February 3, 2006
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Uwchlan Hills Science Fair 2006
February 3, 2006 |
Got a question? Try looking for the answer here.
Questions about forms
Questions about projects
Questions about forms
What's the SRC?
SRC stands for Scientific Review Committee. Any project dealing with vertebrate animals, pathogenic agents, controlled substances, or recombinant DNA has to have its research plan approved by the SRC before any experiments begin. If it breathes and it isn't a bug, if it explodes, if it can make you sick, if you need special permission to work with it - then you need SRC approval.
What's the IRB?
IRB stands for Institutional Review Board. Any project dealing with human subjects has to have its research plan approved by the IRB before experiments begin. Every scientific study on people at every level has to pass this qualification. If you want to try to prove your brother's dumber than a hamster, you need IRB approval before you run him through a maze.
Do I need to fill out these forms?
Your packet contains forms that cover both individual and team projects - choose the one appropriate for your project. Your packet also contains forms petitioning SRC/IRB approval. If your project doesn't need SRC or IRB approval, then don't worry about these sections.
Can I be both parent/guardian and adult sponsor?
Yes.
Questions about projects
| Category | Including |
| Behavioral and Social Sciences | human and animal behavior, social and community relationships |
| Biochemistry | chemistry of life processes |
| Botany | plant life |
| Chemistry | nature and composition of matter |
| Computer Sciences | computers, computer programming |
| Earth Sciences | |
| Engineering | technology, applying scientific principles to manufacturing and practical uses, inventions |
| Environmental Science | |
| Mathematics | |
| Medicine and Health | diseases, health of humans and animals |
| Microbiology | |
| Physics | theories, principles, laws governing energy and its effect on matter |
| Zoology | animals |
| Consumer Science | testing of everyday things |
| Space Science | astronomy |
Which projects need SRC or IRB approval?
Projects that do not involve human subjects, vertebrate animals, pathogenic agents like bacteria and fungi, controlled substances or recombinant DNA require less paperwork. If your project falls into any of these areas, you need SRC/IRB approval.
The IRB (Institutional Review Board) reviews projects dealing with human subjects, and is made up of a school staff member, a person from the health care field, and a person with a science background. They need to review your research plan before you begin your project to make sure your methods are safe and ethical. The SRC (Scientific Review Committee) reviews projects dealing with vertebrate animals (fur, fins, feathers, or scales...), pathogenic agents, controlled substances, or recombinant DNA.
What steps do I need to follow for my science fair project?
What's an abstract?
An abstract is a short report that explains what your project was - and how you went about doing it - and what you learned from doing it. For more information, see "All About Abstracts" or download the pdf.
What do you mean by stand-alone poster?
Your poster should be able to stand up by itself - you may not have a wall behind your exhibit space to hang your poster up, so it will have to stand on your table space. Also, your poster should "stand alone" in that it should explain your project. (After all, you'll want to go see the show!)
You can buy tri-fold posterboard like this anywhere you can buy arts and crafts supplies. Your poster presents your project and sits on your table at the Science Fair. It should include:
What is science research?
You start with a science question, an idea you find interesting. Research involves finding information by observing and asking questions. You can find answers in books, magazines, on the Internet, or interviewing people who know about your subject. Be sure to write down where your answers come from.
Where can I get a good idea for my science fair project?
Talk to other people, like a classmate, or a teacher. Your librarian can point you toward books that are full of project suggestions. Lots of web sites are there to help kids come up with ideas for research, just check out our links page for a start. Look around you - what are you curious about?
How do I get started?
Once you have learned everything you can about your project idea, think of a way to express your research question as a statement that describes what you think will happen: your hypothesis. Then test that hypothesis to see if you were right. Before you start testing, check with an adult to make sure your experiment idea is a safe one. Write down what you find out. Relate what you found out (youre results) to your hypothesis. Where you right? Were you wrong? Why?
This process is called the Scientific Method. To learn more about the scientific method, see "Introducing the Scientific Method." For a step-by-step guide to planning your project, see "Planning Your Project 1-2-3."
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