SPRINGFIELD — Laser optics, said Springfield Central High School senior Anthony Pena La Bosco.

The 17-year-old plans to study laser optics starting next year at Springfield Technical Community College.

“There is just so much you can do with them. Look at those images projected on the screen,” he said, pointing to a building-size display at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. “You can use them to treat cancer.”

He was one of 300 high school students from across the Pioneer Valley and parts of Central Massachusetts visiting the Hall of Fame on Wednesday as the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing hosted its annual MassMakes Innovation Challenge.

October is Manufacturing Month and precedes this year’s STEM week, which will kick off Oct. 2

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