Central Oregon students have a chance to improve upon existing technology by participating in the 22nd annual Inventerprise contest sponsored by Bend Research, with support from Bend-La Pine Schools and Central Oregon Community College.
The theme of this year’s contest is making technology better. The problem statement is “I can do better than that! Re-imagine or redesign a system, process, or gadget to work better than it does now.”
For example, snowboarding was created when a 1960s inventor glued two skis together. His idea was to combine downhill skiing and surfing, something completely new, but coming from two existing technologies.
Entries are due November 8, and winners will be announced by December 1. Entries will be judged on originality, usefulness, and development of concept.
Prizes will be awarded at all grade levels. The students submitting the top high school entries will split $1,800. The student submitting the top middle-school entry will choose from among an iPod, GoPro camera, tablet computer, mountain bike, or a season ski pass to Mount Bachelor. Student winners in grades K-8 will receive specially designed T-shirts and be invited to a special Science Night presentation at Bend Research.
The Inventerprise contest is open to all Central Oregon students in grades K-12, including home-schooled students. Last year more than 1,170 students entered, individually or in groups, and more than 160 students won awards. Students may choose the medium that best conveys their ideas, including models, essays, movies, computer programs, and posters. As always, inventions must not defy the laws of nature.
Deliveries of entries will be accepted at the Bend Research fabrication facility at 63060 Corporate Place in Bend from 8 a.m. Wednesday, November 6, through 5 p.m. Friday, November 8.
Students may enter as individuals or in groups of up to three people. To better track entries, students may register online through the Inventerprise website at www.inventerprise.bendresearch.com/home.html. This press release, contest flyers, and additional information also can be downloaded from the website.
In addition, teachers in grades K-5 whose classes have greater than 50 percent participation will be eligible for the Tina McGeary Teacher Incentive Program. This program will distribute at least $2,000 in gift certificates among area teachers for classroom supplies or books. The program is named in memory of Tina McGeary, an Inventerprise contest founder and unflagging advocate of the work that teachers do for the community.
About InventerpriseThe Inventerprise Contest began in 1992 as an outgrowth of a business-education partnership between Bend Research and the Bend-La Pine School District to promote science education and enrich students’ educational experience. Ten years ago, Central Oregon Community College joined the effort by helping to plan and run the contest.
For more information regarding the Inventerprise 2013 contest or to request contest rules, please visit the website or call Dory Koehler-King or Nate Glutting at Bend Research at 541-382 4100.
About Bend Research Inc. For more than 35 years, Bend Research Inc. has worked with clients to create value by advancing new medicines that improve human health and to solve their most difficult scientific and technical problems. This success is based on the company’s ability to develop, advance, and commercialize pharmaceutical technologies, which grow from a solid base of scientific and engineering fundamental understanding.
Bend Research Inc. provides several capabilities, including formulation and dosage-form support, assists in process development and optimization, manufactures clinical trial quantities of drug candidates in its cGMP facilities, and advances promising drug candidates from conception through commercialization. The company is a leader in novel formulations, including spray-dried dispersions and hot-melt extrusion formulations, as well as controlled-release, inhalation, and biotherapeutics technologies. With more than 250 employees, Bend Research Inc. is based in six state-of-the-art facilities in Bend, Oregon, USA.
Follow Bend Research on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/bend-research.
For more information, visit www.bendresearch.com.
