From fingerprints to magnets: Students put science research up for judging at fair

Hypothesis, method, results. “Why?” “What if?”

Those concepts and questions were the focus of three-panel cardboard backdrops with decorations and students standing by Tuesday at the Show Me Center during the 61st annual Southeast Missouri Regional Science Fair.

Two hundred fifty-two projects by 609 students were entered in 2017’s fair.

According to information provided by director Chris McGowan, this is up from 565 students in 2016 and 477 in 2015.

Students in the junior division of seventh and eighth grades could enter as individuals or teams. Twelve categories, including engineering, math and computer science, microbiology and zoology, were available.

Students walk towards their projects for judging during the Southeast Missouri Regional Science Fair on Tuesday at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau.Andrew J. Whitaker

Topping the list with a total number of individual projects entered were physics with 50 and chemistry with 59. Physics and engineering were the most popular team efforts, with 23 entries each.

In the senior division, students in grades nine through 12 could enter one of seven categories including botany, environmental and chemistry, with chemistry the most popular category in individual and team projects.

McGowan, who has served as director for 16 years, said his favorite aspect of the fair is the judging.

“I like the excitement on their faces when the judges talk to them,” he said of the participants.

Several experiments were science-fair classics. Egg drops, soil erosion, weather events and paper planes all were in evidence, as were other queries.

From left, Lucas Meier, Conner Marshall and Connor Bainter play Monopoly during the Southeast Missouri Regional Science Fair on Tuesday at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau.Andrew J. Whitaker

Oak Ridge High School’s Brynn Myers’ experiment examined whether it was possible to eliminate fingerprints by spraying them with WD-40.

“Criminals do this at crime scenes,” she said, “and I wanted to see if the WD-40 was covering up the prints or mixing with them, how it works.”

Myers ran four tests using car fenders and her fingerprints and found different reactions with each chemical she used.

“I want to study forensics in college,” she said, adding this was her third year having a project in the fair and her third project involving forensics.

Amber Daniels and Claryssa Martin of Richland presented their experiment, titled “Leaf It to the Music,” about the effects of music on plant growth. Their teammate, Destiny Eberley, was absent.

Judging of the Southeast Missouri Regional Science Fair began Tuesday at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau.Andrew J. Whitaker

“We played classical music for five days,” Martin said. “It got pretty annoying. But that plant did grow faster and live longer than the control plant.”

They used English ivy in pots, Martin said.

“We came across that experiment and thought it was interesting,” she said.

“We thought it was neat that the plant did grow faster,” Daniels said.

“It was only one millimeter, but still,” Martin said.

Judge Kelly Barnes, who is working on her master’s degree in nutrition and exercise science at Southeast Missouri State University, where she is a graduate assistant. judged the Medicine and Health category at the fair.

“I’ve never been a judge before, but I remember participating in a fair just like this one in St. Louis when I was a student,” she said, adding it was helpful having been in their shoes before.

“This is so great, like seeing the future,” Barnes said.

Max Gordon and Ethan Stark of Twin Rivers-Qulin wanted to know the best ingredients for compost. “Cooking Up Compost” explored three combinations of common compost materials: clover, oak leaves, lettuce and straw.

“We put different mixes in each bag and left them outside in the sun for 10 days,” Gordon said. “We found Bag 2, with clover, oak leaves and lettuce, had the highest internal temperature.”

He said that meant the mixture would break down the fastest and be the best choice.

Stark said the surprising part was, for him, when the internal temperatures went from 59 to 60 degrees to 140 degrees Fahrenheit in one day.

“It was so sudden,” he said.

Abby White and Cassidy Gentry of Malden tested the strength of magnets based on temperature. Four identical magnets were exposed to four conditions: boiling water, room temperature, cold water and frozen, then made one pass over scattered paper clips.

“The freezer one performed best,” White said.

Gentry said, “In the cold, the atoms contract, meaning the power is more concentrated, and the magnet can pick more up.”

Dee Cannon at the registration table said the staff were excited about the increase in participants this year.

“We’re excited; the students are excited,” she said.

Added Cannon, “It’s neat to see kids so excited about science.”

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3630

Pertinent address:

1333 N. Sprigg St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.