Archive for February, 2010

On the day of the science fair

Your science fair project is ready, your report is done and the day of the science fair is here. Does that mean its all over? No, far from it. Today is the day that you have been preparing for from the day you began work on your science project. What you do today is of paramount importance.

You are going to be on display just as much as your science project is so dress to impress. Don’t go over the top, it is not a fashion show, but make sure that you dress well. The first impression on the judges is made by a combination of what you and your project look like.

The next impression will be made when they see you formally present your project to them. How you deal with their questions will be important as well. You need to come across as a person who knows what the project is all about, not some one still unsure about what the model can or can not do.

Make sure that you bring extra paper, scissors and glue so that any last minute tears and hassles can be covered up. Also stay next to your project and make sure that not too many curious hands touch it till the judges have been to see your science project.

Above all have fun.  You can even bring a book along to spend the time gainfully till the judges get around to your turn. Here’s a peek into what the judges are looking for. Maybe you can take a print out of this and help calm your nerves.

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What does the Scientific Method involve

Your science teacher may ask you to make a science project based on the scientific method. What does this involve? Essentially the scientific method is the basis of all scientific findings. It ensures that the facts that are documented are common and universal. How does it do that?

It is based on the following steps. First you make a hypothesis, this is like a guess. Let’s take a simple example like checking if something floats in water or does not. So if you make the hypothesis that a brick floats on water it will be wrong. How do you prove that the guess was wrong? You see that when you place the brick in the water it sinks.

This is called observation. Each time you place that brick or any other brick in water it will sink. The number of times you test this will give you your data. Once you have collected all the data you can make a conclusion. In this case the conclusion will be that a brick does not float on water, it sinks.

And that in a nutshell is the scientific method.  You make a hypothesis, then you make observations, collect data and then draw a conclusion based on the facts you have collected. If you are looking for ideas on projects that will involve using the scientific method, you will get plenty of them here. Just pick up the one which you find most interesting and get to work on your science project.

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Study an Allergy as a Science Project

Have you ever sneezed when something flew into your nose? That is an uncontrolled reflex action of your body. Think you can make a science project out of it? Why not. Although you may need to go in for something more specific than a sneeze. People suffer from all kinds of allergies.

Some people are allergic to things in their immediate environment like dust or mite. Others may be allergic to a few types of food. Pets like cats and dogs are also known to cause allergies to some owners. There are even people who are allergic to harsh sunlight. So pick one which interests you.

Now that you have honed in on one allergy that fascinates you enough to make a detailed study, ask a few questions. What is the allergy called in medical terms? What causes the allergy? How does the allergic reaction manifest itself in a human being? What is the mode of treatment?

Think up of all the questions that you can. Now that you have a long list of queries, get down to answering them. Whatever answers you find can be used to make a report. Any statistics that are available can be used as a display board fixture. Find out if any person is a victim of the allergy around you.

Get a case study done with their allergic history. Find out how some conditions can aggravate the symptoms and others suppress them. Record how often they get allergic attacks and how they deal with them. Here’s some help you can get when trying to get the display board right.

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Want to win at the Science Fair? Get that time line right!

One of the things that sets back a student from winning at the science fair is the lack of a good time line for his science project. So what is this time line? It is like a schedule for all the tasks that you need to do to make sure that your project is ready on time and in the best possible condition.

Where can you get this time line tool? You don’t get it anywhere, you need to sit down and make it. Once you know the date of the science fair you need to work backwards. Make a list of all the tasks that you can break down the science project into.Think about it there are many things you need to do.

Things like buying the material,  fixing the model, writing the report, doing up the display board, and just about any activity that is related to the project. List all the tasks on a sheet of paper and decide how long each task will take you to do. Now fix a time line for the sequence of events as you will perform them.

This allows you to know just how long your project will actually take you to do. Make sure that you keep a week extra handy in the time line as some things may take longer to do than others. As far as possible try and stick to the time line and get all the work done as soon as possible. That way your science fair project will be as near perfect as possible.

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How to win that Science Fair Award

A Science Fair is a great place to show your talent and be rewarded for it. All you need to do is know what you are doing. If you need any clue about how to pick the right topic for your science project or how to get it made, you came to the right place. This is where you can find some of those extra tips and tricks that can make the difference between winning an award or not.

You already know what the basics are : pick a good topic, make a project, write the report, rig up the display, and present the science fair project to the judges. Everyone who takes part in the science fair does that. What you need to know to win that award is how those teachers judge the projects.

That’s where the difference between making a project and making an award-winning project lies.  Once you know what is expected it becomes easier to please the judges. So who better to tell you what your teachers want you to do than another teacher. Here’s a peek into what teachers really want to see in your science project.

Essentially your science fair project must be interesting and fun. It should show that you put some scientific principle to unique use with the project. Of course you will need to get to work on these expectations long before its time to show off your project to the judges.  So get your thinking caps out and get to work.

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Solar Sails : An innovative science project

If you are interested in space travel, and it would be difficult not to be, you may be interested in learning about Solar Sails. These are made from flimsy material but are powered by sunlight. They have been tested and used on robotic space probes which travel out in to space on a space shuttle.

These robotic probes float gently out in space propelled by the solar energy which their sails harness and use as power. Wouldn’t it be great to harness the solar energy in a science project? Don’t think the project is beyond you. The basic principle is very simple to understand and to use.

Essentially you are converting the energy of the sun into another form. For instance if you make a solar cooker, you are converting solar energy into heat to cook food. Or if you are using solar energy to run a solar calculator, you are converting the solar energy into electrical energy which powers the working of the calculator.

The initial solar energy based devises were dependent on the presence of a shining sun to power them. Now with solar cells that can store the energy captures much like batteries these devices are easier to run. They are also much more reliable than the initial ones which would stop working the minute the sun went behind a cloud.  Get more science project ideas here. I’m sure you will find working with solar energy very interesting and entertaining.

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