Space.com Interview with Women of NASA Lego Set Creator Maia Weinstock #WHM17 #WomensHistoryMonth #WomenInSTEM

NewImage

Fun interview with Maia Weinstock from Space.com:

Space.com: Can you give me a broad overview of how you decided to do the Lego Ideas project, and how it all happened?

Maia Weinstock: I came up with the idea sometime in 2015. I had actually proposed another set on Lego Ideas that was not related to science, but at a certain point I just decided to focus on a new project and go towards the area that I have much more experience with, and that is space. I’ve also done a lot of research on the history of women in science and engineering. So I thought [the project] would be a perfect combination of highlighting women in STEM and also highlighting women who have contributed greatly to NASA.

I decided to work on specific women, instead of generic women. [Editor’s note: The Female Scientists Lego kit features minifigures that are not modeled after specific scientists.] Because I thought this would be something different. And this is something I am passionate about, which is bringing [science] personalities to light. It was a risk. I mean, nothing like this has ever been posted [to Lego Ideas] before, at least in terms of women.

I planned it around the winter of 2015/2016, and I wanted to launch it for July 20th, which is the anniversary of the 1969 Apollo moon landing.

I submitted it, and then there’s this process where you have to get enough votes from the community. But it’s really hard to get 10,000 votes, actually, as I had actually learned in the previous year with another set that I tried out. And somehow we got to 10,000 within two weeks!

So clearly, this touched a lot of people and inspired a lot of people. So it was pretty quick, but it’s been a long waiting game since then because the review period [by Lego] didn’t actually start until, I think, September. And I actually did hear back from the Lego folks a little while ago [that the set had been accepted], but I wasn’t allowed to say anything. But I have been in touch with the Lego Ideas team for a little while. And I’m just really ecstatic about this whole thing. It’s been a fun journey.

Read more


Adafruit publishes a wide range of writing and video content, including interviews and reporting on the maker market and the wider technology world. Our standards page is intended as a guide to best practices that Adafruit uses, as well as an outline of the ethical standards Adafruit aspires to. While Adafruit is not an independent journalistic institution, Adafruit strives to be a fair, informative, and positive voice within the community – check it out here: adafruit.com/editorialstandards

Join Adafruit on Mastodon

Adafruit is on Mastodon, join in! adafruit.com/mastodon

Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.

Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.

Join us every Wednesday night at 8pm ET for Ask an Engineer!

Join over 36,000+ makers on Adafruit’s Discord channels and be part of the community! http://adafru.it/discord

CircuitPython – The easiest way to program microcontrollers – CircuitPython.org


Maker Business — “Packaging” chips in the US

Wearables — Enclosures help fight body humidity in costumes

Electronics — Transformers: More than meets the eye!

Python for Microcontrollers — Python on Microcontrollers Newsletter: Silicon Labs introduces CircuitPython support, and more! #CircuitPython #Python #micropython @ThePSF @Raspberry_Pi

Adafruit IoT Monthly — Guardian Robot, Weather-wise Umbrella Stand, and more!

Microsoft MakeCode — MakeCode Thank You!

EYE on NPI — Maxim’s Himalaya uSLIC Step-Down Power Module #EyeOnNPI @maximintegrated @digikey

New Products – Adafruit Industries – Makers, hackers, artists, designers and engineers! — #NewProds 7/19/23 Feat. Adafruit Matrix Portal S3 CircuitPython Powered Internet Display!

Get the only spam-free daily newsletter about wearables, running a "maker business", electronic tips and more! Subscribe at AdafruitDaily.com !



1 Comment

  1. Congratulations Maya success of your idea and your patience in the process! I appreciate your creative spirit. Looking forward to your new ideas. Thank you for the opportunity to read this interview.

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.