Eureka! Eureka is a documentary examining the greatest “aha” moments in history.  Eureka translates to “I found it” in ancient Greek. Today it is associated with “the sudden joy of discovery.”

In honour of CWSF’s 60th anniversary, the CBC documentary reporters Manjulah Selvarajah and Denis Calnan spoke to fair alumni whose projects have impacted the world of STEM. The documentary focuses on “aha” moments that led to discovery, design, or invention and how eureka moments can enhance creativity. Astronaut Roberta Bondar, the first Canadian woman in Space, participated in the CWSF in 1962 and still fondly remembers it. Alumni Barbara Ratnam got an ‘aha’ moment that led her to win a gold medal in the engineering category for creating and designing an affordable tsunami detection system by using a similar mechanism as used in toilets.

Some “aha” moments don’t have to be scientific! Alumni Theresa Decola was in awe at the number of like-minded people she met when she attended the CWSF. Alumni Chris Neilson says empowering young people to pursue big ideas is one of the most amazing parts of the CWSF. Max Du from Calgary created a prototype for a drone that can locate and approach a patient who suffered a heart attack in their home. The drone has a surveillance camera connecting to emergency responders and can administer medication if necessary.

“Aha” moments make the world go round and events such as the science fair help young people get to those moments of discovery.

 

To hear the entire documentary, listen here: