2009 Summer Scholars

What do you get when you combine Dr. Fletcher, nine brilliant high school students, an infrared camera, and field trips to power plants? You get “Energy, Environment, and Biomedicine: Adventures in Chemical Engineering,” or the Chemical Engineering Group for the 2009 Summer Scholars hosted by Brigham Young University. These nine students arrived at BYU Monday, 22 June, from nearly all necks of the woods—from Salt Lake City to São Paulo, Brazil.

Regardless of where these students were from, they all joined in conversations under the direction of Dr. Thomas H. Fletcher about the various aspects of chemical engineering in every day life. The students had opportunities to do experiments—including the use of an infrared camera and testing the absorbency of regular diapers in comparison to swim diapers. The students also took a tour of the power plant on BYU campus and a power plant in Salt Lake City.

Dr. Solen, Dr. Pitt, and Dr. Wheeler also helped with the class. With these hands-on learning opportunities, the students learned the equation “chemical engineering + BYU + creativity = fun!”