# Presentation: 752251

## Martinique Mims

*Explorers Post 631**Computer Technology*

**Notes:**
Good Evening

In the next 5 minutes I will give a brief overview of the activities of Explorers Post 631. 

If you would like to find out more about any of these activities, be sure to stop by one of our displays downstairs in the cafeteria. We would be happy to tell you more and give you some demonstrations.

## Post Activities

- Hands-on learning

- Tours

- Volunteering

- Fun

**Notes:**
Our Post had 4 main types of activities:
	1. We spent most of our time doing hands-on learning of some computer technology. We were exposed to many aspects of computing rather than spend a lot of time on any one topic. With one exception, we used free software so that the Explorers could continue their learning at home if they were interested.
	2. We also did several tours
	3. We did some volunteer work
	4. Finally, we did some activities just for fun!

I will quickly review what we did in each of these areas.

## World Wide Web

- How does the Web work?

- The Web for the disabled

- Learning CSS

**Notes:**
We learned how Web sites and Web servers work by acting out how information is sent between Web servers and user’s computers. In the photo, the Explorer wearing a network cable around his neck played the role of the network while the Explorer wearing the red apron played the role of a Web server.

We got a demonstration of how the blind use the Web by Jill Noble, who is blind and works here at NASA.

Then we got to make our own Web pages! We learned HTML, which is the language used to describe what is on a Web page. We also learned CSS, which stands for Cascading Style Sheets. CSS is the language used to describe how a Web page looks.

## Parts of a Computer

**Notes:**
The Explorers were given a brief lesson on the parts of a computer. They also had a chance to look at a see-through computer, which you can also see later in the cafeteria downstairs. Please stop by and we can explain what some of the parts are and what they do.

## Acoustics

- What is sound?

- Audacity

**Notes:**
This lesson on acoustics involved learning about acoustic signals and how computers can record, playback, and manipulate them. “Acoustic” signals is another name for  “sound”.

We learned about the different kinds of sound waves including traveling waves, standing waves, transverse waves and longitudinal waves. We used Slinkies to help us  understand the different kinds of sound waves.

After the Explorers learned about sound and acoustic signal processing, they learned how to use software called Audacity which lets you record, play and modify recorded sound all on a computer.

## StarLogo

- Game of Life

**Notes:**
StarLogo and the Game of Life are both examples of software you can use to simulate emergent behavior in physical systems. In emergent systems, each part of the system follows its own set of simple rules and the behavior of the system emerges naturally from them.

The Game of Life uses a few extremely simple rules to create incredibly complex and moving shapes. It demonstrates how extremely simple rules can be used to model complex behavior in physical systems.

StarLogo is a simulation language designed for education. It can be used by students to model the behavior of decentralized systems. Decentralized systems are naturally occurring systems which function without centralized control.

The Explorers used StarLogo to explore simulations of evolution, epidemics and predator prey models.

## Scratch

**Notes:**
Scratch is a new programming language that makes it easy to create interactive stories, animations, games, music, and art. It is easy to share your creations on the Web.

Scratch is designed to help young people develop 21st century learning skills. As they create Scratch projects, young people learn important mathematical and computational ideas, while also gaining a deeper understanding of the process of design.

The Explorers created a program that programmed a simulated car that navigated around a simulated urban landscape.

## Game Maker

**Notes:**
Game Maker is a program that allows users unfamiliar with traditional programming to intuitively create games. Game Maker uses a drag-and-drop and point and click system to let users create games that they can then share with others. 

The Explorers did some tutorials and then created some simple games like Pong and Clickball. They also created some simple games of their own. Stop by downstairs to see them in action!

## Python

**Notes:**
Python is a computer programming language for that is simple enough for beginners and yet powerful enough to be used by large organizations like Google and NASA.

Python is an example of a text-based language. It is different from the other languages we learned like Scratch, StarLogo and GameMaker, because you create programs by typing in text commands instead of using a graphical user interface.

The Explorers learned the basics of Python. They wrote a simple program that converts temperatures to and from Fahrenheit and Celsius. Another program we wrote calculated a person's age in dog years.

## Robotics

- Lego Mindstorms NXT

**Notes:**
The Lego Mindstorms NXT robot kits were used to give the Explorers experience with building and programming robots. 

Lego Mindstorms NXT is a programmable robotics kit released by Lego in July 2006.

The challenge for the Explorers this year was to program their robot so that it could navigate a course which included paths, landmarks and obstacles. 

The robots are “autonomous” which means once the robot begins its movements there is no human intervention. The program must be able to handle any and all situations that the robot might encounter without being controlled by a human.

## Tours

- 10 by 10 Wind Tunnel

- Zero Gravity Research Facility

- GRUVELab - Virtual Reality

**Notes:**
Explorers Post 631 toured three facilities at NASA Glenn. 

The first was the 10 by 10 wind tunnel. The Supersonic Wind Tunnel facility is the largest and fastest wind tunnel at NASA Glenn and is specifically designed to test supersonic propulsion components from inlets and nozzles to full-scale jet and rocket engines.

The Zero Gravity Research Facility is NASA’s premier facility for ground based microgravity research, and the largest facility of its kind in the world. It provides researchers with a near weightless environment for a duration of 5.18 seconds. The photo shows the Explorers looking down the drop tower.

The last tour stop was the virtual reality lab. The GRUVELab gives the illusion of immersion in a 3D world by projecting 3D computer graphics onto walls that surround the viewer. The viewer explores the virtual world while wearing lightweight stereo glasses and by moving and grabbing objects with a three-button, wand-like device. 

## Tours

- Case Western Reserve University

- Cleveland Institute of Music

**Notes:**
We had two tours outside of NASA. 

Case Western Reserve University invited us to tour some of their robotics and biomedical labs. We saw a video about Dexter, a robotic car that entered a competition to see which driverless, robotic car could navigate city streets the best.

We also saw robots designed using principles from various forms of life including cockroaches.

The biomedical lab we toured used technology to restore movements to paralyzed patients using electrical stimulation of paralyzed muscles.

The tour of the Cleveland Institute of Music included seeing their fantastic new recital hall, which is shown here. We learned about the acoustics of the hall. We also had a chance to see recording studios and distance learning centers which used technology to further music education around the world. 

## Volunteering

- Cleveland Foodbank

- VA Hospital

**Notes:**
The Explorer Post 631 participated in two volunteering activities this year. 

First, we made our annual trip to the Cleveland Foodbank to pack food for those who need a helping hand to get a good meal. 

Second, we made our first visit to the Brecksville Veterans Hospital. There we made presentations to a group of veterans. We showed them what we have learned in our Post this year.

## Fun and Making Friends

- First Meeting

- Holiday Party

- Whirlyball

- Hiking ( to be replaced with a real photo after week hike! )

**Notes:**
We had four events this year where the focus was on fun and making friends.

It started with the very first meeting where we met each other, played some getting-to-know-each-other games, and had some food.

We also went to play Whirlyball. Whirlyball is a combination of lacrosse and basketball played while driving around in little electric cars. It is a lot of fun!

Our holiday party included food and a gift game.

Our last fun event, which we just did last week, was hiking through the Hinckley Reservation of the Metroparks.

## Final Thoughts

**Notes:**
Martinique, you make your own comments about your experiences in the Post here!