By Tara Hicks Johnson

Normally when you hear a loud explosion followed by the shrieking of hundreds of kids, it’s a cause for concern. Not so at the 10th Biennial SOEST Open House at the UH Mānoa campus, where that just means science is happening! The liquid-nitrogen-filled exploding garbage can was just one of the exciting (and messy) exhibits showcased this past weekend at our Open House. Over 450 faculty, students and staff from the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) volunteered their time to host the over 6,000 students and parents who came to experience science, Manoa-style.

Events such as these are fantastic ways to not only show off the various types of research that goes on in SOEST, but to also encourage young people to consider a career in the sciences. And, even better, to pursue those science dreams right here at UH Manoa.  For the younger students, we had activities such as fish printing, simulated volcanic eruptions, and play dough geologic faulting. Older students could find out more about research trends in fields such as ocean observing, natural energy research, or microbial oceanography. With over 60 hands-on exhibits on display, there was something for everyone there.

To learn more about other outreach opportunities available from SOEST, please contact me at hickst@hawaii.edu and ask to be added to our outreach email list. We also have a SOEST Facebook site, so become a fan at www.facebook.com/SOEST, and find out more about all the exciting research going on.   

Students look under a microscope at a NASA lunar disk, comprised of six different samples of lunar material encapsulated in a 6-inch diameter clear lucite disk. (Photos by Brian Chee/SOEST)

A liquid-nitrogen-fueled explosive eruption carries a 20-gallon pail of water into the air.

Tara Hicks Johnson (M.S. 2002, Geology and Geophysics) is the Outreach Specialist for the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (www.soest.hawaii.edu) on the UH Mānoa campus.

Tags: microbial oceanography, science, SOEST

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