America COMPETES

Innovation Legislation Clears the House With Bipartisan Support

(Washington, DC) – Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5116, America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 by a vote of 262 to 150. The bill, which has over 100 cosponsors and more than 750 endorsers, makes investments in science, innovation, and education to support employers today while strengthening the U.S. scientific and economic leadership to grow new industries of tomorrow, and the jobs that come with them.

SECME Spotlight: Kayla Permenter

Kayla Permenter, a graduate from the Seminole Ridge High Class of 2007, is in her third year studying Civil Engineering at the University of Florida. But her story begins with her first view of the Brooklyn Bridge when she was seven years old and awestruck promptly decided that she wanted to build one, too. She is on summer break, and stopped by her alma mater to speak with the Hawks.

I would like to extend again to Kayla my appreciation for being a guest speaker at the May 26th Seminole SECME meeting. Her presentation was everything I could have hoped for, and more! Her advice was spot on and sensible, not just for someone studying the sciences, but common sense for any collegian -- such as choosing the ACT over the SAT if a student feels stronger in the mathematics than in the vocabulary, to not getting lost around campus by finding your classrooms BEFORE your first day of class, to what to expect in those first few years.

I truly enjoyed her presentation, as she wonderfully captured how to chase a dream. And I want to strongly encourage her as a professional who will completes her professional engineering degree in two years to continue to find an expression for being an educator -- Kayla is exceptional! to pacing yourself for the first few years. We truly enjoyed Kayla’s presentation, as she wonderfully captured how to chase a dream. But as her dean, Dr. Kirk Hatfield pointed out, “It is always good to hear when our students are doing well and serving as an excellent example to others. I guess we expected it from Kayla.” =D

VEX Round Up

The 2010/2011 game VEX Round Up game is played on a 12’x12’ square field and two alliances – one “red” and one “blue” – composed of two teams. Each alliance competes in matches consisting of a twenty-second autonomous period followed by two minutes of driver controlled play. The object of the game is to attain a higher score than your opponent alliance by placing tubes upon goalposts, owning goalposts, and by low hanging or high hanging from the ladder.

ScienceBits: Water Propelled Rocket

Professor Nir Shaviv is a member of the Racah Institute of Physics in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has also launched water bottle rockets with his son, and in 2006 posted about it on his personal blog ScienceBits.

Prof. Shaviv begins with a derivation of the basic rocket equation, using conservation of impulse-momentum. Then he adds the external forces, and later continue with calculating the velocity of the ejected water. This is achieved by considering the adiabatic expansion of the gas trapped in the bottle, and the work it does to accelerate the 'exhaust'.

It's all solid physics for a liquid and gas propulsion of water and compressed air. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to follow the derivations, although you should have passed the first semester of Physics for them. And if you have, and you are also in Seminole SECME, your technical report just became significantly easier!

USA Science & Engineering Festival Kavli Science Video Contest

K-12 Students: Tell us why Science is Cool! Enter now for the USA Science & Engineering Festival Kavli Science Video Contest! Have your video screened on the National Mall, win prize money and possibly even a trip to the Expo in Washington D.C.!

Do you think Science is cool? Do you want to share your passion for science with others? Here is your chance to inspire thousands of people to be more curious, and to care about science & engineering the way you do: create a short video that explores the question “Why is Science Cool?”

We are seeking videos that are creative, surprising, and “contagious” in terms of spreading your enthusiasm about science to others. Videos might explore a scientific concept, show us the wonders of nature, give us a glimpse into the future, show us what scientific discovery has done for us in the past or will do for us in the future, introduce us to a great scientist or engineer, tell us why you think science is so cool or simply show us why we should care about science and/or engineering.

Sponsored by The Kavli Foundation and conducted in partnership with SciVee, the contest opens on April 1, 2010 and closes on July 15, 2010.

Prizes
1st prize: $1,000*;plus $500 electronics gift certificate OR HD Camcorder (valued up to $500); plus a travel stipend to travel to Washington DC for the Expo!**

2nd prize: $500*, plus $250 electronics gift certificate

3rd prize: $250*, plus $125 electronics gift certificate

People’s Choice Award: $250

*In addition, the winning videos will be screened during the USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo on the National Mall and at other key Festival events.

*All prize money to go towards science education at the students’ school, home school network, after-school program, science club or any other organization the student is representing for the purpose of this contest. HD Camcorder and gift certificate(s) go directly to the student, or student team.

**Amount of travel stipend will vary based on location of the winner(s). The Kavli Foundation will present the winner(s) with their award check during a ceremony as part of the USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo on the National Mall on October 23 and 24, 2010)

Judging/People's Choice Award
A panel of distinguished judges will select the most outstanding videos to receive 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize. In addition, the People’s Choice Award will be voted on by the public. Voting for the People’s Choice award is easy. Go to the USA Science & Engineering Festival Student Video Contest site at http://www.scivee.tv/node/16370. Make sure you are registered and logged into the SciVee site and then view the videos. Click the star rating you prefer under each video that you review. A “Thank You for Voting” notice will appear and your vote will be recorded toward the total for the People’s choice award. You may only vote once for each video.

The requirements are that the video:
• be made for educational purposes
• be in .mov or .wmv digital video format
• be more than 30 seconds and less than 90 seconds long
• be suitable for public display
• does not violate copyright law (all material must be your original work)
• is all done by you, the student, or by a team of students – yes, we are encouraging team videos!

How to enter for the Kavli Science Video Contest:
Go to http://www.scivee.tv/uploadvideoand login to Scivee. You will need to register if you're not already a SciVee user.
Follow the video upload process:Mark your entry as a "video only."Give your video’s title, a short description, and list its authors/producersChoose the appropriate audience and subject areas.
When asked to enter “tags”, make sure you put USASEF. You may also enter other tags.
Click “finish” to upload your video.
Then come back to this page to submit your registration form (at the bottom of this page). On the registration form, you will be asked to enter the link to your video on SciVee, and the name of your file. You MUST submit a registration form through the USA Science & Engineering Festival website http://www.usasciencefestival.org/2010festival/contests/kavli-science-video-contest to enter for the contest.

Your registration form and video file must be submitted no later than 11:59pm EST on July 15, 2010.

For questions regarding the contest, please contact Stacy Jannis at jannisprods[at]earthlink[dot]net

Blogging about "Blogging"

Women in Aviation History: May 20-21, 1932 - Amelia Earhart flies solo across the Atlantic

Women in Aviation History: May 20-21, 1932 - Amelia Earhart flies solo across the Atlantic

The first for a woman, Amelia Earhart piloted a bright red Lockheed Vega 5B (located in the Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight gallery) across the Atlantic. She thought a transatlantic flight would bring her respect, something other women sought too -- Ruth Nichols had made an attempt in 1931, crashing in Canada, and was planning another attempt when Earhart succeeded. During Earhart's 2,026-mile nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic, Earhart fought fatigue, a leaky fuel tank, and a cracked manifold that spewed flames out the side of the engine cowling. Ice formed on the Vega's wings and caused an unstoppable 3,000-foot descent to just above the waves.

Realizing she was on a course far north of France, she landed in a farmer's field in Culmore, near Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Acclaimed in London, Paris, and Rome, she returned home to a ticker tape parade in New York City and honors in Washington, D.C. By July and August she was back in the Vega for her transcontinental flight

SECME Successes honored at May School Board meeting

School Board Meeting of the School District of Palm Beach County - May 19, 2010

Title
2010 SECME Champions

Description
SECME (Science, Engineering, Communication and Mathematics Enrichment) is an alliance that works to increase the pool of students who are prepared to enter and complete post secondary studies in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) disciplines and to create a more diverse work force in the STEM fields. The School Board recognizes the schools that were the overall champions at the 2010 SECME District Olympiads. In addition, several students, who will represent the School District at the 34th annual SECME Summer Institute and National Competition, are also being honored. The National Competition will take place on June 26, 2010 at Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina.

SECME National Teacher of the Year
Erich Landstrom - Seminole Ridge High School

In the picture, to Erich's right is his daughter Lily Landstrom, his principal Dr. Lynne McGee and board member Dr. Monroe Benaim, and to his left board member Mrs. Paulette Burdick. The School District of Palm Beach County is the eleventh largest public school district in the United States, and the fifth largest school district in Florida.

‘Science In Toyland’ Opens May 29 At South Florida Science Museum

Science In Toyland
Learn about the center of gravity through a tournament of tops or trigger a chain reaction in a domino challenge at “Science in Toyland,” coming May 29 through Sept. 12 to the South Florida Science Museum. Entertaining the idea that learning about science is fun, “Science in Toyland” will utilize toys such as cars and Tinkertoys to demonstrate scientific principles and encourage children to experiment."

Bank of America is proud to partner with the South Florida Science Museum to bring such an exciting exhibition for kids of all ages to enjoy,” Bank of America Palm Beach County Market President Fabiola Brumley said. “This exhibit combines the fun of playing games with problem solving to allow children to discover science for themselves.”

The 3,000-square-foot interactive exhibition features different areas such as a “Kids Construction Company” where children can finish building a wood and foam house, a roller coaster where children can experiment with acceleration and momentum by adjusting the incline of a racetrack, a “Catch the Wind” area where children can discover the Bernoulli principle as they position the sails of a sail boat at different angles and watch how the wind causes the boat to move, and much more.

Technical Drawing paper at Easel Art

To compete in the SECME Olympiad bridge design, mousetrap car design and the water rocket design competitions, a team must enter all parts of the design competition. A team must enter in all of the following categories for each competition a bridge technical drawing, a mousetrap car technical drawing, and a water rocket technical drawing.
Clearprint 24"x36" 16lb 1000H Title Block/Border Vellum

The bridge and the rocket drawings may be on either 22” x 34” or 24” x 36” size drawing paper. No margin is required around the outside of the drawing. No mounting of the drawing or frames are allowed.

For the mousetrap car, the size of the engineering paper is required to be the standard 18” x 24” (allowing for the drawn one inch margin, the actual drawing is to cover an exposed area of 16” x 22” of the paper), otherwise it will not be evaluated. No mounting of the drawing or frames are allowed.

Where can I get technical drawing paper?
Seminole SECME purchases technical drawing paper at Easel Art Center, 810 Park Ave, Lake Park, FL (south of Northlake Blvd). Easel is on the south side of the street and the east end of the plaza, located after the post office and oriental market. Their phone #561-844-3111

As of May 2010, their price for 24x26" plain paper (used for practice) was $1.75 and for 24x26" title boxed paper (used for the final submission) was $2.75. While no teacher discount was available, they were kind enough to give me a 10% student discount.