I've been remiss in not posting upon one of my favorite subjects, Legos! After all ... it all began with Legos. As the former six year veteran coach of Super Nerds In Pink, I understand just how important Legos have been and will be to the future of America (and the world). My boys (not just my own children, but the team) have spread out to some of this country's top schools; most of them are majoring in engineering!
I can remember the days when my own children were between the ages of three and five. Dad and children would be down in the floor playing with Duplos. My son Carl and I built some great ferry boats. Karen introduced me to Legos and Barbie. Erik as he moved on in elementary school introduced me to Lego Mindstorms.
This relationship is now reviewed by a MIT professor, Sherry Turkle. She has written the book, "Falling for Science" (download a sample chapter). In the book she reviews what caused many of her former MIT students to becoame interested in science. While Legos are not the only reason her students got interested in science, it is a common theme. Take just a couple of minutes and listen to the National Public Radio Falling for Science Discussion. It's a fun discussion and makes you realize how important is the subject of intelligent play.
Just so you don't think that this topic is only being discussed on one side of the Atlantic Ocean. In February, the top engineering society in the United Kingdom had a similar discussion. Here is a link to my favorite article.
What got you interested in science? Post a comment and let the other readers know. There is no wrong answer to this question. In my own case, it involved my Legos, a Marble Machine Computer which calculated in Base 2, and Projects Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo.
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