Researchers at the ABI have create a low cost, ‘lab in the pocket’ for schoolchildren, a technology to spark and nurture
a scientifically inquiring mind, allowing them to take scientific measurements of the world around and within them such
as the quality of the water they drink, the air that they breath, the pace of their beating hearts and more.
It’s called the Kiwrious kit, and was designed by Associate Professor Suranga Nanayakkara and his team at the Augmented
Human Lab (AHL) at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute (ABI), University of Auckland, in collaboration with Associate
Professor Dawn Garbett from the Faculty of Education and Social Work.
Kiwrious has been selected as one of the 15 qualifying teams to go through to the final round of the Velocity $100k Challenge, a student entrepreneurship competition administered by the Business School’s Centre for Innovation and
Entrepreneurship – teams develop a venture idea with the support of mentors and advisors and compete for a part of a
$100,000 prize pool.
The kit is comprised of eight sensors, which school children can use to take real-world measurements using scientific
parameters, such as air quality, ambient temperature, humidity, light level, sound level, the rate of their own
heartbeat and more.
The students can then plug the sensors into a computer (Chromebook or any other laptop), and launch the Kiwrious
Learning Platform on a Chrome browser. This learning platform focuses on encouraging students to make multiple
observations, to represent findings in creative ways and share and discuss them with their peers.
“The Kiwrious kit aligns with curriculum goals, and offers students a fun and engaging learning experience that could
transform their understanding of the world in which they live, and ignite scientific curiosity that they will carry
through life,” says Dr Nanayakkara. “We hope that in the long run it will help inspire a generation of fearless problem
solvers.”
Importantly, Kiwrious gives school children access to scientific tools that would, for many, be out of economic reach.
It also allows them to use the kit spontaneously outside the class room, in their own time, when something about the
world piques their interest.
The kit has been being trialled this year at five schools in Auckland; Panmure Bridge School, Epsom Girls Grammar, Mount
Albert Grammar, Kings Primary and Kowhai Intermediate. Dr Nanayakarra and team introduced the kit to students with
hands-on workshops, and have developed an online platform to go with it.
Dr Nanayakkara and his team of 15 joined the ABI in 2018. They have an overriding philosophy – to develop technologies
that support and enhance our lives, which can be used in an intuitive and empathic way, to put more “humanity” into
technologies.
They have created a number of devices aimed at making lives easier, including the Finger Reader, which allows the
visually impaired to read text through a device they wear on their fingers, ChewIt, which users can put in their mouth and allows for discreet and hands-free interaction with a phone, computer,
smartwatch and MussBits, which allows people with a hearing impairment to ‘feel’ the music.
“Kiwrious aims to help reduce the digital divide,” says Dr Nanayakkara. “Our work will have a direct impact on New
Zealand's scientific future and our ability to develop the next generation of critical thinkers and innovators,
ultimately leading to an impact on the nation's economic future.
“We hope it will equip them to take an interest in, and address some of the problems of the world in which we live.”
He hopes start a national pilot with Kiwrious kit with 30 schools from six cities starting in November 2020. As part of
this, his team is offering training/workshops with teachers in November, to help them plan their teaching for 2021.
The initial development of Kiwrious was supported by a MBIE Curious Minds grant. Dr Nanayakkara, with his team, has set
up a charitable foundation to take the project beyond initial research funding and create Kiwrious opportunities for
every single children in New Zealand.
Interested schools can contact Kiwrious team via hello@kiwrious.com