EKB News

Dissecting a shark was serious business during Pikeville College’s Science & Math Camp this summer. Nearly 200 students participated in this year’s camp, which is one of the college’s most popular programs for middle school students entering grades 5 through 8. Designed to stimulate interest in math and science, students are introduced to a number of hands-on activities. From dissecting sharks and launching hot air balloons to discovering that many different household substances can conduct electricity, campers had many opportunities to explore astronomy, biology, physics, chemistry, and computer science. Campers worked on computer science projects using a program called “Alice” (http://www.alice.org/kelleher/storytelling/download.html) that can be downloaded from the science camp Web site (http://campus.pc.edu/~rarts/camp.htm). Students also traveled to Bays Mountain Park, a 3500-acre nature preserve located in Kingsport, Tenn., where they were treated to programs on the grey wolf and local raptors, and were given an opportunity to view the sun through special telescopes and filters. “Our instructors and volunteer staff did an exceptional job this year and I was very pleased with their dedication to educating the campers as well as the enthusiasm towards math and science displayed by everyone,” said Robert Arts, Ph.D., director of the camp and a professor of education and physics at Pikeville College.