If you’re curious, there’s no limit to the amount you can learn. Congratulations to every one of you who asked a question this year. I sincerely hope that looking through this collection leads you on to more and more questions—an endless chain reaction of inquiry and discovery.
Science needs people who are prepared to ask good questions. Stay curious!
Let's Celebrate! Let's Celebrate! Let's Celebrate!
The MIT Museum selected a team of scientists to review the 200 classroom winners and select ten STEM STARS. Each STEM STAR featured here was chosen from students ages 10 and up who asked particularly compelling questions. These STARS will be recognized at an award ceremony on Oct 9th at the MIT Museum. At the celebration, a panel of scientists will discuss each winning submission and students will be called to the stage for a special award. The STEM STARS will be featured on this website for the next year.
Curiosity often drives me to explore the unknown through combinations—combining ordinary things together to create something innovative.
In her family, tamales were handmade by love, sweat and gossip. Her childhood passion was the piano and kitchen table science. “As a child, curiosity was creating gooey slime or bottle rockets from everyday ingredients in the pantry. Today, curiosity drives me to build superconducting magnets to bottle our sun here on earth and create carbon-free fusion energy using existing technologies.”
Receiving her PhD from MIT’s Nuclear Science and Engineering department, Erica uses her curiosity to develop innovative superconducting magnet technologies for fusion energy applications. “Curiosity often drives me to explore the unknown through combinations—combining ordinary things together to create something innovative.”
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Fun Fact: Ms. Saillant dreams of organizing education trips for teachers from all over the world.
She is passionate about making social studies reflect the day-to-day work of social scientists in the field. She has co-designed units for students to explore and create models of the engineering designs of ancient societies from ancient Mesopotamia to ancient Egypt. Gisel is a member of the CEA’s Educators of Color Coalition Leadership Team, where she supports efforts to make CPS a place where educators of color can thrive.
Born in the Dominican Republic, Gisel immigrated to Lynn, MA when she was seven years old. One of her favorite memories is of her father making her a wallet from a mango seed. During her teen years, she liked to read, make collages and dance. Now in her free time she looks forward to hiking, swimming, watching anime and reading books by her favorite Sci-fi author Octavia Butler. She dreams of organizing education trips for teachers from all over the world.
