JMS students play games of drones
Seventh-grade Jefferson Middle School students demon- strated drones at the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge. Pictured are, front from left, Ben Boles, Ben Parsons, Finn Wessels, Wyatt Barna, Izzy Allison, Scarlett Lewis and Joshna Nandagopal. In the back are JMS teacher James Mitchell, associate profes- sor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Rutgers University F. Javier Diez-Garias and Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers. (photo:Ben Pounds )
At the front the American Museum of Science and Energy auditorium in Oak Ridge sat a group of seventh-grade Jefferson Middle School students who programmed those small flying craft.
While the students flew the drones, their teacher, James Mitchell, explained how they had built, programmed, taken photographs and raced with drones outside JMS and in its gym. Mitchell teaches aeronautics and aviation at JMS.
“They made it look a whole lot easier than it is,” he said of the students.
Students demonstrating at the event were Ben Boles, Ben Parsons, Finn Wessels, Wyatt Barna, Izzy Allison, Scarlett Lewis and Joshna Nandagopal.
Both Mitchell and the students spoke about difficulties.
“I think the most challenging part of the whole drone thing is to not crash, first off,” said Nandagopal, adding it was easy to get frustrated. But when listing the advantages, she echoed others in her class. “The best part is flying,” she said.
The event closed with a lecture by F. Javier Diez-Garias, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Rutgers University. His talk focused on his own work with drones that could both fly and go underwater.
He said he was impressed by the students whose demos came before his talk.
He called the JMS program “amazing” and said he hadn’t seen anything like it in the entire country.
“You guys are going to do something similar at the university,” he said of the drone work. “I would definitely hire you guys.”
The drone event was part of a series of collaborations between AMSE and Oak Ridge Schools called “Leading in a world of Advanced Technology.” The next such event is “Digital Twins and Artificial Intelligence” and will be at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8. It will feature ORHS robotics teacher Mark Buckner and ORHS students along with Lynne E. Parker, Vice Chancellor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Director of the AI Tennessee Initiative.