Science and technology entertained three generations on Family Day

Robot building, science theatre, virtual space voyages, test driving small and larger electric cars and numerous other wonders of electrical engineering delighted families during Aalto ELEC Family Day, organised on Saturday 14 September 2019 for the second time.

The event brought to Aalto University campus over 600 alumni, staff members from the School of Electrical Engineering, invited guests and family members.

Outi Elina Kansanen, Development Manager at the School of Electrical Engineering, arrived at the event with her father Niilo Kansanen, who graduated as Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Helsinki University of Technology, and with her eight-year-old daughter Elsa. 

'As a child, I heard many stories about my father's time as a technology student. I myself did my dissertation in mathematics at Helsinki University of Technology, whereas my father and brother have their degrees in electrical engineering. Now that I actually ended up at the School of Electrical Engineering, it was important for me to invite my father here. I am proud of our school and want to show my father and Elsa all the things we do around here,' Outi Elina explains.

The family was planning to test drive electric cars and take part in Aalto Junior’s Amazing Electricity workshop which offered an opportunity to test different ways of generating and consuming electricity. 

The Family Day event gives children a chance to see and experience different things that can be accomplished through research. Researchers’ demos, such as the virtual trip to space, and different science workshops provide the children with a hands-on way of experiencing technology. At the same time, the adults get an opportunity to share their own expertise in a way that a child can understand.

'At the workshop, the children were in a hurry to try out generating electricity, and paid less attention to the instructors’ advice. However, I do recall the basics well, and thanks to good collaboration, Elsa and I managed to avoid any short-circuits,' said Niilo after the Amazing Electricity workshop.

'The afternoon went by almost too fast – we still had plenty of interesting things to see!'