Science is discovery. When you combined a science project with a chance at winning a discovery award, you get the opportunity to enter a national competition. This recently happened to three Kimball elementary school students. The effect of temperature on a ball Travis Erickson completed his project on how a basketball bounces in different temperatures. He chose this topic because he plays basketball and was interested in learning more about the sport. While standing on a ladder, Erickson dropped basketballs from a six-foot height. His brother stood on the ground and recorded how high the ball bounced after the big drop. Erickson explained, “In colder air the ball doesn’t bounce as high.” He was excited to use this knowledge to his benefit in games. “I can be a better basketball player by keeping the ball warmer so it will bounce better.” Acids and plant growth Nicollette Eisenreich studied plants and researched how household acids affected their growth. She chose this topic while working in her science teacher, Ms. Benardy’s classroom. To begin her project, Eisenreich grew bean plants from seeds. Then she picked three household acids to use in the project. She chose Lime-Away, Armstrong and Lysol. Eisenreich measured out four teaspoons of household acids and four teaspoons of water. She used these mixtures as a food source and compared them to the control plant which was fed with eight teaspoons of water. Eisenreich findings were that, “All of the plants wilted with the different acids except water.” Water and air pressure Sam Donabauer tested how water pressure can affect a person’s ability to breath. She simulated how snorkels work under water by filling a garbage can full of water. Next, she banded straws together to represent a snorkel. She clasped a balloon at the end of the straws with a clip to symbolize the bodies’ lungs and air pockets. For her project, Donabauer blew up the balloon outside of the water through the straw. She measured how easy this was compared to blowing up the balloon at different depths of water in the garbage can. She found that “if you were too deep into the water, you wouldn’t be able to draw a breath.” Donabauer got the idea for her project out of a book at school. She described how she enjoyed making her project display board. “I painted my board blue and added texture with an ocean sponge.” Donabauer creatively used fish with faces of her family and friends to decorate her board along with green tissue for seaweed and bubbles from bubble wrap. Each student participated in the Central Minnesota Regional Science Fair in St. Cloud. They were each awarded a trophy for their work. These three students now have the opportunity to write a paper on their project and submit it for the national Discovery award. If they are chosen to go onto the national competition they will present their projects in Washington D.C.
