SCIENCE FAIR KIDS EXPERIMENT WITH FUN; RECORD NUMBER OF PROJECTS DRIVES NEED FOR JUDGES.Byline: Kevin F. Sherry Daily News Staff Writer The grounds are ready, the students are ready and the projects are ready. Only one hitch hitch to fasten by a knot, usually used to describe tying a horse to a post. remains to be cleared up before this week's Ventura County Science Fair. ``We need judges,'' said Morley Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. , the fair's director. ``That's what makes the science fair go.'' The fair needs 50 to 60 more judges to add to the 200 who have already signed on. Ideally, each judge would evaluate three to five projects. Judges can be ``anyone with some kind of science background,'' Cohen said. Good candidates will be versed Versed® Midazolam Pharmacology A preoperative sedative in at least one of the fair's 16 science categories, which include animal behavior, zoology zoology, branch of biology concerned with the study of animal life. From earliest times animals have been vitally important to man; cave art demonstrates the practical and mystical significance animals held for prehistoric man. , physiology and physics. This year's fair features 1,201 entries, a 25 percent increase over last year's record number. About 175 students from Thousand Oaks' Colina Middle School Colina Middle School is a public school located in Thousands Oaks, California, United States, part of the Conejo Valley Unified School District. The motto is "Work Hard, Make Friends, and Have Fun." The school mascot is the Colina Cougar. alone will participate in the fair, said Mike Newlon, head of Colina's science department. Colina contributes more students than any other school in the county, Newlon said. ``Here in the Conejo Valley The Conejo Valley is a region spanning both Southeastern Ventura County and Northwest Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States. It was discovered in 1542 by Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, and eventually became part of the Rancho El Conejo land grant by especially, there's a strong emphasis on science,'' he said. The inspiration for some projects comes from items in the news. ``I read in the newspaper about this big huge car crash, and it was because of the fog,'' said Stephanie Lee, 12, a seventh-grader at Colina. ``People couldn't see.'' In her experiment, Stephanie sprayed various amounts of canned fog into a tube to see how well a laser pointer A laser pointer is a portable, pen-sized laser designed to be held in the hand, and most commonly used to project a point of light to highlight items of interest during a presentation. could shine through. ``The more spray, the harder it is to see,'' she said. Teachers and advisers help tailor projects to students' interests, so the fair is fun instead of a chore, Newlon said. ``We try to work with something that they're naturally interested in,'' he said. ``We spend a lot of time trying to fit the right project to the right child.'' With so many choices available, students sometimes have a difficult time deciding, said Jessica Rinehart, 13, an eighth-grader at Colina. ``The toughest part is figuring out what to do,'' Jessica said. Jessica wanted a project that dealt with animals and came across the idea for her project, ``Is Your Dog a Righty right·y Informal n. pl. right·ies 1. A right-handed person. 2. An advocate or member of the political right. adv. or a Lefty?'' in a magazine. She examined 20 dogs to see which paws, front and back, they led with and shook hands with. ``Seventy-eight percent of dogs were right-pawed,'' Jessica said. ``Their front and back paws were not the same.'' The projects can be hard work, but the educational payoff is big, said Whitney Kirk, 12, a seventh-grader at Colina. ``It's worth it to spend a lot of time on it because you learn better,'' Whitney said. She experimented on whether hot air or cold air blown across cups of water would evaporate e·vap·o·rate v. 1. To convert or change into a vapor; volatilize. 2. To produce vapor. 3. To draw or pass off in the form of vapor. 4. the most water. To her surprise, ``the cold air made the most evaporate,'' she said. Colina has so many students performing science experiments that several of Whitney's friends used her as a test subject. ``They experimented on me,'' she said. ``I was the guinea pig guinea pig (gĭn`ē), domesticated form of the cavy, Cavia porcellus, a South American rodent. It is unrelated to the pig; the name may refer to its shrill squeal. .'' The fair added more categories this year, and its site on the World Wide Web has tripled in usage compared with last year. ``Students have been using it as a great resource,'' Cohen said. Some of the additional entries can be attributed to the fact that, for the first time, the fair is open to fifth-grade students. Sixty of the entries this year come from fifth-graders, he said. If additional judges are not found, ``a fewer number of judges will be evaluating every student project,'' Cohen said. Stronger projects hold up to the additional scrutiny, just like with real scientists, he said. ``That's what creates validity for the whole fair,'' Cohen said. The three-day fair begins Tuesday at the Seaside Park and Ventura County Fairgrounds n. pl. 1. same as fairground. in Ventura. Tuesday is for set up, Wednesday is for judging, and Thursday is for public viewing and awards. Although students compete for ribbons and prestige, a variety of companies and special interest groups are offering special awards to competitors. Most are cash awards, although Imation of Camarillo will award a trip to Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., to one junior and one senior division winner. Amgen is offering a plaque and a $500 scholarship to an outstanding junior or senior project in biochemistry biochemistry, science concerned chiefly with the chemistry of biological processes; it attempts to utilize the tools and concepts of chemistry, particularly organic and physical chemistry, for elucidation of the living system. or microbiology microbiology: see biology. microbiology Scientific study of microorganisms, a diverse group of simple life-forms including protozoans, algae, molds, bacteria, and viruses. , as well as an identical plaque and $500 to the student's school for use in science programs. Other special awards will be given to projects in waste management, naval engineering Noun 1. naval engineering - the branch of engineering that deals with the design and construction and operation of ships applied science, engineering science, technology, engineering - the discipline dealing with the art or science of applying scientific knowledge , agriculture, radiation, astronomy, water quality and medicine. Most students focus on the type of project rather than the potential prize attached to it, Stephanie said. ``It's a nice thing to win,'' she said. But ``I didn't think about winning anything. I just wanted to learn more.'' To volunteer to be a science fair judge, call (805) 388-4410 or register on the fair's Web site at http://www.west.net/vcsf/. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Colina Middle School student Stephanie Lee, 12, shows off her science project on detecting fog. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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