Day Camp Lets Girls Explore Underwater Robotics
LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 29, 2012) — Girls in grades 8-11 are invited to make a splash in science while learning about underwater robotics, at a special one-week "Aquabots Camp," to be held at the University of Kentucky this summer.
Over five days, participants will work together in teams of five to design, build and program the "ultimate underwater vessel" using the Lego Mindstorm system, while exploring real-world challenges in underwater exploration. The camp will give the girls an opportunity to exercise their creative and analytical skills and to discover how robotics are changing the world we live in.
At the end of the camp, all of the teams will participate in an exhibition where they will be able to see how their robots perform a variety of underwater tasks in a 4-foot-deep submersion tank in the laboratory. No swimming skills are required.
The camp will meet from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. from July 30 through Aug. 3. Participation is limited to 20 girls, and participants must be available for the full five days. All girls entering grades 8-11 in fall 2012 are welcome to apply. There is a $200 workshop fee; scholarships are available for students requiring financial assistance.
For registration information, contact Sue Scheff at suescheff@uky.edu, or call (859) 257-2614. Registration forms are also available online at www.kygirlsstem.com. A flyer for the camp (PDF) may be downloaded from http://uknow.uky.edu/sites/default/files/aquabots.pdf.
The Aquabots Camp is a project of the University of Kentucky and the Kentucky Girls STEM Collaborative Project, with support from the Cooperative Extension Service, 4-H Youth Development, and Girl Scouts. The camp curriculum is supported in partnership with the National Girls Collaborative Project and Stevens Institute of Technology's Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education which is supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
MEDIA CONTACT: Keith Hautala, (859) 323-2396; keith.hautala@uky.edu