This project should be a breeze.
Not easy, mind you, but definitely a breeze.
The 2011 4-H National Youth Science Day Event -- Wired for Wind -- will be held in many locations Oct. 5, including the Lincoln Children's Zoo. Children in grades 3-7 are eligible to participate in the event, which is designed to teach youth about the importance of renewable energy.
Admission to the event, from 4-6 p.m., is free for participants and $3.50 for adults, or free with zoo membership.
This year's project, which will be used by tens of thousands of youth at sites all over the nation, was developed by Nebraska 4-H and selected by National 4-H. It's the brainchild of John Hay, a UNL Extension educator who specializes in energy and biofuels.
Hay knew that renewable energy would fit the program's criteria of a project that would enable youngsters to become scientists for a day, connecting important lessons in science, engineering and technology to civic engagement. But his first problem to solve was the fact that windmill projects tend to be very material intensive.
He worked with KidWind, a private company, which was able to come up with a scaled-back, affordable kit. "They have been a really good partner," also helping design the curriculum, Hay said.
Participants will use the kit to build two types of wind turbines -- horizontal axis and vertical axis. They'll determine which is the more efficient design. Then they'll explore the effectiveness of various blade pitches and, finally, determine how and where to site a wind farm in their individual states.
"Every single state has some potential for wind power, although in some states it's not very much and it may be offshore," Hay said.
Youth will be provided wind-speed maps and population maps to make these determinations.
Bradley Barker, Nebraska 4-H science and technology specialist, who assisted Hay with the design of the activities, said this last element of the project is key. Wind power has great potential, but it's not appropriate everywhere, and it's important for youth to understand that.
The whole experience, Hay said, is "a little bit about wind turbines, a little bit about physics and a little bit about the socio-economic impacts of where we locate turbines," Hay said.
Barker is pleased Nebraska 4-H is leading this year's project. "To be selected to lead the experiment is a great honor."
More information is available at http://4h.unl.edu. The event is sponsored by University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Time Warner Cable, and Lincoln Children's Zoo.
More details at: http://go.unl.edu/sjc