Team:Minnesota/Engagement
Minnesota
LifeTime Kids Summer Camp: Learning About Synthetic Biology:
Minnesota iGEM had the opportunity to work with the LifeTime Kids Summer Camp program by volunteering at their summer camp in August 2017. This event allowed the kids at the summer camp, ages 5-12, to learn about the latest concepts in synthetic biology, as well as try hands on experiments that introduce them to biology and science! We taught the children about zebra mussels and lake ecology, as well as why they are such a problem here in the state of Minnesota. We ended the day by teaching the children about DNA and letting them experience actual biology by extracting and visualizing strawberry DNA.
Minnesota State Fair: STEM Day:
Minnesota iGEM participated in the Great Minnesota Get-Together by attending STEM day at the Minnesota State Fair. STEM Day is a day in which the University of Minnesota can display all of its academic and research based achievements. Minnesota iGEM put on a booth so that we could talk to the people attending STEM Day about our project, educate them about synthetic biology, as well as to get public opinion on using synthetic biology as a tool in addressing a Minnesota based problem. We handed out surveys in order to obtain opinions and feedback, and had a movie presentation.
Zebra Mussels and Synthetic Biology Documentary:
To understand the concept of using synthetic biology as a solution to an ecological problem such as zebra mussels, as well as gauge the opinion of scientists who work in fields related to this advancement, we created a documentary from interviews we had with local researchers as well as the general public.
State Fair STEM Day Survey Results
