| Feb 07, 2014 | |
Scopey's Nano Adventure helps budding scientists zoom in on nanotechnology |
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| (Nanowerk News) The team at Ingenuity Lab have found an innovative way to teach elementary school children about the small wonder of nanotechnology. | |
 “Ultimately, our future will be shaped by bright young minds,” says Ingenuity Lab Director, Dr. Carlo Montemagno. “These children will grow to become our leaders, discovering solutions to the world’s greatest environmental, health and technological challenges so it is important that we equip them with the necessary skills and resources to succeed.” Ingenuity Lab is bringing nanotechnology to little fingertips with an interactive application that has been specially created to teach future scientists about the myriad of opportunities at the nanoscale. Designed for children between the age of five and 10, Scopey’s Nano Adventure features animated tutorials and teachable moments that make learning creative and fun. The application is now available on IOS (via the Apple store) and Android devices (via the Google store) and is free for Canadian users. “Our goal was to develop an educational application that parents and science educators could utilize in conjunction with the multitude of learning environments that exist today,” explains Dr. Montemagno. “We hope to expand this application into a comprehensive educational toolset that will showcase revolutionary nanotechnology advancements as they happen.” |
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| The application, which is narrated by a clever cartoon microscope named Scopey, was focus tested in classrooms and science centres earlier this year and has been well received by educators, children and industry professionals across Alberta. | |
| “MindFuel has been developing award-winning science-based programming for K-12 students for almost 25 years. We are genuinely impressed with the product that Ingenuity has developed,” commented Cassy Weber, Chief Executive Officer of MindFuel. “They have successfully created a product that effectively conveys complex nanotechnology concepts to children in an easy to understand format. We are excited to see the next phases of this project.” | |
| “Knowledge capacity will prove to be one of our biggest assets in Alberta, contributing significantly to ongoing economic prosperity and community well-being,” explains Dr. Montemagno. “However, it is something that requires a concerted effort and must be carefully cultivated over time. We are investing in our future because we recognize that although they may not yet know it, these are the very people who will envision new possibilities and global solutions that will greatly improve our quality of life.” | |
| Ingenuity Lab is Alberta’s first nanotechnology accelerator focusing its research on the mining, energy, agriculture and health sectors, and is a provincial government led initiative working in partnership with the National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT), Campus Alberta and industry. |
| Source: Ingenuity Lab |