Welcome to Code Bytes! Today, we’re diving into a fun and educational adventure in a place called Monster Town. Here, we’ll learn about how viruses spread and how we can use coding to simulate and understand these outbreaks. Let’s get started!
I’m Leonardo Ortiz, and I work at Code.org. Joining me is my daughter, Natalia, who loves coding just like you! We’re excited to celebrate Computer Science Education Week with you, where students worldwide are participating in an Hour of Code.
It’s amazing to see so many people from different places like the U.S., Alaska, Mexico, Venezuela, Europe, Africa, and India joining us. Natalia and I are in Seattle, where Code.org is based. Since we started the Hour of Code, students have completed over a billion hours of coding!
Before we start, let’s celebrate a computer science pioneer, Grace Hopper, whose birthday is today. She was a brilliant mind who helped develop early programming languages. Her work is one reason we celebrate Computer Science Education Week.
Today, we’ll use a tool called Sprite Lab to simulate a virus outbreak. You can follow along by visiting code.org/outbreak. Natalia will guide us through the simulation.
In Monster Town, monsters love visiting each other. But one day, a monster catches a virus. As they continue to visit friends, the virus spreads. Our goal is to find ways to stop it, like using masks.
We’ll start by creating ten healthy sprites and one sick sprite. Then, we’ll make them move around. This movement simulates how the virus spreads when monsters meet.
In coding, an event is an action that causes something to happen, like clicking a mouse. Let’s create an event where a healthy monster becomes sick when it touches a sick one. We’ll also add an event to put masks on monsters by clicking on them.
By putting masks on sick monsters first, we can prevent the virus from spreading. We can also think about how long monsters stay sick and introduce vaccines in our simulation.
Simulations help us understand real-world problems and test solutions safely. They allow us to explore different scenarios and find the best strategies to solve issues like virus outbreaks.
Thank you for joining us today! You can continue exploring the outbreak activity on code.org/outbreak. We hope you had fun and learned something new. Join us tomorrow for another exciting episode of Code Bytes!
Thanks, Natalia, for your help today. We had a blast! See you all next time!
Use Sprite Lab to design your own virus outbreak simulation. Start by creating a new scenario with different sprites and rules. Experiment with how the virus spreads and try different strategies to stop it. Share your simulation with the class and discuss what worked and what didn’t.
Choose a computer science pioneer like Grace Hopper and research their contributions to the field. Create a short presentation or poster to share with the class. Highlight how their work has impacted modern technology and coding practices.
Use Sprite Lab to create a simple game that involves events. For example, design a game where sprites change color or direction when clicked. Focus on using events effectively to make your game interactive and fun.
Research how coding is being taught in different parts of the world. Compare and contrast these initiatives with what you are learning. Write a short report or create a video explaining the similarities and differences you found.
Think of a real-world problem that could be explored through simulation, such as traffic flow or ecosystem changes. Use Sprite Lab to create a basic simulation of this problem. Discuss with your classmates how simulations can help in understanding and solving real-world issues.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript, removing any personal information and maintaining a professional tone:
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[Music] Hi everyone and welcome to Code Bytes! In today’s session, we’ll visit the fictional Monster Town where a virus outbreak is about to happen. We’ll be programming and running simulations to understand how the virus spreads and what can be done to slow it down and help all the monsters get healthy again.
My name is Leonardo Ortiz, and I’m the Vice President of International Partnerships at Code.org. Joining me today is my daughter, Natalia, who will be my sidekick and co-programmer.
Hello! I am 14 years old and in ninth grade. During the pandemic, I have been learning coding using the CS Fundamentals Express.
That’s great to hear! Today is special because this episode is part of the many activities we are doing to celebrate Computer Science Education Week. Students and teachers all over the world are participating in an Hour of Code, some for the very first time.
I would love to see where everyone is joining us from. We have a map to show the different locations. It’s amazing to see participants from various cities in the U.S., as well as from places like Alaska, Mexico, Venezuela, Europe, Africa, and even India!
Natalia and I are both in Seattle today, at the headquarters of Code.org. Since we started the Hour of Code seven years ago, students have completed over one billion hours of coding!
Before we dive into today’s activity, I want to acknowledge a female pioneer in computer science. Today is her birthday, which is one reason we celebrate Computer Science Education Week around this date. Let’s see if you know who I’m talking about.
We have several options for you to vote on: Ada Lovelace, Roy Mutin, Grace Hopper, and Mary Ellen Wilkes.
It looks like many of you guessed correctly—today is the birthday of Grace Hopper! For those who don’t know her, she was born in 1906 and was a highly respected admiral in the U.S. Navy. She helped develop a compiler that was a precursor to the widely used programming language COBOL.
Now, let’s move on! Today we’re going to learn how to code using a tool called Sprite Lab. We will simulate an outbreak, which is very relevant given the current pandemic. Coding allows us to explore how such situations behave, and simulations help us understand real-world events.
You can follow along on your computer by visiting code.org/outbreak. Natalia will share her screen now.
[Music]
Perfect! If you typed code.org/outbreak, this is what you will see. Natalia, can you tell us about what’s happening in Monster Town?
Monster Town is usually a happy place where monsters like to visit their friends. However, one day, one of the monsters caught a virus, which is a tiny germ that can make monsters sick. The other monsters are not too worried and continue visiting each other, but soon more monsters catch the virus. The healthy monsters want to research ways to prevent others from getting sick and discover that wearing masks can help.
Great explanation! Now let’s bring this simulation to life.
We need to create ten healthy sprites and one sick sprite. Let’s look at the sprites tab and drag the necessary blocks to create them.
Now we have our sprites, but they need to be smaller. Let’s adjust their size.
Now that we have our sprites, we want them to move around. Let’s add an action block to make them wander.
Let’s run the simulation!
Look, they’re moving!
Now we need to create an event. An event in coding is when you create an action that drives a reaction. For example, clicking your mouse or typing a letter can create an event.
We have a poll to explore this concept further. Which of these is an example of an event: going to a birthday party, singing in a school concert, or tapping an icon to open an app?
It seems most of you guessed correctly—tapping an icon to open an app is an event in computer science.
Now let’s do an unplugged activity! When I clap, I want everyone to make their best silly face.
[Clapping]
Great job! Those were three events triggered by my clapping.
Now, let’s return to our simulation. In a pandemic, when a healthy monster comes into contact with a sick monster, the healthy monster can get sick. Let’s code that event.
When a healthy monster touches a sick monster, it will change its costume to appear sick. Let’s run the simulation again.
As you can see, when the healthy monster touched the sick monster, it became sick.
Now, what can we do to prevent this? Wearing masks is a good idea. Let’s create another event where clicking on a monster will put a mask on it.
Let’s see what happens when we run the simulation again.
I tried to cover as many healthy monsters as I could, but some still got infected.
What if we try to put masks on the sick monsters first?
That’s a good strategy! Let’s see how that works.
By targeting the sick monsters first, we can prevent the virus from spreading to the healthy ones.
We also need to consider how long the infected monsters remain sick. Additionally, we could introduce a vaccine to protect the monsters further.
Simulations allow us to explore these scenarios and find solutions.
Now, let’s wrap up with a couple of polls to reinforce what we’ve learned today.
Which of these might be controlled by events?
The correct answer is when someone gets tagged, that player becomes it.
Now, how can simulations be helpful in the real world?
All three answers are correct: simulations help us understand the world, test ideas quickly and safely, and model complex systems interactively.
Thank you for joining us today! You can explore the new outbreak activity on code.org/outbreak.
Thank you, Natalia, for your help today. Did you have fun?
Yes, it was a lot of fun!
Thank you for being part of the Hour of Code during Computer Science Education Week. Don’t forget to join us tomorrow for another episode of Code Bytes, where you’ll learn how to create apps for good. Bye everyone!
[Music]
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This version maintains the educational content while ensuring clarity and professionalism.
Code – A set of instructions written in a programming language that a computer can understand and execute. – Example sentence: “She spent the afternoon writing code to create a new feature for her app.”
Coding – The process of writing instructions for a computer to perform specific tasks. – Example sentence: “In our computer class, we are learning the basics of coding using Python.”
Virus – A malicious program designed to harm a computer system or steal information. – Example sentence: “The antivirus software detected a virus and removed it from the computer.”
Simulation – A program that models a real-world process or system to study its behavior under different conditions. – Example sentence: “The students used a simulation to understand how traffic flows in a busy city.”
Sprites – 2D images or animations integrated into a larger scene, often used in video games and graphical interfaces. – Example sentence: “The game developer created colorful sprites to make the game more engaging.”
Masks – Graphics or patterns used to hide or reveal parts of an image or interface in digital design. – Example sentence: “The designer used masks to blend the images seamlessly in the photo editing software.”
Events – Actions or occurrences recognized by software that may be handled by event-handling code. – Example sentence: “The program responds to user events like mouse clicks and keyboard inputs.”
Strategies – Plans or methods developed to solve problems or achieve specific goals in programming or game design. – Example sentence: “Developing efficient strategies is crucial for solving complex coding challenges.”
Outbreak – A sudden occurrence or increase, often used in simulations to model the spread of a computer virus. – Example sentence: “The simulation showed how quickly a virus outbreak could spread through a network.”
Computer – An electronic device that processes data according to a set of instructions called a program. – Example sentence: “Every student in the class has access to a computer for their coding projects.”
