News Release

San Diego Science Festival: Inspiring Students to Excel in STEM

San Diego, CA, February 8, 2011 -- The health and future of our nation depends on how well we prepare our youth to excel in STEM (Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education and careers. The third annual San Diego Science Festival, organized by UC San Diego, provides a week of free, interactive STEM activities to engage and inspire kids of all ages starting March 19 and culminating in EXPO Day at PETO park on March 26. To learn more, please visit the San Diego Science Festival website.

In the video below, alumnus Jim Rohr (Ph.D. xx) describes his work to get kids excited about science and engineering through events like the San Diego Science Festival. In the video, where Rohr talks about the Jacobs School students who developed a toy train that teaches physics, he is referring to undergraduates from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

Another piece of the San Diego Science Festival story is the "Nifty 50." Nifty 50 is a speaker series in which science professionals from a wide range of fields and backgrounds provide motivational presentations to classrooms across San Diego County, raising educational interest and awareness in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

One Nifty 50 speaker is Jacobs School Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) professor Juan Carlos del Alamo. Del Alamos’s research interests include bioengineering, fluid dynamics and flow turbulence. His work has applications in a variety of engineering disciplines, from airplane design to developing new medical instruments. Del Alamo will talk with students at the Language Academy about the movement of fluid in the heart and body.

Media Contacts

Daniel Kane
Jacobs School of Engineering
858-534-3262
dbkane@ucsd.edu