Mind the STEM Gap – A Roblox Jukebox

In the Giancarlo De Carlo Garden at the Triennale Milano a new interactive installation “Mind the STEM Gap – A Roblox Jukebox,” conceived by Fondazione Bracco and designed by Space Caviar, wants to contribute to overcoming gender stereotypes in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) by encouraging free access to knowledge for girls and boys.

The installation dialogues with the themes of the 23rd Triennale Milano International Exhibition entitled “Unknown Unknowns. An Introduction to Mysteries.” Women’s access to the world of science is still strongly hindered by prejudice and gender stereotypes, transmitted – sometimes unconsciously – to girls by family and friends. The distancing of girls from science is likely to continue at school, starting from the early years. The result is that women are still severely underrepresented in STEM professions. Worldwide, only 31% work in artificial intelligence and just 14% in cloud computing (Source: World Economic Forum).

Mind the STEM Gap, which can be visited until 31 October 2022 at Triennale Milano, offers an immersive and memorable edutainment experience, designed for players aged 10 and up: the installation, similar to a circular spaceship, with a dress that pays homage to Italian design, allows access to the educational video game through 16 stations equipped with optical visors and joysticks. Girls and boys, but also adults, are invited to embark on a virtual journey that will start from the Triennale garden. Using the Roblox platform, each level of the game is dedicated to a scientific knowledge with interactive challenges, from physics to astronomy, in a journey that will take the traveller from the infinitesimal of molecules to the immensity of space, and is introduced by a “Virgilia,” a scientist from the past who distinguished herself in that discipline, a true role model. On their journey, players will meet physicist Marie Sklodowska Curie, mathematicians Ada Lovelace and Maria Gaetana Agnesi, philosopher Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia, botanist Anna Atkins, and astronomer Annie Jump Cannon.