VOA – CONNECT
EPISODE # 293
AIR DATE: 08 25 2023
MASTER FULL SHOW TRANSCRIPT

OPEN
((VO/NAT/SOT))
((Topic Banner))
All Are Welcome Here
((SOT))
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
We really believe that anybody can be housed with the right supports and with the right community around them, and with the affordability figured out, people that can come in to make those other support needs.
((Animation Transition))
((Topic Banner))
All Aboard!
((SOT))
((Morgan))
If you see someone at risk of falling onto the tracks, please get help immediately. Tell a police officer or an MTA employee. Be safe and happy Autism Awareness Month.
((Open Animation))


BLOCK A


((PKG)) STOMPING GROUND
((TRT: 12:54))
((Topic Banner: All are welcomed here))
((Producer: Marsha James))
((Camera/Editor: Philip Alexiou))
((Map: Arlington, Virginia))
((Main characters: 1 male; 3 female))
((Sub characters: 2 female; 1 male))
((Blurb:
Independence living for people with disabilities))
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
Friday chaos.
((Hannah Bowen
Art Therapy Intern, George Washington University))
Friday chaos. Awesome. Thank you.
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
Our Stomping Ground came to be because there were a group of parents that had children with different disabilities. And as they were aging out, they recognized that there had to be some plan. So, we are very proud of the idea that we are housing people that traditionally would have been either institutionalized or in group homes.
((Hannah Bowen
Art Therapy Intern, George Washington University))
Okay, Lisa. Do you want to share yours? And what did you title yours to be?
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Happy thoughts with friends at Gilliam.
((Hannah Bowen
Art Therapy Intern, George Washington University))
Happy thoughts with friends at Gilliam. Awesome. Do a little celebration.
And then we have Huan. Huan, what did you title your piece?
((Huong Pham
Huan’s Mom))
Say it loud. Say it loud. What is it?
((Huan Vuong
Gilliam Place Resident))
Happy together.
((Huong Pham
Huan’s Mom))
Good. Right.
((Hannah Bowen
Art Therapy Intern, George Washington University))
Happy together. Awesome.
Merrill, did you want to hold that up? Thank you, guys. I thank everyone. I thank all of you for sharing this space together.
((Paul Osgood
Gilliam Place Resident))
The meaning behind mine was that even though it's a mess, it’s pretty. And it’s just, even though it may look like that, anything could be art.
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
And we are really not saying there is anybody that cannot be housed. With the right supports, and with the right community around them, and with the affordability figured out, with people that can come in to make those other support needs, we really believe that anybody can be housed. And you can see from the friends you've met in our community…our friend, Huan, he spells to communicate, you know. How can someone who spells to communicate live alone? What happens if there's an emergency in the building? How does he get his needs met? He is thriving at his building.
((NATS))
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
Our friend, Paul, actually did have his own apartment, but he was very isolated.
((Paul Osgood
Gilliam Place Resident))
All right. Come on in.
What I like about living here is that I get to be with such wonderful people like Donna, and meet such cool people like Huan, and like Ben and Emma and everybody. And the community is so inclusive because there's so much more to do here than there was in Falls Church. And it's such an open community, a welcoming community of people here for like people with disabilities. And, you know, over there I didn't do anything and I didn't know anybody. I didn't know any neighbors. They
didn't. What they didn’t, I didn't. So I just spent my time inside. I was a couch potato. Here, I'm welcomed with open arms and I feel like that is something I should express. And, you know, that's why I like it here.
I watch TV. I play on my tablet. I play video games. I'm a gamer at heart. So, I do a lot of like things that keep me busy. I feel like I have grown and matured a lot more since moving to Stomping Ground, moving to Gilliam place and becoming part of this community.
And after moving here, you know, I was taught to be respectful, to be a good person, and to respect people and to respect myself. And I think that they've helped me with that. And I've grown to,
you know, just be a better person.
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
Ben is the same way, again, an individual that doesn't talk. We just kind of relegate them to where they need to be segregated so they can be safe. This idea of safety and people with disability just having to be safe, and it really rubs against an idea that we love and that we pursue in the disability world. We hear it from self-advocates is that they deserve the dignity of risk. There is risk of moving outside the family home. There is risk in moving outside of the group home. But what is there for them to experience that, to live their fullest life, to have friends, to be able to have more say in the direction of their lives. I really think we can make the argument that that is going to be a greater chance of that happening outside of a group home or outside of the family home. And these are risks. I'm not saying there aren't risks, but it is that dignity of risk.
((NATS/SOTs))
((Bertra McGann
Ben’s Mom))
Yeah, so Benjamin is a resident of Gilliam Place, which is one of the OSG [Our Stomping Ground] properties. He's been there for maybe three years, one of the first of these young adults to move in. As Ben said, “Never in my wildest dreams did I think this would happen.” My husband, Steve and I assumed Ben would be living with us the rest of our lives at least, and then would live with siblings. So, when Ben was able to communicate a preference to live independently in his own apartment, we were floored, and we weren't sure about how to make this happen. And thanks to the advocacy and leadership of OSG demonstrating to parents that this capacity exists, the facilities exist, and OSG brings the programs and helps build a community which nets this endeavor together. You know, you have horror stories of young adults moving into apartments. There's no furniture. They have no community. They're just sitting there in tears. OSG kind of wraps this thing up in a bow and makes certain that the resources, and the programs, and the services are there. You know, when you prove to yourself that you can do something, it manifests itself in so many ways, including, you know, increased confidence, increased initiative. He certainly seems happy. When he has an opportunity, he says, “I love my life.” And what more can a parent ask?
((NATS))
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
Lisa spent many years in a group home, and it was a beautiful group home, and I'm sure she felt safe and loved. But she didn't have the type of control of her life that she now has. Like if Lisa wants to go on a walk at the end of the day, she takes her walker. She looks at the phone to see, is our group going out there? And she will go out and take advantage of having friends in a community that knows her. She also has all these opportunities that are available to her in her building. She loves the art therapy. She loves, you know, will do group dinners, get transportation now to her job site with the weaving. All of that is now available to her because she can access it.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Oh, yeah. I'm so sorry. I wasn’t thinking right. Just, so I'm getting ready to go to work. Would you like to say something about that pet kitty cat picture I made?
((Stephanie Sabin
Program Manager, Community Systems Incorporated))
You did a good job with them.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Yeah.
((Stephanie Sabin
Program Manager, Community Systems Incorporated))
Your wall of art.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Yes. You ready to roll? Ready to roll, Michelle?
((Stephanie Sabin
Program Manager, Community Systems Incorporated))
Well Lisa, you wanted me to take you.
((Lisa Good Hughes, Gilliam Place Resident))
Yeah. Okay, Miss Beautiful.
((Stephanie Sabin
Program Manager, Community Systems Incorporated))
All right, ready?
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
I'm worried about my meeting. I'm worried about my socializing. ((NATS/SOT))
His car is up here.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Good morning, Janet.
((NATS))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
So, here I go. Thank you.
((NATS))

TEASE
((VO/NAT/SOT))
Coming up…
((Topic Banner))
Our Stomping Ground Continues….
((SOT))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
I’ll be weaving and I do tapestry. I do stitching. Everything else.


BREAK ONE

USAGM SHARE
((LogOn Voice Diagnosis Tech (TV/R)
HEADLINE: LogOn: Could Your Voice Help Diagnose Your Next Illness?
TEASER: Technology analyzing thousands of voices may play a role in the future of medicine
BYLINE: Julie Taboh
DATELINE: Washington
PRODUCER: Julie Taboh, Adam Greenbaum
SCRIPT EDITORS: Michelle Quinn, Amy R
TRT: 1:54 & 2:00
[[Voice experts have long known that a person's voice can provide important information about their emotional, physical and mental health. Now a U.S. government-funded project is collecting and analyzing thousands of voices and using artificial intelligence to diagnose illnesses. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more.]]
((Courtesy: Allison Long/USF Health))
((NATS – patient’s voice being tested))
((NARRATOR))
Dr. Yael Bensoussan examines the vocal cords of a patient.
At the University of South Florida Health Voice Center, she treats patients with a range of voice disorders, such as upper airway, voice and swallowing disorders.
And lately, she’s been helping to lead a new project to build a database of 30,000 human voice recordings and train computers to detect diseases through changes in the human voice.
((Radio track: She spoke with VOA via Skype.))
((Dr. Yael Bensoussan, Voice Specialist)) ((SKYPE))
Not only to build that data, but also to develop the guidelines on how to share that data, how to collect that data, and also how to use that data for future AI [artificial intelligence] research. ((Courtesy: Weill Cornell Medicine))
((NARRATOR))
She works with a team of 45 investigators across 12 different universities in North America as well as a startup in Europe. ((NATS - Parkinson’s voice demo, Text on graphic: "Parkinson's disease"))
They study voice samples to help them detect illnesses like Parkinson’s disease…
((NATS - Glottic cancer voice demo, Text on graphic: "Glottic cancer"))
((NARRATOR))
cancer…
((NATS - Vocal fold paralysis demo, Text on graphic: "Vocal Fold Paralysis"))
((NARRATOR))
And voice disorders such as vocal fold paralysis…
The team also studies mood disorders such as depression and anxiety.
((Dr. Yael Bensoussan, Voice Specialist)) ((SKYPE))
So when somebody is depressed, sad, has anxiety, of course their speech changes.
((NARRATOR))
((Courtesy: NIH))
The study is one of four data-generation projects funded by the National Institutes of Health's Bridge to Artificial Intelligence program, designed to use AI to tackle complex biomedical challenges.
((Dr. Yael Bensoussan, Voice Specialist)) ((SKYPE))
They realized that there was such a big gap between the technology that we had available, and the clinical knowledge, and what we use in clinical care in our hospitals.
((NARRATOR))
And doing it while maintaining participants’ privacy.
[[Radio track: Grace Peng is one of the coordinators of the National Institutes of Health’s Bridge2AI program. She spoke with VOA via Zoom.]]
((Grace Peng, National Institutes of Health)) ((Zoom))
We want to think about the ethics associated with collecting people's voices. And how do we keep it private? ((NARRATOR))
((Courtesy: NIH))
The study will start enrolling participants in the coming year. ((Julie Taboh, VOA News, Washington))
BUMP IN ((ANIM))


BLOCK B


((PKG)) STOMPING GROUND continues….
((NATS))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
So, here I go. Thank you. This is Peter and he's really helpful. He's really nice. Here I come. This is one of the bags I did, right? Right here.
((NATS))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
And so everything's cool with me and I’ve been doing a lot of stitching. I just made, finished making a cat.
This is what I made and I'm going to put it like in a show. I’ll be weaving and I do tapestry. I do stitching. Everything else.
Coffee. Please, please can you do that?
((Emily Wroten
Direct Support Professional, Service Source))
Do you want it with creamer?
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Yeah.
((Emily Wroten
Direct Support Professional, Service Source))
And two sugars.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Two sugars, please.
((Emily Wroten
direct support professional, Service Source))
Okay. Coming on up.
((NATS/SOT))
You're a very important person.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Yeah, I am very important. I am also going to be doing…tonight is art group. That means at the Gilliam, and then I have book club.
This what I'm working on.
((NATS))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
Emily, need your help. I don’t even know what I just did, but it fell through.
((Emily Wroten
Direct Support Professional, Service Source))
You know what? It's a good start. You can put your shovel down and get your beater down. Your beater. And then get your weaving materials in the crank. And after that, I can come over and tighten. But you got to put it here.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
But I made a mistake and it's supposed to be a cross body bags. I followed the iPad, but I followed the numbers. I picked out the pattern, and we both picked out the colors. So, this is what I do all day like that.
((NATS))
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
This is complicated but I'm hanging in there. And then we bring, once we get it done, we bring it back in the back, then get it ready. Right, Emily? That's how they’re going to look when I get it done, right Miss Emily? And it's going to be really nice and then we do, we also do tote bags, and we do…these are...what are these? Are makeup bags?
((Emily Wroten
Direct Support Professional, Service Source))
Yep.
((Lisa Good Hughes
Gilliam Place Resident))
These are makeup bags. These are cards that we sell. End of August will be my fifth year here. So, been working. Somehow I knew how the weave is because I wanted to try it, and I learned it with training here. This is my first tapestry. It's been, this is what I do. All day weave or do tapestry. It's just been really, really nice to have…I love working here and these are my favorite friends.
((Donna Budway
OSG Director, Programming and Community Outreach))
One of our missions, we hope with OSG, is that we're going to be able to get funders and governments and bureaucracies to understand that this very sustainable, very affordable, very inclusive, very replicable model could have better outcomes for people, not only throughout our state, but throughout the country and in other countries as well.
((NATS))

TEASE
((VO/NAT/SOT))
Coming up…
((Topic Banner))
All Aboard!
((SOT))
((Elliot))
Please take trash with you and use the garbage cans on the platform. Thank you for riding with MTA New York City Transit.

BREAK TWO
USAGM
((LogOn Underwater Drones (TV, R)
HEADLINE: LogOn: Underwater Drones Take Off Like Those in the Air
TEASER: The discovery of the Endurance shipwreck in Antarctic waters this year has encouraged hobbyists to take up underwater drones
BYLINE: Genia Dulot
VIDEOGRAPHER: Genia Dulot
PRODUCER: Genia Dulot
SCRIPT EDITORS: Michelle Quinn
TRT: 2:01
[[As they overcome the challenges of operating in water, underwater drones are becoming more available for hobbyists, researchers and public agencies. Genia Dulot reports.)) ((NARRATION))
Jesuit Robotics, a high school robotics team from Sacramento, California, has been designing remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs, for more than a decade.
[[For Radio: Charlie Diaz, a member of the Jesuit Robotics team]]
((Charlie Diaz, Jesuit Robotics))
We developed the grippers ourselves, the cameras, our modularly adjustable buoyancy systems.
((BROLL: Shots of Jesuit Robotics team))
((NARRATION))
Jesuit Robotics recently exhibited its underwater drone at a competition in Long Beach, California. Called the Manatee, this underwater drone can map shipwrecks or work on environmental projects.
((Charlie Diaz, Jesuit Robotics))
We have our custom AI detection software. … Our bottom gripper helps us to restore seagrass beds.
((NARRATION))
((Courtesy: FALKLANDS MARITIME HERITAGE TRUST, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC / AFP))
Entrancing many, the recent discovery by ROV of the Endurance, which sank in Antarctic waters in 1915. That effort cost an estimated $10 million.
ROVs have been slow to take off among hobbyists, however. Several startup companies are making design changes and adding technology to make drones work better underwater and reduce costs.
Blue Robotics, a Los Angeles firm, works on waterproofing underwater drone parts such as the thruster, which propels the ROV in the right direction, and has added various sensors measuring temperature, pressure and depth.
[[For Radio: Rustom Jehangir is founder and CEO of Blue Robotics]]
((Rustom Jehangir, CEO Blue Robotics))
Instead of trying to protect the motor from the water, why don’t we make a waterproof motor? That’s really the innovation here.
((Courtesy: Blue Robotics))
((NARRATION))
These new underwater drones cannot go to the deep sea, but they are being used in conditions unsafe for human divers, and by hobbyists, says Fritz Stahr, an ocean technology expert.
[[For Radio: Fritz Stahr, a judge at the competition, and chief technology officer at Open Ocean Robotics, a marine technology firm.]]
((Fritz Stahr, Ocean Tech Expert))
The ability for everybody or more people to be that explorer, to be that person who understands what’s going on in their local environment, is really important.
((NARRATION))
Unlike aerial drones, technology has yet to solve the problem of underwater communications. For now, these drones are controlled by a tether.
((Genia Dulot for VOA News, Los Angeles))
BUMP IN ((ANIM))

BLOCK C

((PKG)) AUTISTIC TRANSIT PROJECT
((TRT: 07:57))
((Topic Banner: Autism Transit Project))
((Reporter/Camera: Aaron Fedor))
((Producer: Kathleen McLaughlin))
((Editor: Kyle Dubiel))
((Map: New York City, New York))
((Main characters: 0 female; 8 male))
((Sub characters: 4 female; 0 male))
((Blurb:
When his personal life was touched by autism, Jonathan Trichter made a career change, beginning a small program in New York, which has grown into the fastest growing special needs platform in the country. This led to the Autism Transit Project, where autistic kids got to write and record subway announcements to be played as part of Autism Awareness Month.))
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
The first part of my career was largely finance. A little bit of Wall Street, a lot of corporate restructuring and venture capital. Some success, lots of failures. And this is probably my greatest success. I'm pretty sure it'll be the first line of my obituary. ((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
My personal life was touched by autism and it was at a pivotal moment in my career when I was looking to do something else more impactful, and I fell in love with it. We started, it was a passion play, a small program in New York, and it took off. Now it's a medium-sized program in New York, and in September, it'll be two programs in New York. And then we open in Connecticut and then Washington. And now we're growing. We are arguably the fastest growing special needs platform in the Northeast, if not the country.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
For a long time, special needs kiddos were neglected, and then they were warehoused
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
and left to their own devices and modern therapies and techniques. We know that these children can advance and could become more independent and access a greater piece of the human experience and participate in civic life, you know, at a higher level. So our mission is to do just that, to push these kids, advance them, give them the opportunity to fail, because only with that opportunity can they possibly succeed. It treats them with dignity and treats them equally and gives them every chance to partake in the human experiment. So that is our mission.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
We perform a number of therapies, special ed[ucation] instruction that helps these kids be regulated and matriculated into
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
living their most independent and most accessible lives.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
So we've now opened four schools. One of them is
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
in New York City called, the Foundry Learning Center.
We have one in the state of Connecticut called, Hubbard Day.
We have one in the state of Washington called, Emerald Learning, and we're opening up
a second in September in Queens, also New York, and that's called, Foundry 613.
And the 613 has to do with the ratio of staff to students.
((Thomas))
242nd street. 238th street. 234th street. Marble Hill. 225th Street.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
When you're around kids with autism, you're familiar with this phenomenon, where they perseverate, which is a fancy word for focusing intensely on things that neuro-typical people find asocial. And this can often be feats of mechanical engineering that we encounter every day. This is especially true of mass transit and trains. And so, that combined with the fact that these same children
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
don't come to language naturally, like neuro-typical children do, they will grasp onto phrases that they hear in places where they're focused. And as a result, it's not unusual
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
for the first full sentence that a child utters to be something they hear in a train station. In New York, it might be, "Stand clear of the closing doors." From there, it was not a great leap for me during Autism Awareness Month, to ask the MTA [Metropolitan Transportation Authority] last year,
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
if they'd allow these kids to record their own versions of the announcements they hear. And to their credit, the MTA agreed. That made a bit of news. We then went out larger to other mass transit agencies in large urban areas.
((NATS))
((Subway Announcer))
Stand clear of the closing doors, please.
((NATS))
((Morgan))
If you see someone at risk of falling onto the tracks, please get help immediately. Tell a police officer or an MTA employee. Be safe and happy Autism Awareness Month.
When Jonathan made the project started last year, I was so into it. I was ready.
((Elliot))
Hi, my name is Elliot. I'm 11 years old.
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
Thank you, MTA for letting me use my assistive communication device to make an announcement during Autism Awareness Month. The MTA works hard to keep our stations and tracks clean. You can help too. Please take trash with you and use the garbage cans on the platform. Thank you for riding with MTA New York City Transit.
((Elliot’s Mom))
He's very proud of his own voice.
((Raphael’s Mother))
It gets exciting for Rafael to be able to share his love of trains with others. For him, it's not just a way of getting from place to place, but he enjoys the planning, finding out the timing of the trains, and kind of estimating…
((Rafael))
…the models.
((Raphael’s Mother))
…the models. He was sharing his interest about the latest train model with another boy in the other room.
((Benjamin))
Please keep hands and feet away from doors at all times. Make sure not to litter or else critters will come. Please be safe and have a happy New Year Day. Bye. Have a good day.
((Benjamin’s Mom))
That was excellent.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
One thing that surprised me as I did this project and went around to the launch events that these transit agencies hosted
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
was that, a few times, staff from the transit agency would attend in their own personal time. And they approached me and confessed that they were on the spectrum and they turned their disability into a career advantage.
((NATS))
((Thomas))
Hi. This is Thomas. I'm nine years old. Thank you MTA for letting me make an announcement as part of Autism Awareness Month. I want to work in all shops and I also want to really, really be a driver, especially the R211 subway cars that are now in revenue testing on the A Line.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
Well, it's also the case that there are some countries and cities around the world with state-of-the-art mass transit systems that, you know, put ours to shame, but with more mixed histories on how they treat their disabled communities.
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
This would be a great project for them to roll out in their train stations to help spread awareness in more understanding and tolerance of those who are neuro-divergent in those cities and countries. And I have every reason to believe, including faith, that in places like Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, and other places like that, that their transportation officials would embrace this project.
((NATS/SOT/MUSIC))
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
((Conductor))
Go, hit the horn.
((NATS/SOT))
Exactly…Dyckman, 200 street.
((Thomas’ Mom))
I think there are all these positive feelings that, you know, when we're talking about the supports they need or awareness, it's all about like the hard things. But that love and that joy is so strong, as strong as any of the other negative feelings might be. And I don't think people get to experience that, and they should. Just like find an autistic friend and let them take you to their favorite place and you will never have a better day in your life.
((Courtesy: Jonathan Trichter))
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
Well, my hope for the Autism Transit Project, I would like it to different but similar and no less to the widest possible audience. And of course, broadcasting them and showcasing them in places where they're comfortable, like train stations where hundreds of thousands of passengers who are neuro-typical but might not think of the neural-typical communities, often will hear them, and for a moment, stop and realize all of that.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
For the kids that go to my schools are a good life, a good instruction, self-confidence, real core capabilities.
I want to them learn how to read, write, and be autonomous. I want them to have a career path. I want them to love. I want them to be loved, and I want them to be part of the human experience and feel confident in participating in it.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
Did you have a good time? You do it again next year?
((Thomas))
Yes.
((Jonathan Trichter
Creator, Autism Transit Project; Co-founder, Foundry Learning Center))
All right. I like it. Next year they're going to let you drive the train.
((Thomas))
Yeah, yeah.
((NATS/MUSIC))

((PKG)) NATURE KICKER: MOUNT MAJOR
((TRT: 02:04))
((Topic Banner: Nature: Mount Major))
((Text on screen: Mt. Major in Alton, New Hampshire, is one of the most popular peaks in New Hampshire’s White Mountains.))
((Camera/Editor: Linus Manchester))


CLOSING BUMPER
((ANIM))
voanews.com/connect


BREAK THREE
USAGM SHARE
((LogOn: Space Camera (TV, R)
HEADLINE: LogOn: Giant Camera Focuses on the Invisible
TEASER: Camera will document the universe for 10 years, gathering data for dark energy and dark matter research
BYLINE: Matt Dibble
VIDEOGRAPHER: Matt Dibble
PRODUCER: Matt Dibble

SCRIPT EDITORS: Michelle Quinn, Reifenrath

TRT: 1:55

[[In California, a camera the size of a car is being prepared for its mission: documenting unseen phenomena in the universe. Matt Dibble has the story.]]

((Courtesy: SLAC))

((NARRATOR))

At the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in Menlo Park, California

((Courtesy: SLAC))

((NARRATOR))

engineers are building the world’s largest digital camera. The LSST camera, as it’s called,

((Courtesy: Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA))

((NARRATOR))

will be installed at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in southern Chile to record images of the night sky over a ten-year period.

((Courtesy: Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA))

((NARRATOR))

By observing a wide swath of the universe over time, researchers expect to gain insight into some of science’s biggest questions.

[[For Radio: PhD student Theo Schutt is running final tests on the camera.]]

((Theo Schutt, Stanford University Ph.D Student))

How old is the universe, how fast is it expanding, why is it expanding?
So we're really like going for the 95% of the universe that we basically don't understand at all.

((Courtesy: NASA))

((NARRATOR))

Scientists theorize that 95% of the universe is made up of dark energy and dark matter, which can’t be seen directly.

((Courtesy: SLAC))

((NARRATOR))

However, the effect that dark energy has on its surroundings can potentially be detected if observed over time.

[[For Radio: ...says astrophysicist Aaron Roodman, who leads the camera project.]]

((Aaron Roodman, Rubin Observatory Deputy Director))
We can study it by looking at galaxies, ((Courtesy: NASA))

studying how the light from distant galaxies has been bent by all the matter between us and the distant galaxy.

((Courtesy: Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA/ Todd Mason Productions))

((NARRATOR))

The camera will record on most nights, essentially compiling a time-lapse movie.

((NARRATOR))

Each image will be made up of about 3 billion pixels, ((Courtesy: Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA)) about 300 times the size of a smartphone image. ((end courtesy))

((NARRATOR)) ((Mandatory CG: SLAC))

Funded by the US government, the project will share images ((Courtesy: Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA))
with international researchers, directing attention to short-lived phenomena as they happen.

((Aaron Roodman, Rubin Observatory Deputy Director))
Within two minutes, we will compare ((Courtesy: NASA))

the objects we see in it — the stars, galaxies, asteroids ((end courtesy)) — with how they previously appeared in prior images. And we will flag any differences.

((NARRATOR))

Researchers are eagerly expecting the unexpected.

((Matt Dibble for VOA News, Menlo Park, California))

BUMP IN ((ANIM))


SHOW ENDS