Kidney and Lung Demonstrations to Introduce Engineering Concepts to Middle School Students and Their Grandparents

The authors have developed a series of hands-on activities and demonstrations themed around the organs of kidneys and lungs to introduce engineering concepts in a summer camp for 4th-8th graders and their grandparents. The examples are motivated from the faculty members' research labs, which emphasize understanding and treating kidney and lung damage. The kidney activities focus on the chemical engineering concept of separation via filtration, and the lung activities center around transport and fluid mechanics. This paper details the physical games, custom 3D printed models, and activities developed around kits available for purchase that the authors have deployed in the summer camp along with some discussion guides on the topics and on the engineering design principles underlying artificial kidneys and aerosol medications targeted to regions of the lungs.