Outreach
Outreach
With schools on summer break, Tokyo Tech will be holding a variety of events for elementary, middle school, and high school students in August. These include the annual Open Campus and many hands-on science classes run by faculty members. Come and experience Tokyo Tech in summer 2015!
Please note that advance registration for some programs may already have closed. Events are primarily in Japanese and simultaneous interpretation is not available.
Associate Professor Hilofumi Yamamoto
Language changes with time. The meaning of a word today is often not what it was in the past. Time machines and audio recordings of classical Japanese do not exist, but it is possible to decipher how words were used in sentences long ago. Associate Professor Hilofumi Yamamoto takes middle school students to the world of classical Japanese language using visualization methods.
Rakugo storyteller Shinoharu Tatekawa is coming back to Tokyo Tech for his forth performance in English. Shinoharu is the third disciple of Shinosuke Tatekawa, one of the most famous rakugo artists in Japan. A graduate of Yale University, Shinoharu first worked at a trading company before choosing a very different path as a rakugo performer. Every year he enthralls audiences at the Institute with his fascinating storytelling. Shinoharu will be available for a Q&A session after his performance.
DNA, the blueprint of life contained in cells, can now be used to fabricate nanoscale robots, in a process called DNA origami. High school students will be given a hands-on learning experience by Professor Akihiko Konagaya on DNA origami design methods, DNA hybridization, and observation methods using the atomic force microscope.
Viewing a smiley created by DNA origami through an atomic force microscope
Setting a probe (sharp tip) used in an atomic force microscope
Creating machines which recognize the external environment and are both safe and user-friendly requires knowledge of computer vision and brain science (human vision). Using 3D scenography of a huge aurora, this science class illustrates to high school students the principle of height measurement on the basis of stereoscopic vision, and shows the mechanism of how human beings recognize the external environment by moving their heads. Associate Professor Takako Yoshida will explain the significance of vision labs in an engineering school.
Computer vision, human vision, your vision 2014
Open Campus is an opportunity for prospective students to visit Tokyo Tech's Ookayama Campus and feel its atmosphere firsthand. At open classes, lectures, and labs, Tokyo Tech faculty members and current students explain the appeal of the Institute.
Tokyo Tech is formulating a new education system to be launched in April 2016. Briefing sessions on Open Campus day will provide information about the new Schools and what kinds of study opportunities they can offer.
Play with the Earth is a laboratory class held every year and designed for children in the upper elementary grades. This year, Institute Professor Shigenori Maruyama provides children with an opportunity to touch the history and mystery of the Earth by guiding them through three hands-on learning experiences:
Crushing minerals for observation
Looking for fossils
Experiment with minerals of various gravities
Floating stone?
The Special Topics component of the Tokyo Tech Website shines a spotlight on recent developments in research and education, achievements of its community members, and special events and news from the Institute.
Past features can be viewed in the Special Topics Gallery.
Published: July 2015
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