In recent years, the advanced industry has emerged as the region of success and as the object of the aspirations of many young people. To encourage this trend and help fulfill the dreams of youth, the science teaching department at the Weizmann Institute of Science began a unique project linking students studying physics at the five-unit level, and industrial plants in the field of electro-optics
In recent years, the advanced industry has emerged as the region of success and as the object of the aspirations of many young people. To encourage this trend and help fulfill the dreams of youth, the science teaching department at the Weizmann Institute of Science began a unique project linking students studying physics at the five-unit level, and industrial plants in the field of electro-optics.
The birth of the project in the high demand that has existed in recent years in the electro-optical industry in Israel, which is longing for engineers and physicists. In the contemporary scientific reality, when knowledge multiplies in short periods of time, and the most sought-after qualities are initiative, inventiveness and creativity, it seems natural to direct the efforts in the direction of youth whose innovation is one of their prominent qualities.
At this point, the project is in an experimental phase. It is coordinated by Prof. Batsheva Alon from the science teaching department at the Weizmann Institute of Science, and three schools participate in it - "De-Schlit" in Rehovot, "Ginzburg the Pine" and "Ginzburg the Alon" in Yavne - and the "Al-Op" factory, whose roots are deeply rooted On the land of the Weizmann Institute of Science: one of the founders of the plant is Prof. Yosef ("Joe") Yaffe. Today, the factory, headed by CEO Haim Russo, provides various materials for the project, and contributes quite a few working hours. As part of their studies for the matriculation exam in physics, the students try to solve various electro-optical problems using the method of "systematic inventive thinking." This method was developed by Yaakov Halfman as part of a doctoral thesis he did in the science teaching department at the institute, under the guidance of Prof. Alon. It is a purposeful, systematic and efficient thinking approach to creating unconventional solutions in the fields of engineering, science and technology. The method allows the student to make maximum use of his skills and his ability to think and be creative, and to come up with a multitude of ideas, some of which are surprising and unusual. Among other things, the method helps students develop models, examine them in three aspects: technological, scientific and intellectual, and then choose the most appropriate one for application.
Research student Shay Sofer, who is preparing a doctoral thesis on science teaching under the guidance of Prof. Alon, focuses his doctoral thesis on the development and evaluation of work frameworks that combine physics studies at school with activity in industry. At the same time, he also serves as a project engineer at the "Al-Op" company. In this framework, he coordinates the program and links the students to the company. Uri Elmi from the "Al-Op" company serves as a scientific advisor.
The project spanned the school years in grades 1.5-XNUMX. The work is done in pairs. In the first year, students study theoretical material necessary for developing applications and solving various problems in the field of electro-optics. They choose the problem they want to solve, meet with the facilitators from the "Al Op" company for a joint orientation meeting, examine different solutions to the problem, and choose the appropriate solution with the facilitators. The students do the bulk of the work, with the supervisors accompanying and directing them throughout the project. In the second year, the students implement the chosen solution, submit a thesis including a model, and are even tested on the project before an external examiner from the Ministry of Education. The complete program provides its participants with XNUMX study units, where half a study unit is given on an elective chapter in electro-optics, which is the theoretical basis of the project, and one study unit is given on the final project.
The students Ido Livna and Ido Linguille took it upon themselves to build a system that would detect when a certain room is empty. Using the method of systematic inventive thinking, they arrived at several models, among which they chose the best model, and built it. The model consisted of two lasers placed on a beam of a door, in front of two detectors placed on the other beam. The information received by the detectors is transferred to an electronic system that processes the information and indicates how many people entered and how many left. When the subtraction between them is equal to zero, it means that the room is empty. "I am happy that I participated in the project", says Ido Livna, "I think I learned how to work in a team, and how to overcome problems in a practical way and not only theoretically. Since I want to see myself as part of the future hi-tech system, I attach importance to contact with the industry, which for me is a first step. There is no doubt that this is a welcome initiative by the science teaching department, which saw fit to create a connection between pure science and industrial applications."
Ido Levy, who participated in the program together with Nir Berliner, carried out a project in the field of XNUMXD vision of photographs, which is done by combining two images into one XNUMXD image through computer processing. "In this project I got to know a different, new physics, which is not included in the conventional curriculum", he says. "I experimented with different ways of thinking, finding sources of information independently, and maintained contact with people in the industry. I was greatly helped by a physics teacher who is not afraid to face new challenges, Corinna Pollinger, and the teamwork with my project partners made the entire program a fascinating experience."
