Cool Ideas for Science Fair Projects

Look to your own interests when thinking of ideas for your science project.

The science fair is your chance to stand out from the crowd and strut your academic stuff. But finding a project that is both ambitious enough to wow the judges and cool enough to hold your own interest is a challenge. To get a competitive edge and nail down the cool factor you need to move beyond the safe and boring and go the extra mile.

Playing Detective

If you love a good mystery, a forensic-based science project may be the way to go. A forensic anthropologist is someone who can help solve a crime examining skeletal remains to determine the age, gender, race and height of the person. One good forensic-based science project is measuring the femur bone to determine how they compare to a person's height and gender. To do this project, you will need 20 volunteers, a tape measure, pencil and paper. Record each person's height and then measure the femur, or the long bone that stretches from the hip socket to the knee. Record your results and try to determine if and how the length of the bone corresponds to a person's height. (See References 1)

Do Looks Count?

According to an article by Catherine Rampell in the November 22, 2010 edition of "The New York Times," attractiveness is a factor when looking for a job. For this project, you will try to prove or disprove this theory. Look through magazines and cut out several pictures of men and women. Half of your photos should be of highly attractive individuals and the other half should be of less attractive individuals. To control for other biases, make sure the photos depict well-dressed people of approximately the same age and race. Ask volunteers to imagine that they had to hire one or more of these people for a job. Record who they would pick and why. Determine if looks really do matter, and, if so, whether men or women benefit more from an appearance-based bias. (See References 2)

Human Vs. Dog

If you've ever wondered who has the dirtier mouth -- a human or a dog -- then this project is for you. To find out, you will need to purchase some petri dishes, a substance known as agar that will make your bacteria grow and cotton swabs. Swab inside the mouth of each volunteer -- both human and canine -- and place the specimen in the dish. Then wait a week or so for bacteria to grow. Then you can record your findings and draw your conclusions. (See References 4)

All in the Family

Everyone has a unique fingerprint, but do certain print similarities run in families? For this experiment, you will take fingerprint samples from five or more different families and see if you can find similarities between parents and children. You will need an ink pad, index cards and a magnifying glass. Look for circular patterns, arches and mounds, and then note any distinct patterns children share with parents. Determine whether there is a link between genetics and fingerprints by comparing fingerprints between family members and non-family members. (See References 3)

References

• "Crime Scene Science Fair Projects"; Elizabeth Snoke Harris; 2006
• "The New York Times"; Business; Are Attractive People More Employable?; Catherine Rampell; November 22, 2010
• Education: Fingerprints? Do Parents and Children Share Similar Components; Murial Gerhard
• Science Ideas: Whose Mouth is Cleaner -- A Dog's or a Human's?