Admissions Office at CCBC Essex. This is the nearest college where you can go to study to become a veterinary technologist or technician.

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1 VETERINARY MEDICINE NEWS YOU CAN USE: 1. Our guest instructor will be Lois B. Simmons, Director, School of Health Professions Admissions Office at CCBC Essex. This is the nearest college where you can go to study to become a veterinary technologist or technician. 2. In order to complete this badge, you will have to go on a field trip to visit a veterinary facility or spend time talking with a veterinarian who works in one of the specialty fields listed in requirement 2. The Boston Street Veterinary Hospital in Fells Point will welcome five Scouts for a tour on Wednesday, December 28, at 4 p.m. (Most schools are out that week.) You can sign up for this field trip during Merit Badge College. First come, first served. If you cannot go on that trip, you can make an appointment on your own to visit with your family s veterinarian or a vet clinic near your home. GET STARTED TODAY! Before the Merit Badge College, do this: At school, at the library or at home on your computer, find a reference book called the Occupational Outlook Handbook. It is a fantastic guide to careers produced by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The guide is free and available entirely online at Use it to look up Veterinarian (this will help you fulfill requirement 3). Then use it to look up Veterinary Technologist or Technician (this will help you fulfill requirement 4). If you can, print out those pages. There are some really cool YouTube videos about the veterinary professions. The American Veterinary Medical Association has produced a YouTube video series called Career Profiles in Veterinary Medicine. There s a video about small animal medicine, and another about bovines, and another about aquatic animal medicine. Check them out! Watching these can help you complete requirements 1 and 2. BADGE REQUIREMENTS - VETERINARY MEDICINE 1. Discuss with your counselor the roles a veterinarian plays in the following: a. Companion or small animal medicine, and equine medicine b. Food animal or large animal medicine c. Exotic animal medicine d. Marine animal medicine (mammal and fish) e. Poultry medicine

2 f. Wildlife medicine and aquaculture medicine 2. Discuss with your counselor the roles a veterinarian plays in the following: a. Public health medicine and zoonotic disease surveillance and control b. The military c. Food safety and inspection d. Laboratory animal medicine and research e. Teaching and government 3. Describe the training required to become a veterinarian. Where is the veterinary medical college nearest you? Describe the prerequisites for applying to veterinary school. 4. Tell your counselor what a registered veterinary technician (R.V.T.) or animal health technician (A.H.T.) is. Describe the training required to become an R.V.T. or A.H.T. Where is the school or facility for R.V.T. or A.H.T training nearest you? Describe the role an R.V.T. or A.H.T. would play in assisting a veterinarian working in three of the practice types listed in requirement Discuss with your merit badge counselor the role a veterinarian plays in the human-animal bond. 6. Do ONE of the following: a. Visit a veterinary clinic, hospital, or veterinary referral teaching hospital that does work in one of the practices listed in requirement 1. Spend as much time as you can observing the veterinarians and their staff. Write a report on what you observed and learned at the facility. Share your report with your counselor. b. Spend as much time as possible with a veterinarian who works in one of the fields listed in requirement 2. Learn what special training beyond veterinary medical school may have been required for that position. Learn about any special or unusual activities required of this position. Write a report on what you have learned about this field of veterinary medicine. Include in your report how this field serves the needs of the general public. Share your report with your counselor. ROBOTICS NEWS YOU CAN USE: 1. Our guest instructors include engineer Gary Mauler, who participated in launching the Robotics Badge in Maryland. He has created the Robot Engineering Notebook that each Scout will keep notes in, and he is generously providing the robot kits, tools and software that the Scouts will use to complete the badge. He is on the board of the National Electronics Museum, located in Linthicum, Md. Additional help will be provided by Felix Mercado, a member of an award-winning Towson University cyber-security team; and Dave Carpenter, a computer-savvy volunteer who is an employee at the University of Baltimore. 2. You do not need to purchase a robot kit to earn this badge at the Merit Badge College. Mr. Mauler is providing four robot kits. We will take eight sign-ups only, and the Scouts will work in teams of two. Note that we cannot accommodate requests for specific partners as

3 we anticipate sign-ups from many different Troops. The programmable kits, tools, software, and other materials, including the finished robots, may not be removed from the Merit Badge College. The Scouts will do the engineering and computer programming to make the robots work, following the directions that come with the kit. 3. If we do not complete construction, testing and demonstration of the robots during the Merit Badge College, we will preserve all of the Scouts work and we will schedule a second get-together to finish. The robot kit we are using is the Parallax Boe Bot. 4. If you sign up for Robotics, please plan to come on time and be prepared. GET STARTED TODAY! Before the Merit Badge College, do this: The official BSA merit badge pamphlet book, Robotics, is required as reference for everyone participating in earning the badge. It is a well-written, simple guide covering everything you will need to know. We strongly recommend that you read the entire pamphlet before you come. (Joe Azzarello will have copies.) If you cannot read it all by Dec. 3, start with this: Read pages 27 and 28 about safety precautions and first aid for robot builders. This will help you complete requirement 1. Read pages 11 to 27 to get a solid overview of the field of robotics. This will help you complete requirements 2 and 3. Read pages 79 to 83 to learn about careers. This will help you complete requirement 7. Learn about robotics competitions and programs in local schools (to help complete requirement 13). Visit the home of the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation. For information about Baltimore-area and Maryland events, visit the website for Robofest at and the Maryland FIRST Robotics programs for all ages. You ll also find information on YouTube about a Coast Guard robotic vessels program that has visited Baltimore schools. and a list of local high school teams here:

4 BADGE REQUIREMENTS ROBOTICS 1. Safety. Do each of the following: a. Explain to your counselor the most likely hazards you may encounter while working with robots and what you should do to anticipate, mitigate and prevent, and respond to these hazards. Describe the appropriate safety gear and clothing that should be used when working with robotics. b. Discuss first aid and prevention for the types of injuries that could occur while participating in robotics activities and competitions, including cuts, eye injuries, and burns (chemical or heat). 2. Robotics industry. Discuss the following with your counselor: a. The kinds of things robots can do and how robots are best used today. b. The similarities and differences between remote-control vehicles, telerobots, and autonomous robots. c. Three different methods robots can use to move themselves other than wheels or tracks. Describe when it would be appropriate to use each method. 3. General knowledge. Discuss with your counselor three of the five major fields of robotics (humanrobot interface, mobility, manipulation, programming, sensors) and their importance to robotics development. Discuss either the three fields as they relate to a single robot system OR talk about each field in general. Find pictures or at least one video to aid in your discussion. 4. Design, build, program, test. Do each of the following: a. With your counselor's approval, choose a task for the robot or robotic subsystem that you plan to build. Include sensor feedback and programming in the task. Document this information in your robot engineering notebook. b. Design your robot. The robot design should use sensors and programming and have at least 2 degrees of freedom. Document the design in your robot engineering notebook using drawings and a written description. c. Build a robot or robotic subsystem of your original design to accomplish the task you chose for requirement 4a. d. Discuss with your counselor the programming options available for your robot. Then do either option 1 OR option 2. Option 1. Program your robot to perform the task you chose for your robot in 4a. Include a sample of your program's source code in your robot engineering notebook. Option 2. Prepare a flowchart of the desired steps to program your robot for accomplishing the task in 4a. Include procedures that show activities based on sensor inputs. Place this in your robot engineering notebook.

5 e. Test your robot and record the results in your robot engineering notebook. Include suggestions on how you could improve your robot, as well as pictures or sketches of your finished robot. 5. Demonstrate. Do the following: a. Demonstrate for your counselor the robot you built in requirement 4. b. Share your robot engineering notebook with your counselor. Talk about how well your robot accomplished the task, the improvements you would make in your next design, and what you learned about the design process. 6. Competitions. Do ONE of the following. a. Attend a robotics competition and report to your counselor what you saw and learned about the competition and how teams are organized and managed. b. Learn about three youth robotics competitions. Tell your counselor about these, including the type of competition, time commitment, age of the participants, and how many teams are involved. 7. Careers. Name three career opportunities in robotics. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you. PUBLIC SPEAKING NEWS YOU CAN USE: 1. Our guest instructor is Claude Larkins, scoutmaster, Troop The Public Speaking badge offers great preparation for college and any kind of career. You will be making many speeches and presentations throughout your life. This badge will equip you to do it well. In addition, you will learn about parliamentary procedure and Roberts Rules of Order, which are practices that exist to keep business and public meetings fair and orderly. After all, nothing gets accomplished if everyone talks at one time! Knowing how to lead a meeting is an important skill. BADGE REQUIREMENTS PUBLIC SPEAKING 1. Give a three to five minute introduction of yourself to an audience such as your troop, class at school, or some other group. 2. Prepare a three to five minute talk on a topic of your choice that incorporates body language and visual aids.

6 3. Give an impromptu talk of at least two minutes, either as part of a group discussion or before your counselor. Use a subject selected by your counselor that is interesting to you but that is not known to you in advance and for which you do not have time to prepare. 4. Select a topic of interest to your audience. Collect and organize information about this topic and prepare an outline. Write an eight to 10 minute speech, practice it, then deliver it in the conversational way. 5. Show you know parliamentary procedure by leading a discussion or meeting according to accepted rules of order; or by answering questions on the rules of order. PHOTOGRAPHY NEWS YOU CAN USE 1. Your guest instructor is Jean Thompson, merit badge counselor from Troop 174 and scribe for the Hopkins District page of the Area Scouter. 2. To earn this badge, you will need to bring a digital camera that has a memory card, or a cable with which you can transfer your pictures to a computer, or ing ability. Cell phone cameras are NOT acceptable for this badge. To complete this badge, we will create photo slide shows using Power Point on a laptop. Please notify Joe Azzarello if you need to borrow a camera from us. A laptop will be supplied for creating the slide show. 3. Be prepared: Let your parents know that we will go for a walk around the Fells Point harbor area to take photographs. DRESS FOR THE WEATHER. It may be chilly near the harbor. GET STARTED TODAY! Before the Merit Badge College, do this: Learn about careers for photographers. At school, at the library or at home on your computer, find a reference book called the Occupational Outlook Handbook. It is a fantastic guide to careers produced by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The guide is free and available entirely online at Use it to look up photographer (to help you complete requirement 5). Print it out if you can. BADGE REQUIREMENTS -- PHOTOGRAPHY 1. Explain how the following elements and terms affect the quality of a picture: a. Light-natural light/ambient, flash b. Exposure-aperture (f-stops), shutter speed, depth of field c. Composition-rule of thirds, leading lines, framing, depth

7 d. Angle of view e. Stopping action 2. Explain the basic parts and operation of a film camera or digital camera. Explain how an exposure is made when you take a picture. 3. Discuss with your counselor the differences between a film camera and a digital camera. List at least five advantages and five disadvantages of using a digital camera versus using a film camera. 4. Do ONE of the following: a. Produce a picture story using the photojournalistic technique of documenting an event. Share your plan with your counselor and get your counselor's input and approval before you proceed. Then, using either a film camera or a digital camera, produce your approved picture story. Process your images and select eight to 12 images that best tell your story. Arrange your images in order, then mount the prints on a poster board. If you are using digital images, you may create a slide show on your computer or produce printouts for your poster board. Share your picture story with your counselor. b. Choose a topic that interests you to photograph for an exhibit or display. Get your counselor's approval, then photograph (digital or film) your topic. Process your images. Choose 20 of your favorite images and mount them on poster board. Share your display with your counselor. If you are using digital images, you may create a slide show on your computer or produce printouts for your poster board. 5. Discuss with your counselor the career opportunities in photography. Pick one that interests you and explain how to prepare for such a career. Discuss with your counselor the education and training such a career would require. ARCHITECTURE NEWS YOU CAN USE: 1. Our guest instructors are Brady Mark and Brian, architects with RTKL Associates, our host company today. 2. In order to complete this badge, you will have to go on a field trip to visit a construction site. BE PREPARED: We may go for a walk today to view architecture in the area. DRESS FOR THE WEATHER. It can be chilly near the harbor. 3. If we cannot complete all of the requirements of the badge at the Merit Badge College, plans will be made for a second get-together to finish up. BADGE REQUIREMENTS ARCHITECTURE 1. a. Tour your community and list the different building types you see. Try to identify buildings that can be associated with a specific period of history or style of architecture. Make a

8 sketch of the building you most admire. b. Select an architectural achievement that has had a major impact on society. Using resources such as the Internet (with your parent's permission), books, and magazines, find out how this achievement has influenced the world today. Tell your counselor what you learned. 2. In the Outdoor Code, a Scout pledges to "be conservation-minded." Discuss the following with your counselor: a. The term sustainable architecture. Identify three features typical of green buildings. b. The difference between renewable building materials and recycled building materials, and how each can be used in construction. c. The relationship of architecture with its surrounding environment and the community. d. How entire buildings can be reused rather than torn down when they no longer serve their original purpose. 3. Do ONE of the following: a. With your parent's and counselor's permission and approval, arrange to meet with an architect. Ask to see the scale model of a building and the drawings that a builder would use to construct this building. Discuss why the different building materials were selected. Look at the details in the drawings and the scale model to see how the materials and components are attached to each other during construction. b. With your parent's and counselor's permission and approval, arrange to meet with an architect at a construction site. Ask the architect to bring drawings that the builder uses to construct the building. While at the site, discuss why the different building materials being used were selected. Discuss how the different building materials and components are attached to each other during construction. Note: To visit a construction site will require advance planning. You will need permission from your parents, counselor, the architect, and the construction site manager. A construction site is a very dangerous place. While there, you will need to closely follow the site manager's directions and comply with all the safety procedures, including wearing a hard hat protective eyewear, and proper footwear. c. Interview someone who might be your client (such as a prospective homeowner or business owner) if you were an architect. Find out what your client's requirements would be for designing a new home or business building. Write a short program including a list of requirements for the project, the functions of the building and site, how the functions relate to one another, and the goals of the project. 4. Measure a room such as one where you live or where your troop meets. Make an accurately scaled drawing of the room's floor plan showing walls, doors, closets, windows, and any built-in furniture or cabinets. Neatly label your drawing with the following: your name, the date, what room you drew, and the scale of the drawing. (Drawing scale: 1/4 inch = 1 foot) 5. Find out about three career opportunities in architecture. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.