It
was a great day in Harlem for over 1500 children at Super Saturday!
On
May 19, 2012, the New York City Amateur Radio Emergency Communications
Service (NYC-ARECS) participated at the Super Saturday
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Expo. Super
Saturday is an annual expo designed for New York City youth
and their families. The event features hands-on Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math activities and demonstrations for Harlem
public school students up to Grade 12.
NYC-ARECS
tables presented the theme "How to talk Across the World
Without a Cell Phone." The NYC-ARECS staff used age-appropriate
discussion to talk with the children about the fundamentals of
radio communication science and communicating during a disaster.
The NYC-ARECS tables were positioned among other activity booths
set up by museums, science & technology centers, colleges
& universities, non-profits, professionals, companies, libraries,
corporations and government agencies.
The
team's activities included showing kids the Phonetic
Alphabet (e.g. Alpha, Bravo, Charlie...), then having
them write their name phonetically on an index card. Then they were shown a
Morse Code alphabet list and they copied the dots and dashes onto
the card... then they were shown--and many eagerly tried--to tap
out their name. While Morse Code remains a historic form of communications,
it has relevance as a part of history, ham radio, science, and
it certainly sparked their interest. The kids also got to try
out talking across the room on FRS
radios, tuning an HF radio, and trying out the VHF and
UHF tranceiver. Dozens of kids and adults visited the table and
one lucky child won a pair of FRS radios which NYC-ARECS donated
as a free raffle.
The
expo took place in the massive 50,000 square foot "Harlem
Armory," home to the U.S. Army's 369th Infantry Regiment,
a historic WWI combat unit. Local politicans visited the expo
including U.S. Congressman Charlie Rangel.
