Teachers from different regions of the country had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of nanoscience and nanotechnology, training in topics of this frontier science that will allow them to pass this knowledge on to their students, increasing their interest in scientific and technological inquiry. They even had the chance to make their own nanoparticles.
During an intensive session, unique in the country, organized by the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, CEDENNA, the largest center in the field in Chile and one of the most important on the continent, some twenty teachers from different towns attended theoretical talks and practical sessions in high-end laboratories, guided by CEDENNA scientists.
The event was opened by CEDENNA’s director and National Prize in Exact Sciences winner, Dr. Dora Altbir, who once again renewed “this center’s commitment not only to science, but to our country’s progress and to fostering science among our children and young people.”
“This workshop allows us to fulfill our purpose through outreach and dissemination to contribute to Chile’s development. It is essential that new generations understand that advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology have an important impact in areas such as medicine, food, agriculture, mining, the environment and climate change,” said Dr. Altbir.
The opening ceremony was also attended by former Minister of Education and director of Corporación Aprender, Mariana Aylwin, who stressed that, this center being “a true luxury for Chile”, “having teachers take part in a workshop where they do research together with Cedenna’s scientists seems to us an incredible opportunity that we hope will succeed and be replicated. I am convinced this is an essential contribution to Chile: we need more scientists who can help Chile progress.”
The session took place at the Eduardo Morales Santos Research Building of Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH) and is the 8th edition of this workshop, called “ProNano”, held in partnership with the Explora Program of the Ministry of Science, which brings together teachers from different regions of the country. The municipalities of Estación Central and Santiago have also joined, interested in training teachers from their schools in nanoscience and nanotechnology. Educators from Corporación Aprender schools, whose goal is to provide quality education in highly vulnerable sectors, also take part.
LABORATORY ACTIVITY
In the afternoon, the teachers visited various CEDENNA laboratories to learn first-hand how nanoscience is done in Chile and, most importantly, had the opportunity to carry out experiments such as making nanoparticles and magnetism phenomena associated with nanoparticles, as well as learning about advances in nanomedicine, the production of packaging with nanotechnology, and concrete cases of technology transfer by CEDENNA, such as sensors for mining that help reduce the multimillion-dollar losses caused by GETs (mechanical shovel teeth) falling into crushers and their impact on operational shutdowns (200 to 400 million dollars a year for Chilean production and up to 3 billion dollars a year for international production).
They will return to their schools to show their students, in a didactic way, the importance of nanotechnology for finding solutions to today’s problems in areas as diverse as medicine, the environment, mining and energy.
CEDENNA is the largest multidisciplinary and inter-university research center in the field in our country. It has around 70 researchers from 14 universities, with more than a dozen laboratories and state-of-the-art equipment based at Universidad de Santiago de Chile. A group of its scientists also represents Chile before the OECD on Nanosafety.
CEDENNA carries out research in different areas and has developments that provide solutions in mining (sensors to detect uncrushables and monitor bushing wear); a sensor to detect pesticides in fruits and vegetables; sensors to detect pathogens in record time; packaging with nanotechnology to guarantee food quality and extend shelf life; wireless communication networks; plant extracts for cosmetic use; materials for water remediation, among others.
