COMPETITION: Google Science Fair ready for take off

GOOGLE'S worldwide Science Fair competition is calling for entries over the coming weeks. The Science Fair gives teenagers the opportunity to join in a new kind of online science competition that is more global, open and inclusive than ever before. It will also offer them the chance to win huge prizes including a 10-day trip to the Galapagos Islands or a $50 000 scholarship from Google.

Google's made this cool video to promote the Science Fair - done in the style of a Rube Goldberg machine. Reminds me of The Incredible Machine.

Google Science Fair promo video: Calling all Jr. scientists!

Who can enter?

The competition is open to students aged 13 to 18 from around the world working on their own or in a team of two or three. For more details, visit the Science Fair Rules page.

How to enter the Google Science Fair

• If you don't already have one, create a Google Account. You will need a Google Account to complete the sign up form.
• Complete the Google Science Fair sign up form. After you submit the form, you will see a link on the confirmation page. This link will create the Google project submission site where you will post your science fair project details.
• Plan your science project, conduct your experiment, and write up your results.
• Complete all of the sections of your Google project submission site.
• Create either a two-minute video or 20-slide presentation giving an overview of your project and embed it on the Summary page of your project submission. A video or presentation is required to enter.
• When your project site is done, make sure to submit it by 4 April 2011.
• Detailed instructions and tips for building your project submission can be found in the Resources section of the website.

Please note: Entries and supporting documentation must be submitted in English. Google Translate is a free tool that may be useful for students who don't speak English as a first language.

Science Fair Judging Process

The deadline for project submissions is 4 April 2011. After this date all projects will be judged by a panel of teachers who will be following the judging criteria. In early May, 60 global semi finalists will be announced and their projects will be posted online and open to public voting for a “People’s Choice Award”. The 60 global semi finalists will then be narrowed down by our judging panel to 15 global finalists who will be announced later in May.

The 15 global finalists will be flown to Google HQ in California, USA for our celebratory Science Fair event. The finalist judging round will take place on 11 July 2011. These finalists will be expected to present their projects before a panel of acclaimed scientists including Nobel Laureates, tech visionaries and household names. A finalist winner will be selected from each of the age categories, 13-14, 15-16 and 17-18. One of the finalist winners will be named the Grand Prize Winner.

The Grand Science Fair Prize: A National Geographic Expedition

The Grand Prize winner(s) plus one parent or guardian per winner will win an amazing 10 day trip to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic Expeditions. Traveling aboard, the winner(s) will visit Darwin's living laboratory and experience up-close encounters with unique species such as flightless cormorants, marine iguanas, and domed giant tortoises.

Google will cover the cost of Economy Class flights to the Galapagos from the winner’s home. The prize is valid for one year from 11 July 2011 and must be booked directly via National Geographic expeditions. It does not, however, included items of a personal nature such as internet usage, laundry or spa services.

A Scholarship from Google

A $50 000 scholarship will be split equally between team members should a team win this prize. This scholarship is intended to be used towards the finalists’ further education.

A Once in a Lifetime Experience

The Grand Prize winner will have first choice of an experience at one of the following partner organizations: CERN, Google, the LEGO Group, or Scientific American.

A Personalised LEGO Prize

• A package from Scientific American.
• Digital Access to Scientific American Archives for your school.
• Digital access for the finalists' schools for a year. This prize is valid up to 12 months from winning the prize on 11 July 2011.
• A personal LEGO color mosaic (one for each team member, to build her/himself) and 1 personal, exclusive LEGO box - specially made for the occasion.

Finalist Winner Prizes

A $25 000 scholarship from Google, split equally between team members should a team win this prize. The Finalists will have second and third choice by random selection of one of the remaining experiences at one of the above-mentioned partner organizations.

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Have cellphones made porn access an everyday thing for teens?

by Sofia Tosolari

I WAS a young, liberal teacher at a local Cape Town high school. When the children saw I was 22, new and a little naïve, they took it upon themselves to get my attention. The result: they began exposing me to the intricacies of their little worlds: to porn, fist fights and parental abuse.

I was soon given access to one favourite Grade 10’s world of secrets, which left me one day staring at a pornographic image on his cellphone.

My teaching career ended soon after that. Having lost contact with the boy in question, I decided to interview another connection - a young man in Grade 12. The topic: cellphone porn in local Cape Town high schools. Although he did not mind being identified, we’ll refer to him simply as Ian.

“They call me the sexpert because I know a lot about sex and stuff, I always found it interesting,” he says.

So, I wondered, where do children get the porn?
“You can get it anywhere, and it’s free.” He names a website. “You can download scenes or the whole movie.”

Professional imagery?
“Nope, most of this is in fact simply home-made. Like with the Grade 8s and 9s, there are children making their own videos and showing them around,” says Ian.

Motives?
“I dunno, it’s a status thing. It’s the same with your virginity, and if you haven’t lost it by Grade 10, there’s something wrong with you,” says Ian.

I shouldn’t be surprised, yet sadly I am...

So while porn has always been around for teenagers to gawk at, it seems that much easier with the introduction of cellphones, with stories including rainbow parties, where teens gather for an orgy to be filmed on a cellphone.

Sharon Paulus, a social worker at the Parent Centre in Cape Town, confirms this:

“Technology has simply highlighted the seriousness of the problem and taken it to a new level,” she says. “Today, teens make their own blue movies, and with more children having access to cellphones and the Internet, this problem could be on the increase.”

So there’s clearly a problem, what to do? According to Paulus, “Parents need to listen, to acknowledge their teen’s feelings without blaming or shaming them.”

On a very practical level: “Parents should have rules guiding the use of cellphones and the consequences if these are broken,” she says.

Paulus says that parents need to consider why their child needs a cellphone in the first place and if they do; does it need to have a camera, bluetooth and Internet access?

“Adolescents who are engaging in this kind of activity are really crying out for help,” says Paulus. “They are letting people know through their behaviour that they lack something in their lives. Love and a sense of belonging are very important for children and are two of their basic human needs. If these are not met in the family the child will go looking for it elsewhere, such as in gangs, cults, substance abuse, sex or relationships."

“Adolescents want excitement, seek peer acceptance, and try to find ways to show that they are superior to others. Teens also want to experiment and in the case of teen cellphone porn, it sounds as if there is a need to experiment in a real way and to have the visual proof,” says Paulus.

• Do you think cellphone porn is a real issue? Is it a cry for help or normal teen rebellion? Please share your thoughts or comments below.

— Parent 24.com

Related post: Farcical Extremes
News article: Teen girls' cell-phone invitations bare all

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WANNADO: Amusement park where kids do what they wannado

WHEN I was growing up as a child the dream place to go was Disneyland. People dressed like Goofy, candy floss, and a few amusement park rides seemed to cut it as the height of entertainment. But that was back then.

The youth of today will be nagging their parents to take them to a Wannado City – an indoor role-playing theme park. The first of its kind, Wannado occupies 140 000 square-feet of South Florida’s largest mall and sees more than 26 million visitors a year.

It's been said that Wannado has redefined child entertainment by simulating a dream world where children are encouraged to take on and experience one or several adult professions. It features 60 Real-play venues and over 120 career possibilities – ranging from archaeologists, doctors, attorneys and TV hosts to fashion models, pizza makers, DJs and clowns.

The venues and professions are designed to allow kids to live out their dreams while simultaneously empowering them to become decision-makers and learn responsibility. It is the ultimate childhood experience which has been framed around the difficult question of: “What do you wanna do when you grow up?”

Wannado City

At Wannado City, kids can do what they wanna do!

"At Wannado City, kids can do what they wanna do"

The chief creative officer of Wannado City – Luis Javier Laresgoiti, came up with the idea while watching his daughter "play executive" on his business phone. Wannado is now a fully capitalised venture backed by multinational entertainment corporation and is led by an experienced team of entertainment executives from corporations such as Paramount Parks, Nickelodeon, Time Warner and Disney.

Such corporate backing brings me back to the reality that we live in a vicious, expanding capitalist society. When my peers and I were younger we only had to start worrying about what jobs we might do in our latter high school years. A Wannado City, on the other hand, almost seems like a cleverly fun way of instilling a capitalist ideology into the naive minds of children, with the hidden agenda of: "Get them while they're young!"

The project is aimed at the 2-14 year-old set and will cost you or your child within that age range $30 (roughly R210) to get in. Kids aged over 15 are charged half-price and those under 2 get in for free.

Wannado City caters for schools, corporate organisations, and even faith-based groups. If you have a birthday party coming up, book now – they cater for those too.

Additional Wannado City locations are currently being developed throughout the United States. I just wonder whether South Africa will have anything remotely similar by the time I have kids. Otherwise they’re just going to have to aspire to be a journalist like their dad. Sorry kids!

For more info check out:

• The Wannado M-Lab
• Expansion Plans for Wannado City
• Attending a Jobs Fair for the first time

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