Passing on scientific passion

Denise Oppenhagen
Published: June 15, 2008

I had the opportunity to visit a local company this week and watched scientists passionate about their topic. But these scientists, while they enjoy their jobs, were there for another passion —
encouraging young people to study science, math, or engineering in college. 

Micron Technology, Inc., located in Manassas, is a large company that makes really small things — the memory chips in cell phones, iPods, computers, etc.  Through their education liaison, they
sponsor a middle school competition called “The Micron Challenge.” The competition is for eighth grade students at all three local school districts — Prince William, Manassas, and Manassas Park. 
Challenges are held two times a year, fall and spring. The spring challenge this year was for students to make a Rube Goldberg machine within certain parameters. 

For the uninitiated, Rube Goldberg was a cartoonist who created machines that did simple tasks in a remarkably convoluted way. Think of the old board game Mousetrap and you will come close to what
a Rube Goldberg machine is. 

The coolest thing behind The Micron Challenge is that the students who create a project do so with minimal guidance. They were, for example, to create a Rube Goldberg machine that would turn on a
light or pour water into a cup using at least five different recyclable materials. From there, the students were on their own. So, instead of following explicit directions, the students had to think, had to
imagine, had to create.  They had to problem-solve and invent like real-life scientists — something unheard of in the high-stakes multiple-choice testing environment that students are regularly involved in. 

Another cool thing about the Challenge is that the topic relates to the Science SOL exam. A planning committee looks at the previous year’s SOL results, identifies major problem areas and then
brainstorms for a project that will challenge the students while helping them understand important science concepts. 

One more cool thing about the Challenge is that it is fun. Science can be fun — lots of fun. But there is so much information to cover in such a short time that teachers frequently have to simply lecture
and demonstrate without allowing students to experience the wonder that engages people and leads some of them to be scientists. Allowing students to have time to explore the world around them would
make more of them interested in science.

The occasion for my visit was to attend a celebration of the students who won the Challenge.  Over 200 students took part; 30 students representing six schools across the area were winners. 
Congressman Frank Wolf was also present at the celebration.  His passion came through loud and clear during his comments.  He included some interesting statistics, the most memorable of which is
that currently 50 percent of students who graduate with degrees in science or engineering are from other countries and will return to their home countries. In less than five years, that number will increase
to 75 percent. 

We are falling behind. We are not the dominant scientific nation that we were in the 1960’s when we went to the Moon. And unless we do something now, we will find ourselves almost too far behind to
catch up. We must interest our students in science and engineering so they will pursue those fields in the future. And middle school is the time to do it. It is in middle school that students either learn to
love science or hate it. Micron and its scientists are working to help students love science. The Micron Challenge is an important vehicle in this mission. We need to do all we can to promote The
Challenge and persuade our middle school science teachers to encourage students to try it. 

Denise Oppenhagen is a longtime resident of Prince William County and can be reached at .