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Institutes of Technology Ireland (IOTI) sponsors BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition 12th to 15th January 2011
IOTI is once again proud to sponsor the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition which runs in the RDS Ballsbridge from Wednesday 12th to Saturday 15th January inclusive. IOTI will have a stand (no 42) in the World of Science and Technology showcasing the work from five Institutes of Technology. An Innovation Consultancy service will also be available and Institute innovation and entrepreneurship experts will be on hand to answer questions and provide advice.
Staff at IT Sligo are engaged in investigating the recent demise of the honey bee and colony collapse disorder which is occurring worldwide. The effects of this are likely to have devastating consequences for mankind in term of food supply. The exhibit will include a bee hive and a description of on-going research being undertaken to counteract this threat.
Ever thought of trying to contact ET? At this year’s BT Young Scientist Exhibition you might just get the chance to do so. Students, their teachers and members of the general public will have the opportunity to send a message and a picture of themselves to a planet outside our solar system, using a live linkup to a radio telescope operated by Cork Institute of Technology at their science centre in Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork. Everyone who sends a message can keep track of its general progress by logging onto a dedicated website. This is a unique opportunity to send an echo of yourself across the galaxy - and who knows what it might find when it reaches its planetary destination.
CASALA, the Centre for Affective Solutions for Ambient Living Awareness, is based on the Dundalk Institute of Technology campus. CASALA’s primary function is working with Irish industry to achieve product innovation, business competitiveness, and market leadership in the emerging ambient assisted living sector. CASALA is also developing a suite of technologies aimed at allowing older people to live independently at home for as long as possible. These technologies are focussed around CABIE, the Context Aware Broker Inference Engine. CABIE's purpose is to map data collected through an array of multimodal sensors installed in users' homes onto respective Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) services. CABIE feeds this data to its decision engine for tasks including pattern recognition, behaviour modelling, and affect and context recognition. Decisions made through this engine can be as straightforward as activating an alarm in response to a fall in the house, or as complex as identifying and working to reverse cognitive decline. Finally, to close the feedback loop with users, CASALA is developing a number of methods with which to communicate with older people through several developing technologies, including, Internet-connected televisions and touch-panel devices.
The IT Carlow exhibit will focus on Aviation and will include items such as a model piston engine and a servo controller for flaps on the wings of the aircraft. It will also include a demonstration of how portable electronic devices impact on Avionics.
Fred the RoboSkeleton was a bit hit at last year’s Exhibition and makes a return visit this year, thanks to Letterkenny IT. Fred is a wireless controlled skeleton and uses technologies which can be found in modern day products such as iPod nano iPhone Wii Gameboy and many more. LYIT will also have a demonstration of the wireless control of a robotic hand using a glove containing sensors.
For further information see the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition website