On April 19th, a quest for schoolchildren in the 10th to 11th forms was held at the laboratories of the SUSU Institute of Engineering and Technology, during which children independently made memorable souvenirs from metal.
Twenty nine students from the Krasnooktyabrskaya Secondary School (Argayash District) arrived at SUSU to compete with each other in the MetalQuest game, which has been held by students and staff of the SUSU Department of Materials Science and Technology for five years now. High school students were divided into four teams and completed tasks at each of the four stages of the quest. The goal of the game is to make a talisman in the laboratories of the SUSU Institute of Engineering and Technology in the minimum time.
The game started at the SUSU Fabrication Laboratory (FabLab) − a production site for creating non-serial products. At the start, the rules of the game were explained to the participants, and the actual time for completing the stages was indicated in the form of a time map. Strictly following this map and timing, the teams, accompanied by volunteers (students of the institute), went to the points. The schoolchildren were given only 5 minutes to "cross" to the next stage.
The guys stayed at each point for no more than 15 minutes: during this time they managed to complete the main task and answer four relevant questions asked by the organizer. For each correct answer, a team member received an individual token that reduced the total time spent by the team by one minute. The person who collected the maximum number of tokens among all teams was awarded an individual prize.
At the first stage, called "Looking into the Abyss" (SUSU Nanomaterials and Technologies Research and Education Centre), participants had to not only demonstrate their knowledge of physics and chemistry, but also correctly identify the "mysterious" grade of alloy. To do this, it was necessary to compare the crystal lattice of the metal in the microscope lens with different options for such lattices in the given pictures and select the correct option.
Successful completion of the second stage "Power of Light" (SUSU Welding Laboratory) consisted of making a souvenir ring from aluminium. Schoolchildren learned about methods of joining metal products and practiced laser welding − using a 100-watt device, they connected gaps on metal workpieces.
At the third stage, which was called "Artistic Casting" (SUSU Laboratory of Metallurgy and Foundry), high school students cast a blank for the future medallion from the metal that they identified at the first stage of the game.
The fourth stage "Mint" (SUSU Laboratory of Metal Forming) ended with the production of a medallion with stamping. Under the supervision of a professional, the guys independently made impressions on a cast blank in the form of a silhouette of the main building of South Ural State University on one side and with the emblem of the MetalQuest game on the other.
The teams finished at the FabLab − there the quest organizers summed up the results of the event: they calculated the total time spent by each team to complete all stages, as well as the number of bonus tokens for the guys’ correct answers. Prizes were distributed according to the results.
"We hope to 'hook' children with interesting technical information in the form of such a scientific and entertaining game," says Ivan Erdakov, Associate Professor at the SUSU Department of Metal Forming. "It is important that the guys come to us again, but this time in the format of an engineering school or, even better, begin to work on projects at the SIRIUS level in the university FabLab."
An annual quest is held at the university to introduce high school students to engineering specialties. During the game, participants come into contact with professions directly related to the development, application and support of technological processes in materials science and metallurgy, casting, rolling, forging and welding. Over the entire period of the quest, about four hundred schoolchildren took part in it, and the number of applicants from former MetalQuest participants in the engineering direction of SUSU is growing every year.