Outreach
We have teamed up with the Gelfand Center to create a series of workshops that teach K-12 students concepts in optics, imaging, math, and physics. Our workshops help introduce students to STEM research, have a strong focus on hands-on experiences with optical hardware, and include visits and demos at our labs. The workshops run throughout the year, with offerings during the fall, spring, and summer semesters.
Cameras and displays
Grades 5–7. Instructor: Matthew O’Toole
Let’s play with light! Building your own cameras and displays is not just fun—it’s good engineering practice. We will convert your cellphone into a microscope and use it to magnify tiny objects and explore interesting subjects. Then we will explain how we see in 3D and build a glasses-free 3D display. Next, we will produce the illusion of motion with a zoetrope microscope and magnify tiny objects and explore interesting subjects. Finally, we will understand how we see in 3D and build a 3D display, the opposite of a camera.
How 3D displays work
Grades 6–8. Instructor: Aswin Sankaranarayanan
3D movies and 3D AR/VR headsets are all the rage right now! But how do they work? This workshop investigates how we perceive depth and how displays can be engineered to “fool” the eye into seeing 3D. We will look at principles underlying glasses-enabled and glass-free 3D displays. You will also build your own 3D display as part of the workshop.
Digital photography
Grades 7–9. Instructor: Ioannis Gkioulekas
This class provides a first introduction to photography, optics, and imaging. We will begin by investigating properties of optical elements such as lenses, prisms, and filters, and see how we can use them to manipulate light. Then, we will go over how digital image sensors work, and take a look at the internals of a digital camera. We will use this background to understand the various settings (focus, zoom, exposure) and stages (optical, analog, digital) of the modern photography pipeline. In parallel, we will get hands-on experience with all these concepts using high-end digital cameras, including a photography competition at the end.
