Investigatory Projects Division
In this divisions, students perform an experiment and then
create a display explaining what their experiment was about and the results of
the experiment. Any experiment conducted between May 15, 2006 and the fair
date (March 15, 2008) is eligible to compete at the regional fair.
Please do not send me an email
asking me to give you an investigatory project.
You need to come up with the project on your own with the help of your teachers,
parents, or a researcher. You can email me with a question about your project
after you have decided on a project (particularly if you are unsure whether you
need prior IRB or SRC approval).
Application (Word
Format) Application can be mailed up to the day of
the fair. You can also register the day of the fair. Applications
received before March 10 will appear in the program.
Projects in this division are eligible to go
onto the the Intel ISEF in Atlanta, GA, May 11-17, 2008 so they must adhere to the rules
of that fair and will need to fill out the same forms required for that
fair. A complete list of those rules, a rules wizard, and all forms is available at the Intel
ISEF site.
Any project that involves
humans, non-human vertebrates*, human tissues, pathenogenic or potentially
pathenogenic substances, controlled substances, or recombinant DNA must have
approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) or a Scientific Review
Committee (SRC) before the experiment begins. If prior
approval is not received, the project will be disqualified immediate. If
your school does not have an SRC or IRB, you can have the project reviewed by
the SRC for the fair. Contact the fair director at 304-442-3202 or deborah.beutler@mail.wvu.edu.
*The definition of a
non-human vertebrate includes any live, non-human mammal, bird, reptile,
amphibian (including frogs), and fish. It also includes any non-human
mammal embryos or fetuses and reptile and bird eggs within 72 hours of
hatching. It includes animals kept as pets, such as dogs, cats, and
aquarium fish. If you have any questions about whether your animal is a
vertebrate, contact the fair director at 304-442-3202 or deborah.beutler@mail.wvu.edu.
Projects can be entered in the following categories:
Behavioral
and Social Sciences:
Scientific principles applied to studies of factors affecting
human or animal behavior, scientific principles applied to sociological studies.
Biochemistry
and Microbiology:
Chemistry of life processes - molecular biology, molecular
genetics, enzymes, photosynthesis, blood chemistry, protein chemistry, food
chemistry, hormones, etc. Biology of microorganisms - bacteriology, virology,
protozoology, fungi, bacterial genetics, yeast, etc.
Botany:
Agriculture, agronomy, horticulture, forestry, plant biorhythms,
palynology, plant anatomy, plant taxonomy, plant physiology, plant pathology,
plant genetics, hydroponics, algology, mycology, etc.
Zooloqy/Medicine
Health/Gerontology:
Animal genetics, ornithology, ichthyology, herpetology,
entomology, animal ecology, anatomy, paleontology, cellular physiology, animal
biorhythms, animal husbandry, cytology, histology, animal physiology,
neurophysiology, invertebrate biology, diseases and health of humans and
animals, dentistry, pharmacology, pathology, ophthalmology, nutrition,
sanitation, pediatrics, dermatology, allergies, speech and hearing, aging
process in living organisms.
Chemistry:
Physical chemistry, organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry,
analytical chemistry, materials, plastics, fuels, pesticides, metallurgy, soil
chemistry, etc.
Computer
Science:
Original computer applications, software of a general quantitative or
algorithmic nature, etc.
Earth/Space
Sciences/Environmental Sciences: Geology, geophysics, physical
oceanography, meteorology, atmospheric physics, seismology, petroleum,
geography, speleology, mineralogy, topography, optical astronomy, radio
astronomy, astrophysics, pollution (air, water, and land) sources and their
control, ecology.
Mathematics:
Calculus, geometry, abstract algebra, number theory, statistics,
complex analysis, probability, topology, logic, operations research, and other
topics in pure and applied mathematics
Physics:
Solid state, optics, acoustics, particle, nuclear, atomic,
plasma, superconductivity, fluid and gas dynamics, thermodynamics,
semiconductors, magnetism, quantum mechanics, biophysics, etc.
Engineering:
Civil, mechanical, aeronautical, chemical, electrical, photographic,
sound, automotive, marine, heating and refrigerating, transportation,
environmental engineering, etc. Power transmission and generation, electronics,
communications, architecture, bioengineering, lasers, computers,
instrumentation, hardware, firmware, and systems software design, configuration,
construction and testing, etc.
Team
Project: Teams may consist of up to three
members. Projects must be of an investigatory nature and may involve any of the
above listed categories.