Tuesday

On day two, the students were introduced to ethics and went through all the ethical codes an engineer must follow. Shortly after, they were introduced to the ethics project and competition. Students got into new groups and were tasked with creating a video regarding ethical failures in engineering. The second half of the time was spent prototyping their contraptions for the water balloon challenge. 

Tuesday Res-Life

The second day of COSMOS began and students were already adjusting quite well! After cluster time, another work period of COSMOlympics skits began! Students from each of their respective clusters worked hard to make their skits come together. In the evening, the most popular activity by far was the Target run. But for those that didn’t make the Target run there were still plenty of other fun activities to participate in. From a volleyball tournament, slime making, and various other activities there was something for everyone to enjoy!

 Wednesday

On day 3, the students learnt new ways to sketch various shapes by hand and enhanced their capacity for spatial visualization. They also completed the outline of their Ethics Project. Shortly after, students finalized their Recursive Water Balloon Drop project. Each group’s construction was tested through two iterations, and the winning group managed to reach a height of 5 feet.

Wednesday Res-Life

It’s the third day of COSMOS and things are only getting more lively! During nightly program time, there was a gigantic karaoke session! Campers and RA’s alike all joined together to sing their heart out on their favorite songs! Laying on the other side of the green, was an ice cream sandwich making group, making the perfect afternoon snack. RA’s also prepared fun diamond coaster painting and polaroids to capture the night’s memory. For those who wanted to do something more laid back, yoga and puzzles were the way to go. The last activity was the runner’s club. The runners got to enjoy the cool afternoon air and go for a few laps on the track. Wednesday was a day filled with energy and excitement! 

 Thursday

On day four, students attended a zoom lecture with the librarian of the Geisel Library, which described how to find articles about STEM-related research. After that, students presented the results of their preliminary research for their ethics project. Students learned about citations to use in their ethics project. After lunch, campers got started on their design-and-build project on renewable energy. They researched various types of renewable energy sources and their advantages and disadvantages. For example, solar panels are expensive, but they can raise the value of the house and lower utility bills.

Thursday Res-Life

Creativity was the theme for the fourth day of COSMOS! As the day wrapped up, clusters rushed to finish their skits for the greatly awaited COSMOlympics. Campers started off the nightly program with shirt designing, letting their artistic skills shine through. Next up was friendship bracelet making! Everyone enjoyed crafting personalized keepsakes with their friends, making memories that will last a lifetime. The fun continued with "pet rock" painting, giving life to their own stone companions. Dodgeball added a burst of energy to the day, followed by more painting activities. Some clusters even got to explore parts of UCSD on supervised field trips. 

 Cosmolympics

After class campers trained for the Cosmoslympics on Friday. Cosmoslympics is a competition where clusters perform a skit about their cluster to win prizes. Specifically Cluster 4 chose to do their skit on the design process which is a process used by engineers to create various structures. Campers were given a limit of 25 dollars to spend on their skit for their props. Students built their props out of cardboard, paint and markers given to them by their cluster RA’s and are working out how to make their skit entertaining and fun to watch. 

Friday Res-Life

On Friday, the excitement of the campers peaked with the much-awaited COSMOlympics! The day kicked off with the skit section featuring spin offs of popular media like Dora, The Lorax, Brawl Stars, and The Powerpuff Girls. Following the skits were the games! Campers worked together in their own respective cluster to try and win the water-balloon toss and 3-legged race. In the end, Cluster 6 won the skits, while Cluster 11 triumphed in the events. Prizes included cool merch like sweaters, bracelets, pins, and medals. Everyone put in an amazing effort making for a successful COSMOlympics!

The Weekend

Saturday Res-Life

The first weekend of COSMOS kicked off with a beach day for Clusters 1-7 at La Jolla Shores. Some students relished the water and sand, while others explored the nearby shops. Nightly activities included a scavenger hunt and pencil bag painting. As the sun set, many campers gathered on the roof of Middle Earth for a sunset painting session. For those still feeling a little hungry after dinner, ramen night was just the thing. The evening ended with board games and a Target run, with snacks being a popular purchase.

Sunday Res-Life

On Sunday, Clusters 8-13 enjoyed their beach day at La Jolla Shores with similar activities to the day prior. For nightly programs, the camper favorite was Jeopardy, a trivia game where the winning teams received avatar figures as prizes. Although Jeopardy was the most popular, the other activities were just as entertaining. The lego cafe offered a creative space with relaxing music, while some got to explore the medical school, or participated in a skincare session. Pot decoration and painting were also offered rounding off the fulfilling day.