STEM Profiles: Stories of People Who Propel Us Forward
STEM. When we hear it, we think technology — we see Silicon Valley tech gurus, coders in hoodies designing apps. Given the way digitization is changing our lives, these assumptions are natural, even inevitable.
But technology is just one letter of STEM. The wonders of science, engineering and math mean we need people comfortable with and fluent in these disciplines. More and more jobs require people to be STEM-literate.
When we hear STEM, some of us think of it as the furthest thing from art. However, STEM and design could not be any closer. So for some, STEM becomes STEAM.
STEM or STEAM, these are not abstract disciplines. After all, mathematicians have revolutionized the way we invest our money. Engineers have enabled cars that run on electricity and made Lady Gaga’s meat dress possible. Scientists have brought us crops that are resistant to pests and drought, enabling a relative handful of farmers to feed the world.
That is why STEM is so important, why it is a priority of public officials, business leaders and educators. STEM is also fun, playful, amusing and inspiring.
But there are millions of Americans who don’t know a single scientist. We clearly have some ground to make up.
Here at NYSCI, we spend a lot of time thinking about how to excite and empower people through STEM. One thing we’ve learned is that it is critical to get beyond the acronym. We need to hear the stories of people who redefine what STEM is, pushing its boundaries and discovering the new ideas that give rise to the next great pursuit.
In our new STEM Profiles series, we are going to introduce you to a broad range of interesting and important people for whom STEM is key to their work and their lives. These folks are #actuallivingscientists. Though, not all of them go to work in a laboratory. Their profiles may surprise you. Their stories will show you why STEM is so important: in the workforce, in education, in public policy, and just about anywhere else that creativity and innovation are deployed to solve problems and make life better. We plan to share a new profile every other week. We hope you enjoy them.
This week, we are publishing a Q&A with Ayah Bdeir, the founder and CEO of littleBits, a mission-driven STEM/STEAM company based in New York that makes technology kits to empower invention. Kits from littleBits are fun, easy-to- use, and infinitely creative. They are composed of electronic building blocks that are color-coded, magnetic, and make complex technology simple and enjoyable. The blocks can be joined together to make all sorts of devices — almost anything the maker can imagine.
Last year, NYSCI awarded Ayah our Creative Entrepreneurship Award for her work to enable everyone to be creative with electronics and reinvent their world. She is a great example of how the true potential of STEM is unlocked when seemingly disparate disciplines come together. In Ayah’s case, it was engineering and design.
Tell us about your work. What is littleBits’ big-picture goal?
Our mission is to empower everyone to be an inventor and creator with technology, rather than just a consumer of it. Ultimately we want everyone — regardless of age, gender, background or discipline — to have the problem-solving skills and creative confidence to invent the world they want to live in.
What got you started? How did you catch the bug?
I was trained as an engineer, but I was always passionate about art and design. When I started, I kept trying to find ways to bring more creative practices into engineering. Then I went to the MIT Media Lab for grad school, which brought together amazing advances in engineering with great ideas about design and social change. I started developing my own artwork, new products and interactive installations with electronics, and I started to ask: Why was it that such important technology was reserved only for engineers and experts? Could I create a tool that would put the creative materials of the 21st century into the hands of everyone? That’s when I began developing littleBits, and it’s been my obsession ever since.
What drives you? What keeps you interested?
Our community of inventors. Whenever I’m stuck on a problem or just need a boost, I go to the invention page or open the littleBits app to see what new inventions people have uploaded that day. They never fail to impress me with their ingenuity and creativity, and it helps to remind me why I’m here and pushing littleBits to be the best it can be.
Do you have a favorite experience or story from your work that you feel has been important?
It’s so hard to choose a favorite! We have a littleBits challenge called “Invent for Good” that asks people to create an invention using littleBits that makes a difference in someone else’s life. There has been an amazing response to the challenge from the growing community of interested people — everything from prosthetic limbs to bicycle safety devices to automated medicine dispensers.
Did you have any mentors or role models? Anyone in particular whose encouragement affected you?
Our early investors and board members have been hugely encouraging — Joi Ito and Brad Feld in particular. They both have experience with hardware and know how difficult it is to start a hardware company, and their advice and confidence in me and littleBits as a product has been invaluable.
What would you say to a young person who is interested in STEM work, but isn’t sure about pursuing it?
They should absolutely go for it! I think that the most important careers of the future will be at the intersection of STEM, art and design, so having a solid foundation in STEM, combined with strong problem-solving skills, will give them the most flexibility later on to work in whatever new fields arise.
