project expenses that cannot be charged. MIT was kind enough to take-on our request as a pilot-project for debit card use for the entire Institute!

Initial reactions have been highly positive. To my knowledge, we are the only national high school initiative that empowers teachers (and students) in this way.

2004 Agawam HS InvenTeam receives provisional patent

Congratulations to 2004 Agawam High School InvenTeam who successfully filed for, and received, a provisional patent for "The Road Iron" -- their device to detect and fill potholes before they form. They have 12 months to file a patent application and can now proudly say that their invention is patent-pending! Way to go!

2005 US FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff

2005 US FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff
Originally uploaded by Joshua Schuler.

This past weekend, I attended the 2005 FIRST Robotics Competition Founder's Reception (held at FIRST Founder Dean Kamen's house) and Kickoff Event (held at Southern New Hampshire University).

I was able to meet members of the US FIRST management team as well as several hundred enthusiastic FIRST Robotics participants, including members of 2004 Agawam InvenTeam (Rosie Robotics).

Dean Kamen, Professor Woodie Flowers (MIT), and Dave Lavery (NASA Program Executive -- in charge of the Mars Rover mission!), and the Governor of NH attended and spoke.

This year's teams have an impressive array of software and hardware to work with -- much of it inspired, I believe, by Dave Lavery's work with NASA.

The FIRST Robotics Competition is about more than battle bots. It is an intense, real-world experience in problem-solving, teamwork, science, engineering, leadership, project management, and as Woodie puts it "gracious professionalism."

Dean Kamen (whose house is quite amazing) pointed out that although the challenges, hardware, and software change -- as they do in the real world -- the principles of FIRST remain the same. And unlike athletes, who arguably train to repeat the same motion, FIRST participants are constantly learning new ways of tackling new problems.

Hopefully, FIRST is the start of a groundswell that will help today's youth learn the skills that will allow them to address tomorrow's problems.

I spoke with FIRST's Directors of Development and Marketing about InvenTeams, FIRST's sponsor development strategy and impact studies. As you can imagine, FIRST and InvenTeams have similar goals and complementary programs. Cultivating a relationship with FIRST would be a real asset to the development and expansion of InvenTeams.

The Kickoff was a live broadcast to some 30-odd locations courtesy of NASA satellites. There are an estimated 1500 FIRST Robotics teams in the US this year, with teams now in Israel, Mexico and Brazil.

The teams now have 6 weeks to build their robots and ship them for the first competition.

http://www.usfirst.org/

MIT admissions congratulations

Congratulations to...

Nick Smith (2004 North Miami Beach Senior H.S./BEAM InvenTeam: Miami, FL)

Matt Isakowitz (2005 Thomas Jefferson H.S. for Science & Technology InvenTeam: Alexandria, VA)

and

Mary Huang (2005 Thomas Jefferson H.S. for Science & Technology InvenTeam: Alexandria, VA)

for gaining admission to MIT, Class of 2009.

InvenTeams Teachers -- please post about your students' college admissions and post-high school plans. We want to hear about the amazing things your students are doing post-InvenTeams!