Team:RHIT/Public Engagement
Engagement and Education
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Summer Camp
On June 21st, three of our team members - Ben, Eden, and Keegan - arrived at the Saint Mary of the Woods College Science Camp in Terre Haute. The purpose of the trip was to spread the adventurous spirit of Synthetic Biology to some of the younger members of society to help form a prosperous future for the discipline.
In order to help children get better understanding of synthetic biology, we conducted some experiments with those middle school students, such as the strawberry and human DNA extraction. First, we introduced the concept of DNA to them. After that, each student was given a DNA base that was made in specific shape which would only bind with its corresponding pair. They were then asked to find another student who has a base that would fit with that of their own.
After the introduction, we helped the students to perform DNA extraction with basic household accessories dish soap, alcohol, salt, and water. We distributed strawberries to the students and asked them to smash it in a plastic bag. The smashed strawberries were then added with dish soap and alcohol. The strawberry DNA soon became visible and the students were thrilled to see the basic code of life. We also instructed them to extract their own DNA from their cheek cell with salt water.
Later, we continued our presentation on the subject of DNA, showed them the application of genetic engineering and answered a few questions they had for us.
Terre Haute Children's Museum
Founded in 1988, the Terre Haute Children’s Museum aiming at creating a fun, science learning environment has educated over 230000 adults and children from over 22 countries in Indiana and Illinois. As a platform of science, the museum welcomes volunteers from all ages to exhibit their works [1].
Since it is important to spark children’s interests in science and technology at early ages, we visited the Terre Haute Children’s Museum to share our passion about science and promoted the knowledge of synthetic biology. On June 26, three of the team members - Ben, Marry, and Eden - went to Terre Haute Children’s Museum to talk to the manager there. We discussed the ideas about the space that would be provided for exhibitions. After that, the team adjusted the plan based on the information provided by the manager.
The team presented several small exhibits at the Terre Haute Children’s Museum about hydroponics and the search for life outside our solar system. The Terre Haute Children’s Museum was having a special exhibit, showing real moon rocks and celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo mission, so our team created exhibits that tied in the Space Exploration theme with our own expertise. We had a “Design Your Own Planet” interactive piece, which taught the kids about what aspects of planets are necessary for the potential development of life. Included in this interactive piece were: type/size of planet, climate, water availability, atmosphere, and the type of star it orbits. There were also two posters, discussing the science behind the movies “The Martian” and “Interstellar,” including a description of each Interstellar planet, and how Mark Watney was able to grow potatoes on Mars. We had select clips playing from each of those movies as well, as more visual demonstrations of what the posters covered. Lastly, we had four plants growing under different conditions on display. The four conditions were: normal dirt, sterilized dirt, replica moon dirt, and on a wet paper towel.
On September 21st, we got to work with the Terre Haute Children's Museum and Chamber of Commerce with the Coca-Cola Bottle Festival. We were able to work with several school organizations: Society of Women Engineers, Alpha Chi Sigma, and the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers to teach kids about innovation and problem solving with hands-on activities.
[1] Terre Haute Children's Museum. [Online]. Available: https://thchildrensmuseum.com/. [Accessed: 29-Jul-2019].
Operation Catapult
During the weeks of July 8th and July 15th, our team aided in a program on campus known as Operation Catapult. In this program, high school students would work together to solve an engineering problem posed to them. The groups we worked with were tasked with creating biodiesel as an alternative to traditional fuel sources. To achieve this, they worked with algae and harvested the oil produced by it. The students had to design a bioreactor that could grow 5 liters worth of algae and maintain that population. We collaborated with the students, providing insight on important principles of biology and engineering. By the end of the two weeks, each group had functioning bioreactors, and some of them were even able to harvest biodiesel from their reactors. While what we did was not heavily synthetic biology related, we were able to share details of our project with the students, and we were able to display the significance of organisms to manufacturing.
Podcast
To engage the public on the topic of synthetic biology and record the progress of our project, we published three podcasts.
During the first episode, each team member introduced themselves and professors. The purpose of the research is also demonstrated.
In the second episode, Ben and Nick talked about the history of synthetic biology and interviewed Dr.Hill.
