STEMarts Lab instructor and AI specialist, Bethany Rivera, presented the ‘Exploring Space Through AI Animation’ at the STEM Conference for middle school girls hosted by GEAR UP New Mexico and STEM Santa Fe. In this one-hour STEM Pathway for Girls workshop, students harnessed the power of AI as a creative partner to communicate science concepts through animation. Using Runway AI Creator, participants generated a five-second AI-powered animation based on an original image they create, exploring the theme of space exploration and our interplanetary future. As part of the Space Messengers AI Project, students explored a thought-provoking science question about space. Using the Tagtool iPad app, they created a digital image reflecting their ideas, which were then uploaded to the Runway AI Video Generator app to generate an animated visualization. Alongside their animation, students crafted a text description and a “Space Message”—a science-inspired reflection that will become part of the Space Messengers AI traveling exhibit. We were honored to be part of the Gear Up Conference this year!
Bethany Rivera is a STEMarts Instructor with a strong background in computer science and artificial intelligence. She holds Associate Degrees in Computer Programming and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning from Central New Mexico Community College. As a member of CNM’s robotics team, she competed and won in a Raspberry Pi robotics competition in Cambridge, England. Passionate about computing, Bethany is dedicated to exploring how computers function and applying her expertise to inspire and educate the next generation of innovators