Exploring Caves — Suit up with a helmet and light, and take Cave Crawl（爬行）. Bring your own knee pads. Learn about equipment used by cavers and rules for safe cave exploration. Spend the morning viewing stalactites（钟乳石）— rock formations that hang from the ceiling — and their opposites, stalagmites（石笋）.

Cave Alive — Take a look and learn about bats, salamanders, and other interesting creatures that grow up in caves. See crickets, crayfish, and even beetles. Learn why bears like to live in caves.

Fossils（化石）— Learn how remains of ancient plant and animal life became set in rocks, and discover how they provide clues about Earth’s history. Examine fossils in the cave.

Caves — Learn how changes in underground rock formation cause openings and caverns to develop. Find out how acidic water dissolves（溶解）limestone to create caves.

Manners — Learn how to preserve and protect beautiful, interesting, and educational caves. Learn why bats should not be disturbed when they are hibernating. Never go caving alone. Take nothing but pictures; leave nothing but footprints.

Welcome to the Virtual Broadcom MASTERS!

Major Activities for the Finalists

◆Participate in a private judging process with a group of top scientists from 10: 30 am to 11 am on October 20.

◆Engage in team challenges where the finalists will be judged on their mastery of critical thinking, communication, creativity and cooperation in each area from 11 am to 11: 30 am on October 20.

◆Respond to questions at their booths (展示台) from 2 pm to 4 pm on October 20.

Time for Virtual Exhibition

It will open at 10 am on October 20 and will be available to the public through November 4.

More about Virtual Exhibition

◆The Broadcom MASTERS is taking place virtually for the first time to keep finalists and their family safe during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

◆The Society will be providing educational materials for educators who are interested in bringing students to the exhibition for a digital field trip.

◆Visitors to the exhibition will also have an opportunity to visit the STEM Experiential Hall where you can get access to interactive and immersive (沉浸式的) STEM experiences.

◆Please plan on watching the Winners Award Ceremony on October 21 at 7 pm and see who will bring home the prize.

One day when I was 12, my mother gave me an order: I was to walk to the public library, and borrow at least one book for the summer. This was one more weapon for her to defeat my strange problem—inability to read.

In the library, I found my way into the “Children’s Room”. I sat down on the floor and pulled a few books off the shelf at random. The cover of a book caught my eye. It presented a picture of a beagle. I had recently had a beagle, the first and only animal companion I ever had as a child. He was my “secret sharer”, but one morning, he was gone, given away to someone who had the space and the money to care for him. I never forgot my beagle.

There on the book’s cover was a beagle which looked identical(相同的) to my dog. I ran my fingers over the picture of the dog on the cover. My eyes ran across the title, Amos: the Beagle with a Plan. Unknowingly, I had read the title. Without opening the book, I borrowed it from the library for the summer.

Under the shade of a brush, I started to read about Amos. I read very, very slowly with difficulty. Though pages were turned slowly, I got the main idea of the story about a dog who, like mine, had been separated from his family and who finally found his way back home. That dog was my dog, and I was the little boy in the book. At the end of the story, my mind continued the final scene of reunion, on and on, until my own lost dog and I were, in my mind, running together

My mother’s call returned me to the real world. I suddenly realized something: I had read a book, and I had loved reading that book. Everyone knew I could not read. But I had read it. Books could be incredibly wonderful and I was going to read them.

I never told my mother about my “miraculous(奇迹)” experience that summer, but she saw a slow but remarkable improvement in my classroom performance during the next year. And years later, she was proud that her son had read thousands of books, was awarded a PhD in literature, and authored his own books, articles, poetry and fiction. The power of the words has held.