School of Fun for Children in Fukushima

Please find a Japanese version of this report here.

From August 9 to 11, we once again gathered at Waseda University and held a summer research camp where the children worked on their independent summer projects under one condition: since it was so hot outside, all research had to be done without setting foot outside the building. Seventeen children from the Tohoku, Kanto, and Kansai regions participated. One notable feature this time was the large number of elementary school students—nine in total.

For indoor research, we provided hexapods and robotic arms, and we also made sure that every participant had their own device to use for research. This time, we went a step further and eliminated the need to use any Unix commands when connecting to the robots. We ran an agent system on a computer installed at the venue, allowing participants to simply talk (type) to the agent in Japanese through an app. By specifying which robot they wanted to interact with, they could perform a wide variety of operations on any of the robots individually. The agent also provided research advice at the same time.

In this environment, the children’s curiosity went into overdrive, resulting in 13 short research papers (some children worked together on their research): Can we build a system that detects where learners are struggling to understand mathematics? From how many meters away can the sound of an SOS Morse code distress signal be detected? Can we give a hexapod better vision? Can we control a hexapod using commands normally given to a dog? (There were two papers on this topic.) What kinds of movements can a hexapod perform in the first place? Does enhancing a typing training app make it easier to learn English vocabulary? What range of expression can pigments derived from natural materials produce? How often do people actually fall for trick questions? Can robots distribute supplies to people in evacuation shelters during a disaster? Why does adding salt to ice make it colder? Can we use a computer to simulate how ants, by following pheromone trails left by other ants, gradually find the shortest route as a group? How does the loudness of the motor noise vary depending on a hexapod’s movements? The children explored all sorts of questions.

In terms of the depth of inquiry, the May camp, where the children worked on research in groups, may have gone deeper. But at this camp, despite the tight schedule of completing a research project in just three days, we think the children were able to have fun doing research while letting their childlike spirit shine through.

Links:

• Academy Camp Facebook page in English