GRC NEWS RELEASE 01-031



01-031
For Release: April 23, 2001



Barbara L. Kakiris, InDyne, Inc.
Media Relations Office
216/433-2901




Lori J. Rachul
Media Relations Office
216/433-8806
Lori.J.Rachul@nasa.gov


Microgravity Competition Teaches Students To "Drop" on a Dime 

Despite its name, NASA Glenn Research Center's Dropping In a 
Microgravity Environment (DIME) competition won't sound anything like 
a coin hitting the floor. The thud of experiment packages being 
dropped in Glenn's 2.2 Second Drop Tower and cheers from student 
teams will make for a loud event.

On April 25 - 27, Glenn will host the first DIME Competition, known as 
DIME 

Drop Days. Two teams representing the Center Of Science and Industry 
Academy in Columbus, OH and Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, OH, 
have made it to the final stage of the academic year long program, 
which entailed designing and constructing their science experiments 
for operation in the drop tower. Media representatives are invited to 
Glenn on Wednesday, April 25 from 3 - 4 p.m. to observe the actual 
competition.



"In the DIME program, students learn a fundamental lesson for space 
experiments-microgravity, or 'weightlessness', can be created on the 
ground by dropping experiments in a free fall," said Richard 
DeLombard, DIME program creator and coordinator. "Hopefully this 
program will inspire the next generation of astronauts and project 
scientists by allowing students to perform their experiments in 
conditions similar to that in the Shuttle and International Space 
Station."



DIME is a regional educational program that consists of investigations 
and design challenges. The program links students directly to NASA's 
diverse and exciting missions of research, exploration and discovery. 
By participating in this competition, students develop a hypothesis 
that can be tested through experimentation and prepare a scientific 
research proposal.



The program is open to students in grades 9 - 12 comprised of teams 
such as science classes, clubs or scout troops, and their advisors. 
To be eligible for participation, each group developed an experiment 
concept, prepared a proposal for it and submitted the proposal to 
Glenn. A panel of Glenn microgravity experts selected the top 
proposals. These selected teams continued their experiment 
development and will now conduct their experiments in Glenn's 
world-class facility.



During their visit to Glenn the student teams will also participate in 
project-related events such as data analysis and interviews for their 
microgravity experiments, and extracurricular events such as a 
Lego™ challenge and facility tours.



Media representatives interested in attending the event are asked to 
call Barbara Kakiris or the Media Relations Office (216/433-2901) 
ahead of time to be cleared through security.



For more information on the DIME program or to enter for next year's 
program, please visit:
http://microgravity.grc.nasa.gov/DIME.html



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