Argonne National Laboratory

Feature Stories

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An engineer at CNH Industrial takes a closer look at design components of TAG Illinois’ electric car during the design component of the 2017 Electric Car Competition. (Image by Argonne National Laboratory/Mark Lopez.)
 Middle school engineers find success in iteration in Electric Car Competition

Argonne National Laboratory joined with CNH Industrial to showcase the engineering talents of Chicago-area middle school students at the annual Electric Car Competition in March.

 May 24, 2017
Keeping cyber attackers at bay, the team from the University of Illinois at Chicago won Argonne’s second annual Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition.
 2017 Cyber Defense Competition enthralls crowd at Argonne

Argonne’s second annual Cyber Defense Competition kept spectators on the edge of their seat. New dynamics added suspense to this daylong educational event for college and high school students.

 April 14, 2017
15-year-old high school student Jocelyn Murray helped lead her team in solving three of the four cyber security puzzles created by Jennifer Fowler of Argonne’s Cyber Operations, Analysis and Research group. Fascinated by computers and solving cyber puzzles, Murray and her team were invited to learn about cyber defense culture at this past weekend’s second annual Argonne Cyber Defense Competition. (Image by Jonathan Berecz / Wakefield Memorial High School.)
 High-schooler solves college-level security puzzle from Argonne, sparks interest in career

15-year-old Jocelyn Murray and her classmates solved a series of college-level cyber puzzles. This weekend they had a front row seat to watch college-level competitors who are older and more experienced defend their networks from constant attack.

 April 5, 2017
Students get ready to race the cars they've built at the 2016 Electric Car Competition.
 From the classroom to the real world

Argonne’s educational opportunities help students apply
classroom knowledge to real-world problems.

 April 3, 2017
In 75 steps, Lake Park High School becomes winner of Argonne’s 2017 Rube Goldberg Machine Contest. The team will participate in the National High School Rube Goldberg Machine Contest Finals held in Columbus, Ohio later this month. (Image by Mark Lopez.)
 Lake Park High School wins Argonne’s 2017 Rube Goldberg Machine Challenge

In 75 steps, Lake Park High School won Argonne’s Rube Goldberg Machine Challenge. They now go on to the national competition in Columbus, Ohio.

 March 15, 2017
Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (IGED) is a diversity outreach program designed to provide 8th-grade girls an opportunity to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. Students are assigned to engineer and scientist mentors at Argonne who accompany the girls throughout the day's scheduled activities. (Image by Argonne National Laboratory.)
 Argonne hosts 15th annual Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day

IGED is a diversity outreach program designed to provide 8th-grade girls an opportunity to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. Students are assigned to engineer and scientist mentors who accompany the girls throughout the day's scheduled activities.

 March 2, 2017
Daniel Wright Jr. High School is the winner of the 2017 DOE Regional Middle School Science Bowl. This makes for the sixth win in seven years for the suburban Chicago school, which will now go on to compete in the National Finals of the DOE National Science Bowl® in Washington D.C. this April. (Image by Argonne National Laboratory.)
 Middle schoolers test their knowledge at science bowl competition

Ten middle school teams met at Argonne for the 27th annual Department of Energy Regional Science Bowl in February.

 February 15, 2017
Students tried their hands at computer coding during “Hour of Code,” a global movement to encourage interest in computer science. Here, Argonne scientist Christopher Peters talks to students at Heritage Grove Middle School. Argonne’s educational programs department arranged for 45 Argonne, Fermilab and UChicago computer scientists to visit 49 different schools across the Chicagoland area. (Image by Argonne National Laboratory.)
 Hour of Code sends 45 Argonne, Fermilab and UChicago computer scientists to schools

Argonne’s Educational Programs Department coordinated an effort to send computer scientists from Argonne and Fermilab National Laboratory and computer science students from the University of Chicago into schools in the greater Chicago area last December for Hour of Code, a global movement that aims to get everyone, kids to adults, to try computer coding for an hour.

 February 3, 2017
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign graduate student Elena Montoto (right) receives her Hispanic-Latino Club scholarship.
 Argonne’s Hispanic-Latino Club gives back

Argonne's Hispanic-Latino Employee Resource Group awarded $5,100 in scholarships to students from junior high to university levels this spring.

 June 21, 2016
Neuqua Valley High School students Anna Thomas, Vanessa Cai, Nadia Young and Natalie Ferguson discuss an experiment at Sector 20 of the Advanced Photon Source, a large synchrotron at Argonne National Laboratory. The students used X-rays to study ancient pottery. (Photo by Mark Lopez, Argonne National Laboratory)
 High schoolers study ancient pottery at Advanced Photon Source

The experimental facilities of a typical high school physics classroom don’t usually include a synchrotron. But Natalie Ferguson and more than 60 of her schoolmates not only got to see the Advanced Photon Source: they used it to do research.

 June 16, 2016