The Photon Camp: 2013 Edition
Earlier this month, The Institute of Optics organized the first edition of the Photon Camp, a one-week program designed for rising high school seniors to get an overview of the vast universe of Optics and hands-on experience performing experiments, learning about light and how we interact with it, and having fun with lasers, high tech cameras, mirrors, and telescopes!
Throughout the week, the students were immersed in the world of optics through lectures from several distinguished Institute of Optics professors who discussed basic principles of this science and their applications in the real world. These applications included LCD (liquid crystal display) screens, present in most smart phones, tablets, and televisions today; the use of lenses to increase efficiency in solar cells; thermal imaging for medical diagnostics; efficient forms of lighting (Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs vs. LEDs), and digital imaging (How good exactly are cell phone cameras?).
Moreover, the students were exposed to a variety of optical set-ups and experiments, from making holograms and engraving wood with a laser, to grinding and polishing lenses and observing the sun through a special telescope. (Never stare directly at the sun!) This was a great opportunity to learn what a laboratory environment is like in optics and to apply the concepts learned in lectures interactively with high-tech equipment.
The members of the Photon Team get their hands dirty grinding some lenses!
Furthermore, these rising seniors toured several local optics companies such as Optimax and Photon Gear to get a sense of the fieldwork optics majors and optical engineers are involved in after graduation. They also visited the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, home to one of the most powerful lasers in the world, to learn about the cutting-edge research carried out in the installations less than five minutes away from the River Campus.
In the midst of all these activities, the students were grouped in five different teams to work on a capstone project, each involving a field of technological concern today in which optics plays a major role. The teams were Solar Energy, Digital Imaging, Thermal Imaging, Energy Efficiency in Lighting, and Sound to Light. The camp culminated in a science-fair type presentation in which the students presented their projects to the faculty, staff, and graduate students from the Institute of Optics. The winning team received official Rochester Optics sweatshirts!!
Presentation Day!
On top of all this, on the last day of the camp, the students did a campus tour and received a talk from an admissions counselor who answered all their questions about college applications and scholarship opportunities at Rochester. Perhaps some of them will join us in the Fall of 2014!
I worked as a student adviser for one of the teams, and I had the privilege to interact with these incredibly engaging and creative high school students for an entire week. It was a great learning experience, both for me and for them! If you are interested in optics, engineering, or just science in general, I encourage you to apply next year to the Photon Camp! If you would like to see a daily review of all the activities performed this year, I encourage you to visit the Photon Camp blog.
On the last day, The Director of the Institute of Optics congratulates the students on their hard work throughout the week.
Me playing around with a huge lens! (Makes my head look slightly large too!)