Subj : WestFest STEM Event Offers Hands-On Experience
To : QST
From : ARRL de WD1CKS
Date : Fri Oct 06 2023 07:30 pm
10/06/2023
Amateur radio was represented at the seventh annual WestFest event at The Ohio
State University in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday, September 30, 2023. WestFest
is a public engagement event that highlights science, technology, engineering
and mathematics (STEM) research, sustainability initiatives, and outreach
programs at The Ohio State University. The event featured three
behind-the-scenes tours and 39 activity booths.
The Amateur Radio and RF Club at The Ohio State University, W8LT[1], and the
All Things Amateur Radio Association[2], W8ATR, provided information and
hands-on STEM experiences for nearly 400 attendees. The W8ATR Mobile STEM
Trailer, funded by a grant from the ARRL Foundation, included a CW oscillator,
a display about the history of Morse code, and signage explaining the history
of wireless technology and radios. Three Snap Circuits� stations were set up
for visitors to build an FM radio, and there was a working replica of a
spark-gap transmitter. The trailer also featured a complete amateur station
with a telescoping mast and a quarter-wave vertical ground-plane antenna.
"It's important to have amateur radio [be] a part of the STEM experience," said
Lawrence L. Feth, PhD, Professor Emeritus and Faculty Advisor to W8LT. � ATARA
Activities Director Diane Warner, KE8HLD, said throughout the day the STEM
trailer hosted 52 adults and 80 children. "Watching the children's faces as
they experience the sounds and sights of amateur radio technology is aways
rewarding," she said. � Additional information about WestFest is available at
The Ohio State University[3] website.
[1]
https://u.osu.edu/w8lt/
[2]
https://atara-w8atr.fun/
[3]
https://u.osu.edu/stemimpact/westfest/
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