Year

2013

On April 20th , 40 students of grades 3rd and 4th from Comstock Science Club, visited the LESS laboratory. The students were divided in three groups of 12-13. Students were exited to see the Shake table and made models using marshmallows and spaghetti. Bilal Ahmed Mohammed gave a brief demonstration of the Shake Table testing. Later models built by the students were tested on the shake table.

On March 29th , 15 high school Students from South Haven High School visited the LESS laboratory. The students were divided in two groups. Bilal Ahmed Mohammed and Mohammed Ahmed gave a brief demonstration of the Shake Table testing and explained the activities done in the LESS laboratory and showed previous test videos. Research activities, University life and the opportunities for the Students were discussed briefly. Later student made models using marshmallows and spaghetti and their models were tested on Shake table.

On March 17th , 35 Students of 5th Grade from Plainwell Visions School visited the LESS laboratory. The students were divided in groups of 4-5 Students. A brief demonstration of the Shake table, lab activities, research and the tests was given by Bilal Ahmed Mohammed and Mohammed Ahmed. Students made models using marshmallows and spaghetti and their models were tested on Shake table.

On March 15th , 40 Students of 6th and 7th Grades from Kalamazoo Christian Middle School visited the LESS laboratory. The students were divided in groups of 4-5 students. Bilal Ahmed Mohammed and Mohammed Ahmed gave a brief demonstration of the Shake Table testing and explained the activities done in the LESS laboratory and showed previous test videos. Students made models using marshmallows and spaghetti and their models were tested on Shake table.

On September 3rd, 2015, Western Michigan University invited incoming freshmen to participate in Passport Day 2015. More than 100 Students visited the lab to learn about LESS. Timothy Schnell and Bilal Ahmed Mohammed demonstrated the shake table test on the structures built by students using Spaghetti and mash mellows, and also discussed the research activates takes place in the lab.

On June 29th , 36 Students under MDOT Youth Mentoring Program visited the LESS laboratory. Bilal Ahmed Mohammed gave a brief demonstration of the Shake Table testing and explained the activities done in the LESS laboratory. Later structural models were built by students using spaghetti and mash mellows that were tested on the LESS shake table.



 

 

On May 21st , 51 Students of 7th and 8th Grades from Kalamazoo Christian Middle School visited the LESS laboratory. The students were divided into four groups. Bilal Ahmed Mohammed gave a brief demonstration of the Shake Table testing and explained the activities done in the LESS laboratory and showed previous test videos.



 

 

On May 12th, Loy Norrix and Milwood Middle Schools Peace Jam students (80 of 6th-grade mentored by 10th-grader students) visited the Laboratory of Earthquake and Structural Simulation (LESS) at Western Michigan University. Assembled in groups of 20, Bilal Ahmed Mohammed was able to provide demonstration and explanation of LESS capabilities and operation.



 

 

Year 2014

On November 22nd, Western Michigan University Society of Women Engineers hosted an “Engineering for a Day” event to provide local middle school Girl Scouts an opportunity to experience engineering studies. A team of 6 girls were introduced to the innovative LESS with hands on experience and application demonstration of the shake table. Bilal and Mohamed administered the shake table tests. LESS continues to engage in the education of K-12 graders to render the rich endeavor of Civil Engineering.

On August 27th, 2014, Western Michigan University invited incoming freshmen to participate in Passport Day 2013. More than 70 Students visited the lab to learn about LESS.  Timothy Schnell, Ramon Roberts, and Sear Rahimi demoed the shake table under the El Centro earthquake input excitation, and discussed with the students what tests are performed in the lab as well as how to get involved in future projects.

On July 24th, twenty students, 11th and 12th grade, participating in MDOTs TRAC (Transportation and Civil Engineering) internship program visited the LESS lab.  The TRAC program encourages high schoolers nearing graduation to pursue careers in Civil engineering.  Timothy Schnell demonstrated the LESS shake table and presented the ongoing state-of-the-art research being done at LESS.

• On March 27, students from the Green Meadow Science Exploration and Discovery Club visited LESS. Adam Mueller presented to them and allowed them to test the structures they built on the shake table.

• Abby Chapin and Betsy Strehl from the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center competed in the ISEF research competition. They pose with Dr. Shao on the picuture to the left and their display is on the picutured on the right.

• On February 6th, Western Michigan University invited students from Paramount Charter Academy. 60 students visited the lab to learn about LESS.  Adam Mueller demoed the shake table and discussed with the students what tests are performed in the lab as well as how to get involved in future projects.

• On November 7, students from Plainwell Schools visited LESS.  Adam Mueller demonstrated the shake table and the students were then able to build  structures out of spaghetti and marshmallows and use the shake table to test their structures.

• On October 31, 76 students from Van Buren Intermediate School District visited LESS.  Christopher Sawyer presented on the equipment, current testing, and future work of LESS.  The students then formed groups and constructed structures out of spaghetti and marshmallow.  The structures were tested on the shake table to see if they could survive a sixty second sin sweep. 

• On September 24, Dr. K G Bhatia, the CEO at D-CAD Technologies (Development Centre for Applied Dynamics) in New Delhi, India, visited LESS. Dr. Shao and Adam Mueller showcased the lab and described its testing capabilities.

• On  August 29, Western Michigan University invited incoming freshmen to participate in Passport Day 2013.   More than 70 Students visited the lab to learn about LESS.  Christopher Sawyer and Timothy Schnell demoed the shake table under the El Centro earthquake input excitation, and discussed with the students what tests are performed in the lab as well as how to get involved in future projects.

• On May 29, 39 7th graders from Kalamazoo Christian School visited the LESS.  They were divided into groups and built spaghetti and marshmallow structures.  After being given an introduction to the LESS lab they were allowed to test their structures on the shake table.  Below are pictures of the students testing their structures.

• On April 19, close to 100 5th graders from 12th Street Elementary School visited LESS.  The students built structures out of spaghetti and marshmallows and then used the shake table to test their structures.

• On February 27, 65 3rd graders from Paramount Charter Academy visited LESS. Chris Sawyer introduced the equipment to the students and operated the shake table so that they could test their structures.

Year 2012

Year 2011

• On November 18, 2011, 18 students and 2 chaperones from Mattawan Middle School visited LEES. They saw the demonstration of the shake table experiment. Also, the LESS member, Chelsea Griffith made a presentation which was about what civil engineering is and how many subjects it includes.

• On August 30, LESS, as one of the featured engineering laboratories in the WMU’s “Passport to Success,” welcomed incoming first-year students.  Almost 400 students worked together as teams to build structures using spaghetti and marshmallows (pictured left). Structures were then subjected to seismic tests in a shake table demonstration (pictured right).

• On May 12 and May 15, 7th grade students from Kalamazoo Christian School and 7th/8th grades students from the Gagie School visited the LESS to see the demonstration of the shake table test. They also built their own specimen for seismic testing using the lab facility.  A total of 130 students visited lab. The pictures below shows LESS member Chelsea Griffith interacting with the students.

Year 2010

• On December 2, 2010, 30 11th and 12th grade students from Olivet Community School visited the LESS.