Imagine: your friend is getting ready to head out for the day and their phone gives them a low battery charge warning. They only have ten minutes before they must leave. They have several charging cables to choose from, all different lengths--Which one should they choose? Is there an optimal length to charge your phone? How much can you increase the charge on your phone in 10 minutes? Are there any other factors at play? In this activity, you will measure how much your phone’s battery charges in 10 minutes. You will then submit your results to the Argonne Smart Charging Data Form. Your submission will be one data point within a larger experiment tested by students from all over! Your findings will help answer the questions above.

Weather forecasts from weather apps and the news are important for us to make decisions like what to wear or how to plan for travel. Similarly, understanding climate patterns and change is important in our efforts to plan for our future. But have you ever wondered HOW scientists are able to predict weather and climate? Do they use a magic crystal ball, or is the “magic” applying math, science and computer science?

Quantum physics looks into what happens at the smallest, most fundamental levels of matter and energy. Rules of behavior are different there. Strange things happen at such a small level. In this activity, you’ll explore a quantum physics topic called superposition. Then, you willcreateexamples of that topic to share with your peers and us.

We have smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors in our homes, schools, and business, why not a water contamination detector? Imagine being able to continuously monitor the quality of your drinking water and being alerted if the water becomes unsafe to drink. This may be possible by using sensors and Artificial Intelligence (AI). In this activity, you will learn more about making your own water computer program to help detect water turbidity (how cloudy water is).

April showers bring May flowers, but they also bring flooding—especially in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs! Flooding is a major risk to health and safety. Not only does flooding cause water damage to homes and businesses, but it also results in sewage backup and pollution runoff. But that is where reintroducing plants can help. In this activity, create models to experiment with how we can reduce flooding and pollution through the help of plants and soil.

Imagine filling your car’s tank with ears of corn. You don’t need be a car expert to know that this would be a bad idea. Yet, we can use fuel made from corn (biofuel). How is this possible? In this activity, you will learn more about how we convert biomass feedstock (like corn) into useful biofuel by making your own yogurt!

Particle Accelerators and their beams are tools of discovery and innovation. These tools take small bits of matter (particles) and accelerate them at high speeds.

“Atoms are the building blocks of matter” is probably something you have heard before. You may also remember learning that atoms are made of three types of particles: neutrons, protons, and electrons. But did you know that charging and accelerating a beam of electrons or protons near the speed of light can help us answer some of society's greatest questions, like "Why did the T-rex have such small arms?" Taming these energetic particles is a delicate balance. Let’s see how well you can do it!

Scientists and engineers have learned how to use electromagnetic force fields to accelerate and focus beams of particles, and scientists continue to build their knowledge and skills in this area. At Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source (APS), scientists control electron beams moving at 99.999% the speed of light to produce some of the brightest x-rays on the planet. These x-rays are used to do all sorts of science and have numerous applications such as helping develop new vaccines or more efficient batteries. Understanding how these powerful and beneficial machines work can be difficult to understand. In this activity, you will watch a short video and create a model to explore how electromagnetic force fields interact with particles

Recently a team of Argonne researchers discovered a way to use AI to optimize a complicated manufacturing process that creates a wide range of industrial nanomaterials like those used in batteries. This is important not only to produce these important materials at a large scale, but also to ultimately develop greater technologies for society. In order to achieve this accomplishment, the team of researchers needed to engage in machine learning. Machine learning is an application of AI that involves developing computer algorithms so that the computer is essentially “learning” or being trained. The purpose of machine learning is for the computer to learn from past data to continuously improve without human input. Machine learning isn’t just for researchers at Argonne. In fact, you can try it out for yourself! We all know that recycling is good for our environment, however it can be a more complicated process than we might think. For one, not all materials can be recycled and knowing which ones can and cannot is difficult to remember. For example, you can put paper bags in the recycling bin but not plastic. Can you make this process easier using AI and Machine Learning? How accurate can you make it?

Argonne scientists have discovered a new way to coat nuclear materials that are used to help create electricity in nuclear power stations. Nuclear reactors are devices for creating a nuclear chain reaction to generate electricity. Inside an operating nuclear reactor, the environment is extreme. Reactor components are exposed to a combination of intense radiation (energy that can be harmful) and heat as well as coolant. That's why, in order to operate reactors safely, scientists need to design their components with materials that can withstand these conditions. Inside nuclear reactors, the radioactive fuel, which has been pressed into small pellets and stacked inside of fuel rods, provides the energy that is turned into electricity. Coating these components can help improve the operation and safety of nuclear reactors.

You can find coatings everywhere – from the non-stick coating on a frying pan, to the epoxy coating inside a metal can of vegetables, to the coating on a tablet screen that keeps your oily fingerprints away. Scientists and engineers design coatings, and the ways to apply them. They choose or invent coatings that have chemical properties that are useful for solving the problem at hand, for example, to protect an item from water, chemicals, heat, or even air. Argonne scientists and engineers develop coatings for a variety of uses, including materials for electronics or renewable energy sources. One important use of coatings is to protect pellets of nuclear fuel from leaking in the extreme environment inside a nuclear reactor. For this problem, scientists want to develop a coating where energy can efficiently escape from the fuel pellet to make electricity but keep the fuel itself inside. In this activity, you will be the nuclear scientist at home. You will design a coating that can help protect a pellet-shaped object (candy) from water, heat, and microwave radiation in your kitchen!

Argonne scientists and engineers are working together to develop the next generation of cheaper, more powerful batteries. In this activity, you will build a homemade battery and experiment with different materials to optimize your battery—just like Argonne researchers.

From toys and equipment to cars and renewable energy, batteries are everywhere! Batteries have come a long way since Alessandro Volta made the first true battery in 1800. Overtime batteries have advanced with technology and evolved for our ever-changing needs. Batteries come in all shapes, sizes, and materials. A basic battery has two different metal electrodes (a “positive” end and “negative” end), an electrolyte solution, and a separator or “membrane”. The electrolyte solution in a basic battery is the liquid, gel, or paste that allows electrical charge to flow between a negatively charged metal and a positively charged metal in a battery. The separator is a membrane keeps the two metals from touching so that the battery doesn’t short-circuit!

What shape are the planets? It’s likely not what you think. In this activity, you will create your own model of a rotating planet and make some observations. Then, determine which planet is indeed the flattest