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>> Josh Byerly: NASA has a fairly innovative education
program that we work with high school and junior high students
with called High School Students United with NASA
to Create Hardware or HUNCH for short.
This has been ongoing for several years.
And students have worked to create hardware
for the International Space Station such as storage lockers
and things such as that.
Here recently, three students and their teacher
at Cypress Woods High School in Cypress Texas, which is just
to the northwest of us here in Houston, got together and came
up with a test model for one of the more important pieces
of the International Space Station called the microgravity
sciences glovebox or MSG as we call it.
It's basically a large -- what looks like a big aquarium,
but it's got two holes there you see for the crew to reach in
and wear some gloves that are built into it.
And do some experiments inside
that that are contained away from them.
We're going to talk now with these three students
who are joining us live from Cypress Woods High School.
Ben Halloway, Helmut Brenner, and Robert Lipham,
along with their teacher Mike Bennett.
How are you guys doing?
>> Great.
>> We're good today.
>> Josh Byerly: So let's talk about how you came
up with this plan to build this test object called the
microgravity sciences glovebox.
How did you guys come up with the idea?
>> Well, we've kind of been working with NASA.
And they came to us and said, we need a couple more
of these to work with.
Because they had one built, but they needed someone
that could deliver quite well, and they wanted to work with us.
So they gave us some preliminaries on it.
And we improved them to fix the design to be easier
to manufacturer, to be better for a mockup.
And we put them together, and we delivered.
>> Josh Byerly: So I'm taking a look at this photo that we have
of you guys have built this.
It looks pretty much just like the one that's up on orbit.
I'm not sure that me or anybody that I knew
in high school could have built something [brief laughter] quite
like that.
So, you know, what kind of classes do you guys take
where you learn to actually build something like this?
>> Well, obviously, it wasn't solely us three.
We had a lot of different classes
across the board helping us build this.
We had Precision Metals, manufacturing classes.
We, ourselves, were
in an Advanced Engineering class using AutoCAD, Inventor,
and whatnot to create these pieces.
And then handing them over to the engineers
to manufacture them.
>> Josh Byerly: So, you know, did --
I'm assuming you got some sort of, you know --
I guess it's fairly exciting to build something that, you know,
the astronauts and crews can actually use and train with.
Is it a little bit different than building something else
that you typically would in a class,
knowing that NASA actually want to use this?
>> It was definitely an interesting experiment --
like experience knowing that NASA was going to be able
to use what we were designing.
And definitely a little bit different than normal classwork.
It was tough work, but I really think it was good experience
for us to all have.
>> Josh Byerly: So about how long did it take to --
you know, from beginning to end, to design it and to build it?
>> I would say approximately five months.
Oh, wait. I'm getting three months here [brief laughter].
Time blurs when you're working on a project
like this [brief laughter].
>> Josh Byerly: So we'll say between three and five months.
We'll just go with that.
So let's talk about the Technology Students Association.
This is -- you know, tell us a little bit about what that is.
And you guys are going to the finals
of that competition, correct?
>> Not us completely.
I am, personally.
My name is Robert, by the way.
We're actually taking --
we're actually going to nationals after state.
And the Technology Students Association is basically our
tech club.
It's where we send projects,
where we go to onsite competitions in things
like drafting, architecture, welding,
building basic tech programs.
And after going to state, me and another student are going to go
to nationals with it as well.
>> Josh Byerly: So what grade are you guys in?
>> Me and Helmut and Ben are seniors.
And Robert is a junior.
>> So what's next for you guys?
Have you guys decided which college you're going to go to,
what you're going to study?
>> I've been accepted to Brigham Young University in Utah.
>> I'll be attending the University
of North Texas in Denton.
>> And I'm hopefully going to apply
for A&M coming up this summer.
>> Josh Byerly: Yeah, well, I know the school very well.
So let's talk about, you know, as you guys do this,
does it kind of make you want to go become astronauts or come
to work for NASA or do something like this once you kind of get
out of school and finish your studying?
>> Well, funnily enough, my dad's a mechanical engineer,
and, you know, I'd always thought
that perhaps I would, too, become one.
But stuff comes up.
And I think I'm actually going to go the way of finance.
But this has actually been an invaluable experience
in terms of problem solving.
I can't tell you how many times we had to go back
to the drawing board and just find out what
in the world's wrong with this thing [brief laughter].
So, you know, despite not going into mechanical engineering,
it still definitely helped a lot.
>> Josh Byerly: So you guys are almost finished with school.
This competition, you're talking
about the Technology Students Association,
the nationals you're going to,
that's taking place this summer, correct?
>> Yeah, it's taking place during the summer from June 28th
to July 2nd in Orlando, Florida.
And we'll be going to do two onsite --
a drafting and architecture contest there.
>> Josh Byerly: Well, hopefully, you get a chance
to go visit our friends down at the Kennedy Space Center while
you're there in the neighborhood.
It's an interesting place to go tour.
>> Yeah, I believe we're going to be heading over there
as well during one time that we're down there.
>> Josh Byerly: Yeah, well, listen,
we're proud of the work you guys have done.
It's always amazing to see what you
and your fellow high school students come up with,
especially as part of this HUNCH Program.
We've seen quite some excellent work come out of you guys.
And it's phenomenal, the work that you guys have done.
So we thank you for it.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you.