It's All in The E

  Today is our first day of 4-H Biotech Day Camp.  This is a unique camp that has been going strong for more than a dozen years.  What makes it unique is that Bladen, Hoke, and Robeson Counties join together to get the most out of this traveling day camp.  Essentially we take our youth to wonderful and unique experiences that they wouldn't otherwise get to experience.
  On of the big questions of the day was what is Biotech?  So when we asked our youth we got answers ranging from building computers, to gaming, and even babysitting.  The actual definition actually relates to a broader definition of biology and all living organisms, systems of living organisms, and any technological applications.  For us we expand the definition to all science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics and relate what many youth may be intimidated by in school to real life and try to make these topics as user friendly and fun as possible.

  Today we tackled Engineering in a really big way.  We travelled to NC State University and dissected the iconic Bell Tower.  With a special tour from Dr. Thomas Stafford, retired Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, we learned the history of Holiday Hall, and the Bell Tower.  We learned the stages of building that took place to make this tower, some secrets of the Tower, and experienced first hand the World War I memorial inside (yes, inside), the Bell Tower.  Besides the marvels of engineering that our 4-H members learned about, they also walked away with some pretty neat stories that not everyone knows.

  After a tour of the Bell Tower our youth ate, with college students, at the Talley Student Center.  They got to order their own food and sit to get to know each other.  This is the first time campers from each county had a chance to mix and mingle and figure out who is who.  When they got done they all seemed happy with their choices and were full ready to head to the next adventure.
  It turns out the next adventure was two floors up in a conference room overlooking new construction on NCSU's main campus.  What we saw on the screen was the history of Reynolds Coliseum which is right next door.  When they started construction it was a farm field.  However what no one could predict was WWII broke out as construction got underway and it had to halt because steel could not be procured due to the war.  It took more than five years before construction could be started and due to the increasingly popular basketball program the plans for the facility were changed to increase seating from 10,000 seats to 12,400 which made it the largest venue of its kind for years.  Needless to say our campers needed to see this engineering marvel up close and in person.
  However over the years needs change so the building actually looks different on the inside while maintaining its iconic outside look we saw in photos.  In 2015 the facility was closed for a year to undertake a 35-million dollar renovation which moved the basketball floor to the south end of the building and decreased seating to 5,500 seats.  Some of these seats are still the original seats from when the building was constructed.  Our campers couldn't help but try out sitting in history.  They got to enjoy the sound stick which measured the level of noise during the games.  The north end of the structure is the Walk of fame housing the history and awards of NC State Athletic Hall of Fame.  Campers found everything from different NCSU sports highlighted, To the history of the Wolves, and the history of the logos.  Kind of amazing all the information held under one roof, that took so much to build and maintain.
  After all this marveling we had to marvel at one more thing...Howling Cow ice cream which we had a scoop of before traveling home.  Tomorrow we will start putting some other processes together and out youth will be shocked at all that they learn.