Natural World And AI Take Top Honors at Middle School Science Fair

CROSS RIVER, NY —If necessity is the mother of invention, for these local budding scientists, curiosity was the inspiration for a fascinating journey of exploration.

From Katonah-Lewisboro Schools

Emmett Barrow went clamming on Martha’s Vineyard. When he returned the next day, at the exact same time, the beach was covered in water. The sixth grader was curious. "Why is low tide at different times?"

Rachel Horesh has two cats: Simba, who meows most when waiting for food, and Milky, who purrs when brushed. “Do cats have a verbal form of communication?” the seventh grader wondered. “If so, then can we translate it using artificial intelligence?”

Emmett’s investigation, "Tides of March," and Rachel’s project, "Cat Chat," were awarded Outstanding at John Jay Middle School’s Science Fair on March 6.

"The judges and I were very impressed at the quality of work done by students" said Zach Miller, earth science teacher and organizer of the fair.

The students took scientific principles explored in school and independently applied them to areas of personal interest.

Three projects work were awarded Honorable Mention:

Gulliver Kyle and Abyl Valiamplackal built balloon-powered cars out of toothpaste boxes to prove Newton’s Laws of Motion.

Neha Nitta compared data generated by people doing various tasks while wearing a device that records brain activity for "Introduction to Brain Computer Interfaces."

Finlay Cameron and Peter Koch displayed their understanding of how to conduct a survey and generate data for their project "How Frequency of Training Affects Rock Climbing Ability."

"Students who participated in the science fair did excellent, self-motivated, original scientific investigations that emphasized their drive to understand a variety of real-world phenomena," said Miller.