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See and hear current role models in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Students, teachers and young professionals tell about the incredible things they are doing today.

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For the Love of Science: UVA Chemistry Students Engage Children with Strawberry DNA

Did you know that all living cells contain DNA? That’s right, every cell in your body, animals, and plants contains DNA. DNA is short for deoxyribonucleic acid, known as the “molecule of life.” This molecule contains instructions on how to make a living thing; DNA tells you to be you and a strawberry to be a strawberry. Normally, you cannot see DNA with the naked eye. However, if you collect it from thousands of cells, there is enough to be visible. In just a few simple steps, you can perform a DNA extraction at home using household materials!

Explore the Surprising Power of Science

“This is so cool!” is becoming a favorite phrase of teenagers in science classrooms all over Virginia. Innovative teachers are encouraging their students to touch, manipulate and experience the surprising power of science. And guess what? These students are deciding that science is cool. Recently, I met with two high school Chemistry teachers and talked with them about why they teach Nanoscience in their classrooms. Why they feel it is important to explore Nanotechnology and how this experience might help their students in the 21st Century workforce. Watch this Science Matters video featuring the MathScience Innovation Center's Nanofellows to learn more.

Techsters Engages Girls in STEM

Sophia Fehrmann, 7th grade Middle Scholar

On Saturday March 23, 2013, Techsters was held at the VCU School of Engineering. The event was sponsored by RichTech Women in Technology. It was an opportunity for girls, grades 6-8, to learn about robotics and a small remote control device called Sphero, the world’s first robotic ball. This event was part of a STEM initiative to attract middle school girls to technology. All of the volunteers were women who worked in various areas of technology. I am a middle school student and I attended the event. I enjoyed this experience for many reasons.

Bringing Gardens to Bloom for the Blind: VCU School of Engineering Makes it Real

The colors, textures and landscaping at Richmond’s Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is all but hidden from people who are blind and visually impaired. But not for long. Christina Walinski, a Virginia Commonwealth University Engineering student and her professor, Dianne T.V. Pawluk, Ph.D., are creating a wireless device that could aid those with impaired vision to better experience the garden on their own.

Virginia Teams Win Spots at World Robotics Championship

After a two-day tournament in Richmond that tested their teamwork and ingenuity, six Virginia high school teams have won the right to compete at the FIRST world robotics championship.

March in Richmond... That Means Robots!

Bearing names like “Loose Screws,” “Polka-Bots,” “RoboWarriors,” and even “Geeks in Just Their Underpants,” forty-eight scholastic robotics teams from across Virginia converged on Richmond Saturday, March 2, 2013 for the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Virginia State Championship.

“Mad Skills” at the Controls: Stafford Teen Leads Team to State Robotics Championship

When Nick Butler takes the controls of his Stafford County high school team’s competition robot, he’s bringing literally a lifetime of experience to the task. At the age of 16 months, Nick was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type 2, a hereditary disease that causes weakness and wasting of the voluntary muscles in the arms and legs of infants and children. Now 16, the high school junior drives a sophisticated robotic wheelchair to pursue an active life, and is aiming at a career in mechanical and electrical engineering.

Hot Jobs in Nanotechnology

This is the first of 2 stories featuring Nanotechnology where we will explore how working small and thinking big can launch new careers. Learn more about the rapidly emerging field of Nanotechnology at VCU in this Science Matters video. Next, we will shadow two High School teachers, Nano Fellows at the MathScience Innovation Center, who are using Nanotechnology to engage and better prepare students for the 21st century workforce.

Flying Discs and Pyramids: FIRST Robotics Competition 2013

Flying saucers and pyramids…it sounds like the stuff of a sci-fi movie, but these items will take center stage in the 2013 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC). FIRST Robotics Competition is the signature program for FIRST, (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). More than 300 high school students from across Virginia gathered January 5th at Virginia Commonwealth University to learn about the challenge they face in this year’s contest. The students represented three dozen teams from across the state and many will be back at VCU March 15-16 to compete in the FRC Virginia Regional.

“ROBO Warriors” Get Ready for Regional Robotics Contest

Members of the “ROBO Warriors” FIRST robotics team at Henrico High School are gearing up for a regional qualifying contest December 15th that will challenge their teamwork and technical skills. The team participates in FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC), a program designed to give students hands-on experience designing and building robots, solving problems and competing in high-energy contests. “I love mechanical engineering, so I wanted a program that would help me explore that and develop the skills that I would need in college,” said Aaron Kane, a senior at Henrico High and a veteran of the ROBO Warriors. “I’ve been building things ever since I could walk.”