October is National Manufacturing Month. The Northeast Advanced Technological Education Center (NEATEC) celebrates each year by hosting an expo on the SUNY Polytechnic Institute campus. New York State manufacturers bring interactive exhibits, community colleges and student clubs share their STEM initiatives and NEATEC invites the public to learn about the new, high tech world of manufacturing. This event features over 50 exhibits and draws 1000+ people including middle, high school and college students, educators, unemployed, underemployed and people who are just interested in learning about advanced manufacturing opportunities and the educational pathways available.
This year, NEATEC’s exhibit featured Remotely Accessible Instruments for Nanotechnology (RAIN). Participants could see images of specimens in both real size and nano size on large monitors located behind the booth. Students were asked to match the real size images with the nano size versions. They could also look at micrographs with the 3D glasses provided at the exhibit. SUNY Polytechnic’s Lab Instructional Support Specialist, Paul Kutscha was on hand to explain the microscopes available at the college to create these images and to discuss with teachers how to bring remote access learning to their students.
