NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Students from around the globe learned about science, math and teamwork, all at the same time. They did this in May at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals.

Odyssey of the Mind is a creative problem-solving contest. One of this year's problems, called Strategy Sphere, was sponsored by NASA. To solve the problem, each team of students had to build a mechanical device that could shoot balls through a hoop.

Students also had to write and perform a skit. In the skit, the devices, balls and hoop had to represent related Earth system processes.

In one skit, for example, the device was said to be a leaky air conditioner. The balls were supposed to be pollution coming out of the air conditioner. And the hoop symbolized the ozone hole caused by the pollution.

Steve Graham is NASA's coordinator for Odyssey of the Mind. He talked to several students at the World Finals, which were held at the University of Maryland. The students discussed the competition, working as a team, their hobbies and their future careers.

Related Resources

NASA's Odyssey of the Mind Web site
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Odyssey of the Mind
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