Saturday, April 27th- Virginia Tech at Kids' Tech University event- free, open to the public

We are excited to announce a free, open to the public event on Saturday, April 27th (10 am-3 pm) held at Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech (**On a campus map- building 119 and 120; cars can park right out front of the building. No Virginia Tech parking permits needed.)

**All are welcome- children must be accompanied by an adult!** Participate in the educational activities at your own pace.

Kids' educational activities include:
~Egg drop (kids will build an apparatus to protect an egg and then see if it works!)
~Straw rocket building activity
~Virginia Tech Police K-9 demonstrations
~Robotic arm (find out how scientists use robotics to preform moon mining)
~Quasar Instruments GO Lab- a full functioning mobile laboratory- This mobile lab is housed on a Mac truck! See what various scientific instruments do and participate in hands-on demonstrations for all ages! 

This event is co-hosted by:

~Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech

~Virginia 4-H

~Quasar Instruments

~Virginia Tech RASC-AL Design Team

~Virginia Tech Biochemistry Club

~Virginia Tech Lunabotics

Teacher workshop- "Bright Lights, Big City" March 30th

Teacher workshop- "Bright Lights, Big City"

Sarah Foltz, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech

When: Saturday, 30 March 9am-1pm.

Location: Price House, 107 Wharton St. SE, Blacksburg. Parking in our driveway, on Wharton St., and within 2 short blocks on Clay St. @ spout spring parking strip & Church St. in the public parking lot. Admission is free. Engaging for all ages.

Urban areas are built for people, but animals make their homes here too. These activities explore differences between urban and non-urban habitats, the kinds of animals that move to town, the challenges (and opportunities!) of urban living, and how animals adapt to their new home. These activities are intended to help participants understand how human activities can alter habitats and thereby effect how and where wildlife lives.

Relevant Virginia SOLs

LS.9 c) Investigate and understand how organisms adapt to biotic and abiotic factors in an ecosystem.

Key concepts include adaptations that enable survival within a specific ecosystem.

LS.11 b - d) Investigate and understand the relationships between ecosystem dynamics and human activity. Key concepts include change in habitat size, quality, or structure; change in species competition; and population disturbances and factors that threaten or enhance species survival.

LS.13 c) Investigate and understand that populations of organisms change over time. Key concepts include how environmental influences can lead to diversity of organisms.

BIO.7 b) Investigate and understand how populations change through time. Key concepts include how environmental pressures impact the survival of populations.

BIO.8 d) Investigate and understand dynamic equilibriums within populations, communities, and ecosystems. Key concepts include the effects of natural events & human activities on ecosystems.

Activity 1: Urban vs. Rural

Participants will compare and contrast photos of urban and rural areas. They will choose specific characteristics of these habitats from a supplied set, and decide which habitat each characteristic best describes.

Activity 2: Who Lives Where?

Cards representing a variety of different animals, as well as clues about those animals’ natural history and resource needs, will be provided. Based on the information provided, participants will assign each animal to an urban or rural habitat.

Activity 3: Urban Challenges and Opportunities

Participants will match common characteristics of urban habitats to their potential effects on wildlife. They will then decide whether each potential effect is helpful or harmful to animals.

Activity 4: City Bird, Country Bird

Birds are one of the most visible and common groups of urban wildlife. Participants will examine data from research that compared urban and rural populations of birds and determine the differences between these groups. They will then explore possible long-term impacts of these urban-related differences on wildlife populations by matching the difference they’ve identified to potential effects on a provided list.

The SEEDS – Blacksburg Nature Center

With Contributing Partners:

Town of Blacksburg Dept. of Parks and Rec. & VT Dept. of Biol. Sci. Outreach

107 Wharton St. SE PO Box 824 Blacksburg VA 24063-0824 • (540) 552-3914 • discover@seedskids.org

Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology encourages teens to create at Make-to-Learn Workshop

BLACKSBURG, Va., March 22, 2013 – The Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology  invites area teenagers to share what they make with the world at Virginia Tech’s first Make-to-Learn Workshop. 

The free event will be held on Saturday, April 6, from 1-5 p.m. in STUDIOne, the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology studio, at 460 Turner Street NW, on the ground floor of Collegiate Square, Blacksburg, Va.

Organized and coordinated by IDEA Studio, one of five studios within the institute designed to structure organizational projects and initiatives for the institute, the event provides 13- to 18-year-olds the opportunity to create an instructable, which involves making something and documenting the creative process through photography, video, and written instructions.

The purpose of the Make-to-Learn Workshop is to encourage middle and high school students to identify themselves as makers. Makers create everything from engineering-oriented projects to traditional arts and crafts. Participants will complete a project, but will also learn how to identify, document, and explain the process.  

This event is one example of the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology’s community outreach efforts to bring maker technologies to children in the community with the goals of increasing their creative self-efficacy, expanding their technical skills, and teaching them how to move forward in the making process.

Participants may bring an existing project, finished or in progress, or start a new project at the workshop.  They do not need to bring any materials with them to the event. Materials will be provided and several stations will be available, including a maker space; areas for designing, writing, and scripting; photography booths; and video spaces. After completing a project, participants will have the opportunity to submit their creations to the Make-to-Learncontest.

This event is limited to 20 participants. To reserve a space for the Make-to-Learn Workshop,email Phyllis Newbill.

A university-level research institute sitting at the nexus of the arts, design, engineering, and science, the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology is uniquely partnered with the Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech. By forging a pathway between transdisciplinary research and art, educational innovation, and scientific and commercial discovery, the institute works to foster the creative process to create new possibilities for exploration and expression through learning, discovery, and engagement. This includes preparing students in kindergarten through 12th grade and higher education environments to succeed in a world that demands teamwork and collaboration of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines; promoting new research domains that transcend institutionalized boundaries; and participating with people of all ages in the process of co-creation.

March 23rd VT KTU exhibit- "Mapping Home: The Importance of Place and Space"

Home is where the heart is.  Cultural definitions of place, space, and the natural environment govern how people across the world view their home.  When people travel, they first look for things that are familiar and remind them of home.   But with globalization, the definition of home changes as people are exposed to new things.  We will be using different maps and mapping techniques to explore students perceptions of home - what makes home home.  Is it the climate? It is physical features? How is home defined?   Can you find home from 6 blocks away? From 100 miles?  From 1000 miles?   Can you find home without technology?   What characteristics of new places would make it home?  

The Geographic Society at Virginia Tech is run by undergraduate students in the Department of Geography from both the Geography and Meteorology programs.  The primary goal of the Geographic Society is to promote geography education and awareness across the Commonwealth of Virginia.  Our primary activities include outreach to K-12 educators and students.

March 23rd VT KTU program- "Hybrid Electric Vehicle Team (HEVT)"

The Hybrid Vehicle Team is a mechanical engineering team who competes in the EcoCAR 2: Plugging In to the Future competition. Over three years, HEVT designs, builds, and refines a hybrid electric vehicle.

Presented by the Virginia Tech Hybrid Electric Vehicle Team

March 23rd VT KTU exhibit- "SeaPerch: Building an ROV"

Kids will be able to see the steps that go into building a simple Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV). There will be several hands-on activities related to building and operating a SeaPerch ROV. Topics that will be covered are ballasting, motor positioning, and controlling an ROV. Ballasting discusses how the density of an object affects whether it sinks or floats, and how the positioning of floats and weights affects the trim of the ROV. Motor positioning explores how the direction and position of the motor affects the movement of the ROV. Controlling an ROV examines how a simple control box is wired and how different inputs move the ROV.

Like autonomous land vehicles, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are equipped with sensors and controls for navigation. These underwater robots also have propulsion and ballast systems. Founded in 2002, Virginia Tech’s AUVT has approximately 30 members representing several engineering disciplines. Each year, the team designs and builds an autonomous submarine to enter in the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International Competition in San Diego. In addition to operating without human intervention, the AUVs are required to navigate underwater obstacles, identify targets visually, launch "torpedoes", and locate an acoustic beacon with passive sonar.

March 23rd VT KTU exhibit- "Virginia 4-H Robotics"

4-H Robotics engages kids in critical math, science & programming skills.  Using this curriculum, youth will: Build an understanding of basic science concepts related to robotics; Apply the processes of scientific inquiry and engineering design; Build skills in science, engineering and technology; Use the tools of technology to enhance their learning; Explore related careers in these fields; Apply the skills and knowledge they are developing to new challenges.  The 4-H Robotics Curriculum is comprised of three tracks; each is designed to meet the diverse requirements of 4-H clubs, after-school programs, individual youth and school enrichment activities.  Participants will learn basic science and robotics concepts online through meaningful and engaging mediums including video simulations.

Hosted by- Virginia 4-H, Virginia Cooperative Extension, CALS

4-H is the youth development education program of Virginia Cooperative Extension. 4-H is rich with learning experiences where young people partner with caring adults and volunteers in a fellowship unlike any other program available to youth today.  Through 4-H, young people are encouraged to participate in a variety of activities that emphasize 4-H's "learning by doing" philosophy of youth development.