Students set out hypotheses, conducted tests and calculated their results as they prepared entries for the Okanagan Skaha School District’s science fair.
The fair was held at Summerland Secondary School on March 5. There were between 50 and 70 students from Summerland and Penticton in the fair.
Koen Buckingham, a Summerland Middle School student, began his science fair project with an urban legend.
The legend is that a dog’s mouth is cleaner than a human’s mouth, a claim Buckingham questioned.
“I thought dogs’ mouths were going to be dirtier than humans’ mouths,” he said, explaining that dogs do not practice dental hygiene the way humans do.
After taking saliva samples from dogs and people, Buckingham grew bacteria and analyzed it. He discovered higher bacteria levels in the samples taken from dogs than in the samples taken from people.
“My hypothesis is correct,” he said. “Dogs have more bacteria in their moths than humans.”
Charley Smith, a Penticton Secondary School student, examined alternative fuels for vehicles.
His entry included a hydrogen fuel cell he had designed and a prototype for a wood-fuelled car.
Smith said he has worked on his entry for the past three years.
He would like to test his wood- and water-powered vehicles at the Penticton Speedway in the future.
Grant Mansiere of Summerland Secondary School studied how various eye colours are affected by blue light.
He said blue eyes let in more blue light than other eye colours. The blue light affects circadian rhythms.
This means blue-eyed people are more strongly affected by the blue light from electronic screens.
Mansiere has entered science fairs in the past and took his project to the national level last year.
“I enjoy learning about my topic and presenting my project,” he said. “I’m presenting myself with facts to back me up.”
Science winners to advance to regional fair
Top entries from the Okanagan Skaha School District’s science fair will advance to the Regional Science Fair next month.
A total of 30 projects were selected to move on to the next level.
Grant Mansiere of Summerland Secondary School placed first with Is It Fair To Be Fair.
Duncan Robinson of KVR Middle School finished second with Cher Ou Pas The Vert. Jacqueline Mansiere of Summerland Middle School finished third with An Eye for Colour. Isabella Gunderson of KVR Middle School was fourth with Let It Float and Mary Benoit of Summerland Middle School was fifth with Feasible Filtering.
Several other Summerland students will also advance to the Regional Science Fair:
Koen Buckingham, Would You Kiss Your Dog
Simon Carter, Don’t Curdle Your Herbal Part 2
Esunda Manuel, Which Pop is Worst for Your Teeth
Savanna Switzer, Can More Expensive Soap Kill Germs Better?
The Regional Science Fair will be held at Summerland Secondary School on April 11. It will include students from Kelowna to Osoyoos.
The top entries at that fair will proceed to the national science fair May 14 to 16 at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, N.B.
