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What is STEAM?

What is STEAM? Isn't it that vapor that comes out of trains? While steam indeed is the substance that come out of tea kettles, trains, and our ears when we're mad, STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics. Previously known as STEM, this antiquated way of thinking neglected the artistic aspect to the aforementioned fields. Perhaps art wasn't previously thought to have any importance or place within science, but since its introduction, we can see that, as Rebecca West put it in her title essay, 
Art is not a luxury, but a necessity. 

Though it's always been a crucial part of any process for the STEM fields, since art has been included under the STEAM umbrella, not only have we seen the scientific side expand, but so too did the artistic side; no longer are science and art two separate fields.
The design aspect to STEAM also becomes crucial to understand when teaching and/or learning about the STEM fields because it implies to students that things are not entirely exclusive in this world. In other words, while an artist sketching at their table might seem completely different than a physicist writing equations on the board, the bridge between the two could be an architect: someone who needs both the help of the artist to design the look of a building, and a physicist to make sure it is structurally sound. 
In another instance, how could students of science possibly construct their trials and test theories if they didn't have the support of mathematicians to create formulas and lines of best fit to explain trends and data? How could engineers possibly build the formations they do without the technology to do so? Each element of STEAM, while having its own unique qualities, cannot exist without the others, and so an opportunity to create as many possible integrations between these 5 elements is born. . . 
Welcome to STEAM where the wonders of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math can help explain what the stuff is that comes out of tea kettles, trains, and our ears when we're mad. 

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