In a first-of-its-kind endeavour, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur partners with NimbleQ Eduventure Pvt. Ltd to nurture children as young as ten by giving them an opportunity to experience and work in the IIT Kanpur labs. Over 20 NimbleQers from grades 5 to 10 visited labs at IIT Kanpur on October 3 & 4. These children are part of a technology and entrepreneurship program facilitated by NimbleQ across India, USA, and UAE.
The program kicked off with a visit to the National Centre of Flexible Electronics (http://www.ncflexe.in/) on the first day. The young learners got an opportunity to tour the clean-room and the systems lab, besides viewing some other associated labs. They were also exposed to one of the latest innovations from the Centre, The Haptic Watch, released in May ’22. It is a touch-sensitive smartwatch designed for visually impaired people. Furthermore, NimbleQers also got a chance to participate in a hands-on session where they built basic electrical circuits on flexible paper substrates using conductive and resistive inks. In the process, they learnt some basic electrical concepts, including completing a circuit properly to make an LED glow, staircase switch and charging a capacitor.
On Day 2, NimbleQers visited the Imagineering lab (http://imlab.in/) led by Dr. J. Ramkumar, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering. This lab is a central facility for concept design and product realization. Here NimbleQers visited the central workshop, tinkering lab, and MedTech facility. The children gained hands-on experience by manipulating different materials to model and shape different products. They also prototyped a bio-degradable water bottle and presented a Business Plan to launch it.
“The NimbleQ Experience focuses on Real-World Connections. This technology partnership with IIT Kanpur will bring to life technology that the children have only read about. Experiencing the innovation-led environment of premier institutes such as IIT Kanpur will leave a mark on these young minds—such that they make informed career decisions and truly pursue their passion,” said Dr. Madhukar Varshney, Founder NimbleQ.
Dr. S. Sundar Kumar Iyer, Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering and current coordinator of the National Centre for Flexible Electronics, IIT Kanpur said, “It is fascinating to see how NimbleQ is encouraging children and exposing them to state of the art in technology and innovations. Such exposure at their young age should help the children evolve into innovators in the future. The children who visited us impressed us by their general awareness, their keenness to learn and their approach to the new ideas to which they were exposed. The effort of NimbleQ in igniting young and curious minds is indeed commendable.”
Dr. J. Ramkumar, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Kanpur said, “I am really impressed with how NimbleQers came up with this initiative. This partnership will lead to the greater vision of creating a better future for these kids. These future leaders will go on to build the next Fortune 500 companies out of India.
NimbleQ enables children at a young age (K to 10) to develop a problem-solving mindset. NimbleQers work at the intersection of technology and entrepreneurship to build 21st-century skills. This technology partnership with IIT Kanpur is the next step in bringing real-world exposure to children so that their young minds are aware of the choices. Through the NimbleQ program, these children have developed Business Ideas and this visit helped them get a better appreciation of product development, innovation, and research.
