After a year-and-a-half process of experimenting and hypothesizing, McNicholas sophomores and juniors were selected to participate in the 38th Annual McNicholas Science Fair on Thursday, Jan. 26.
Students chose and performed their experiment when they took Biology, which can be taken as a freshman or sophomore, as well as researching information to expand their ideas. They then finalized their projects in their following science course.
Students were chosen to compete based on the distinctiveness of their projects. This includes something that makes their project stand out, such as an uncommon topic or unexpected results. Many students were also nominated so that they could expand on and improve their projects.
“Strong data, interesting topic, something that is unique in some way. That would probably be the biggest criteria,” Science Department Chair and Teacher Ms. Mary Dennemann said.
Out of all the nominees, a total of 34 students competed. Students were separated into groups of three and presented in front of 2-3 judges.
Competing at the Science Fair gives students a chance to learn how to be defensive and sell an idea or project in a mature and academic setting. This is a skill that many people use in the workplace to initiate plans.
“Anything that you do in life, you’re probably going to have to defend your thoughts,” Dennemann said.
Sophomore Lila Moeves, the winner, will move on to compete in the UC Regional Science Fair. Her project was “Which Disinfectant is Most Effective in Killing E. coli Bacteria?”
“I was surprised and honored, and am very excited for the district competition,” Moeves said.
The McNicholas Milestone 