QinetiQ STEM Day
On Friday the 8th of November, a select group of year 9 students were given the exciting opportunity to go to QinetiQ for a day of education and enjoyment.
Upon our arrival we were warmly welcomed by the staff. They escorted us upstairs to collect our nametags so that we were easily identifiable.
The day began with an interesting talk from the QinetiQ staff about the day’s activities and the thrilling career opportunities at QinetiQ that will become available to us in the years to come. Our first challenge of the day was the cyber cube. We had to work together to find clues and use those clues (and some of our own research) to work out four usernames and passwords. We then had to input these in a specific order to open the cube. After 30 minutes of hard work, we were finally successful and rewarded for our efforts with sweets.
Next, we had to talk on RADAR and LADAR. We were granted the privilege of using a special camera, which could identify objects through clothing. It can be used in places such as airports to identify people who are carrying illegal objects. We took a short break for drinks and snacks.
Our next activity was Lego robots. We split into smaller groups and each had a robot to programme. Each bot had a task to complete, and each task was unique. We had to complete a course and for each stage we got points. We finished successfully and in good time (with extra points for complimenting the staff), and moved on to the next challenge.
Next was space pirates. We had to programme 5 doors to open and shut to allow a ball to roll through. As a team we finished with a very good time.
Our final challenge was to fix and improve a game. We got points for each task that was successfully completed.
Before we left there was another presentation to announce the winners. Unfortunately, we didn’t win, but it was an amazing experience that we will never forget.
Scarlett Burton – Y9