Gillian King-Cargile remembers well a phone call from an administrator at Sycamore High School, where she’d recently handed out free copies of a science fiction novel titled “The Maze Runner.” “You made a kid’s mom cry,” the caller told her. What? How? Was the plot objectionable? The subject matter? No, she was told, the mother...

NIU’s popular STEMfest – scheduled Saturday, Oct. 8, in the Convocation Center – has received an $8,000 award from the DeKalb County Community Foundation (DCCF). The award will help ensure that STEMfest’s equipment for hands-on activities is cutting-edge and in working order. With 7,500 people attending STEMfest annually, displays and equipment suffer plenty of wear and tear....

This summer, NIU’s STEM Outreach is offering a full schedule of engaging, hands-on camps for the innovators of tomorrow. Campers get to roll up their sleeves, think creatively and make friends while building skills for success in the growing fields of science, technology, engineering and math. STEM Camps are offered from June through August at...

For years, humankind has thought of capable, intelligent robots as the stuff of science fiction, from the friendly droids of “Star Wars” to the mechanical overlords of “The Matrix.” In fact, smart robots are already all around us – with more coming every day. The ongoing invasion of robots into our everyday lives is the...

All 7,500 participants in STEMfest 2015 had the opportunity to engage in a full day of hands-on fun exploring science, technology, engineering, and math. The sixth annual STEMfest included participants from more than 98 ZIP codes, 633 NIU volunteers and 85 exhibitors who offered more than 200 activities to explore. But many young attendees received...

Want to help students who are just beginning their journeys in the world of research? Mentor Matching Engine is looking for mentors. The Mentor Matching Engine is an online platform designed to connect professors and teachers with high school students to help mentor them through research projects. Mentors leverage their expertise and professional experience to...

NIU’s annual STEMfest will once again dazzle and educate thousands of visitors of all ages to the Convocation Center from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct 17. This free, family-friendly festival, attended by nearly 7,500 people last year, celebrates innovations in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) and offers hundreds of hands-on...

If you love “Game of Thrones“ – either the hit HBO show or the bestselling novels – you might think the story is pure escapism: a fantasy romp set in a faraway world of magic and dragons. In fact, its creators get a surprising amount right about the fundamental laws of science and physics. At...

A new season of STEM Saturday classes is under way to give young learners exciting experiences with science, technology, engineering and math. But kids aren’t the only ones having fun this fall. NIU STEM Outreach has added teen- and adult-friendly classes that will teach learners basic programming and electronics skills through fun, hands-on projects. This...

Solomon Mason proved you’re never too old to go to summer camp. The senior mechanical engineering major joined fellow NIU students Dwayne Wilson, David Duncan, Nkem Ekhator, Sheriff Otun, Victor Aghadi and Stella Aghadi from July 5 to July 24 at The Summer Engineering Experience for Kids (SEEK) program held at Miles Davis Magnet Academy...

Do you know where your personal data is going – or even how much is out there? Each time you browse the web, post on social media, use your smartphone’s GPS or make a credit-card purchase, you generate records and build your data trail, which grows longer every day. At the next STEM Café, NIU...

Northern Illinois University Press and the NIU Center for P-20 Engagement are creating a series of STEM-based storybooks, the Stuffed Bunny Science Adventure Series, which will include a total of eight books to be published over the course of the next two years. The books in the series focus on the adventures of a toy...