by Mark Ollig
Science projects created by students from grade to high
school were the focus of this year’s White House Science Fair.
This is
the fourth White House Science Fair, since its inception in 2010.
Last
Tuesday, 105 students from 30 states across the country, representing over 40
organizations, participated in this year’s event.
The
science projects demonstrated made use of STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics).
Students
proudly showcased their science fair projects.
Some of
the students were able to make a presentation about their science project
before the President of the United States.
Bill Nye,
“The Science Guy,” also at this year’s event, interviewed some of the students
outside on the lawn of the White House.
Nye’s
first interview was with the three girl student members of “Team Rocket Power”
from Maryland.
Rebecca
Chapin-Ridgely, 17; Jasmyn Logan, and Nia’mani Robinson, both 15, worked after
school and during weekends to construct and test their rocket, which was
painted a bright purple.
As
participants in the Team America Rocketry Challenge, the objective for their
science project was to launch a rocket containing a payload of two eggs into
the air at a minimum height of 825 feet within 48-50 seconds.
The egg
payload needed to return to the ground – unbroken.
When asked
if they were successful in returning the eggs back to the earth without any
cracks, one of the students smiled, while responding with; “Most of the time,
we were.”
Nye
grinned, and questioned if they were able to reach the 825 feet. One student
replied, “We hit it a couple of times; sometimes it [the rocket] was too high.”
Two
mentors worked with the students to ensure their rocket experiments progressed
safely.
Yes
indeed, folks, this project was one of true “rocket science.”
Next to be
interviewed was Parker Owen, 20, from Alabama, whose robotic science project
was to make a prosthetic leg limb entirely out of a single, recycled bicycle.
Owen chose
this project as a cost-effective solution for making prosthetics more
accessible in developing countries.
He noted
bicycles are being used as a major mode of transportation in many countries;
when they break down or become old, they are commonly discarded.
In
addition to the recycled bicycle; three bolts, three nuts, and a few zip-ties
were also used.
The
prosthetic leg has adjustable muscle fibers and tendons made from the bicycle’s
tire tube, which provides the resistance and force needed during strenuous
activities.
The
synthetic muscles adjust using air pressure.
The
prosthetic leg limb is adjustable to fit any size person, and is designed to
accommodate a person’s growth, and muscle gain and loss, over the course of an
individual’s lifetime.
Owen
mentioned he has patented the process used to make what he calls “the
cycle-leg.”
Owen’s
design was created as a solution to significantly improve the quality of life
of people in the developing world.
Crystal
Brockington and Aaron Barron, both 18, researched a way to make an economical,
yet sustainable, semi-conductor material to increase the efficiency of solar
cells.
This new
material combination better harnesses the power of the sun.
The
research included finding an alternative nano-particle material which could be
used with “quantum dots,” which are a type of nano-crystals.
They
wanted to make a solar cell material that worked without cadmium; a soft metal
and chemical element having carcinogenic effects to the environment.
The two
students discovered by alternating the heat synthesis of the nano-particles, in
conjunction with other material such as titanium dioxide, they could increase a
solar panel’s efficiency.
Aaron was
explaining how they were able to obtain a 48 percent efficiency level, when
Bill Nye suddenly interrupted him saying: “Forty-eight percent?”
“I have a
watch that’s solar powered that’s barely 10 percent! I’m not kidding,” Nye
exclaimed.
“Wow! You
should get some kind of award,” Nye told the smiling students.
While the
students were being interviewed, the President’s family dog, Bo, walked by and
was greeted enthusiastically.
Back
inside the White House, President Barack Obama stopped by the science fair
exhibits being displayed, and talked one-on-one with the excited students about
their particular project.
Many of us
also participated in our school’s science fairs.
Yours
truly, while in seventh grade, was occupied in creating an exhibit displaying
the planets of this solar system rotating around the sun.
I cleverly
named my science fair project: “The Revolution of the Planets.”
And yes,
this science project won a first-place blue ribbon, which I was very proud
about receiving.
Twitter
messages about this year’s White House Science Fair can be read using the
hashtag #WHScienceFair.
The webpage for the 2014 White House Science Fair is: http://www.whitehouse.gov/science-fair.
Bill Nye interviewing students on the lawn of the White House.
Source: White House live-streaming screen capture.
