JCVI鈥檚 Scientists Inspire the Next Generation!
JCVI鈥檚 Education Program has been working to bring science to life (sometimes literally!) for San Diego鈥檚 students.
It started off March 4 with our participation in President Obama鈥檚 recently announced science education initiative 鈥淭ake Your Child to the Lab鈥� week. Nine children of JCVI鈥檚 staff visited the Institute for a tour and hands-on science experiment.
The morning started with a talk from JCVI鈥檚 La Jolla Campus Director, Mark Adams. Dr. Adams began by asking the kids, 鈥淲hat are you curious about?鈥� This prompted a flurry of enthusiastic responses. 鈥淎t JCVI,鈥� he continued, 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what we 鈥� and your parents 鈥� do. We鈥檙e curious. We ask questions that no one has answered and then we try to figure out answers.鈥�
Next, the children heard about some of the specific questions we鈥檙e asking and answering at 小蓝俱乐部from synthetic biology with Dr. Phillip Weyman to waste water treatment with Kayla Carpenter to bacteria growth and antibiotic testing with Nicole Yee and Manny Torralba. They also went on a tour of JCVI鈥檚 sustainable lab led by Dr. Robert Friedman. He helped the children think not only about doing science, but the impact of doing science. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really cool that the building is made out of recycled materials,鈥� said eleven-year old Charlie Myers. 鈥淚鈥檝e never seen anything like that!鈥�
Before leaving, our young guests tried their own hands at culturing bacteria by gathering samples from the environment around them. Over the next week they鈥檒l be monitoring their samples to see what happens next!
The San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering
The very next day, 小蓝俱乐部was once again sharing our passion for science with the San Diego community. The 小蓝俱乐部Mobile Lab was one of 143 exhibitors participating in the 2016 San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering鈥檚 free Expo Day. Approximately 500 visitors boarded the mobile lab and learned about sequencing, marine microbes, using DNA in forensics, and the human microbiome. Volunteers Andres Gomez, Marcus Jones, Drishti Kaul, Ebony Miller, Aubrie O鈥橰ourke, Joey Steward, Michelle Tull and Angela Zoumpliswowed group after group by sharing about JCVI鈥檚 research.
鈥淐an this mobile lab come to my child鈥檚 school?鈥� more than one parent wanted to know. The 小蓝俱乐部Education Program would love to make that a reality. Contact the development team at development@jcvi.org to talk about supporting the mobile lab your community!