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Science Buddies News Updates Science Buddies Volunteer Makes Cover of EE Times Magazine (February 24, 2006) Science Buddies is proud to report that Candice Brown Elliott, a Science Buddies volunteer, has recently been recognized in the press for her pioneering work in visual display technology. Ms. Brown Elliott, founder and chief technology officer of Clairvoyante Inc., is revolutionizing the production of LCD panels, making them more energy efficient while increasing the brightness, color, and contrast seen by the human eye. As a leader in the world of communications technology, she has received many accolades for her innovations and involves herself in many organizations (including Science Buddies) to inspire more women to become engineers. Learn more about Ms. Brown Elliott and her accomplishments by visiting the links below.
High School Seniors Sought for National Youth Science Camp® Honors (February 14, 2006) Two high school seniors will receive a full scholarship to exchange ideas with scientists and other professionals from the academic and corporate worlds. The three-week experience includes lectures and hands-on research projects presented by scientists from across the nation; overnight expeditions into the National Forest; and a visit to Washington D.C. The selected delegates must not only demonstrate academic achievement in science, but also show potential for thoughtful scientific leadership. The 2006 National Youth Science Camp® (NYSC) experience is offered at no cost to its participants, so that selected delegates may attend regardless of their financial status. Contributions to the National Youth Science Foundation® allow delegates to participate in this "once in a lifetime" experience. Educational and recreational programming, as well as meals, lodging, and round-trip air passage on scheduled airlines are provided free of charge. Delegates arrive in Charleston, West Virginia, on Sunday, June 25, and depart on Sunday, July 16, 2005. The Science Camp is held at Bartow in the eastern mountains of West Virginia, near the Monongahela National Forest. Application forms are available on the Science Camp website at www.nysc.org and must be submitted directly to California's selection coordinator at the following address. The Application deadline is February 17, 2006. Karen Heinrich Science Buddies Home Page Redesigned (January 5, 2006) Visitors to Science Buddies will notice the homepage has received a slight makeover, and hopefully will find the changes an improvement to our old content. The menu on the left side of the screen has been simplified for easier navigation around the site. The first change to note is that "Science Project Ideas" on the left menu replaces the old menu link to "Project Ideas & Info by Area of Science." The new link sends users to the same page as before, and provides everything students need to get started on a project. The "Science Project Ideas" page also includes the information previously featured under the menu item, "Cutting Edge Projects." In addition, students looking for local science fairs can visit the "Science Fair Directory" from the homepage menu. The link was formerly named "Science Fairs Near You." To locate information on the Science Buddies organization, donations, volunteering, and the online store, users can scroll to the bottom of the page, and find the links under the copyright information. We hope you will find the redesign of the homepage helpful, and we look forward to bringing more changes to make a visit to Science Buddies as productive as possible. Science Buddies Mentors Win Big at Siemens Westinghouse Competition (January 5, 2006) Benjamin Pollack, a Science Buddies Mentor for the past two years, won a $50,000 team scholarship at the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science, & Technology with his project entitled, "Sexual Selection in Drosophilia: A Behavioral, Morphological, and Geographic Study." Pollack shares his prize with his teammate, Abhinav Khanna, a fellow senior at Plainview Old-Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School in Plainview, New York. Their winning project examined how female fruit flies select mates based on different morphological traits, and demonstrated sexual selection as a likely evolutionary mechanism. The results produced by their study may provide a greater understanding of trait evolution in most organisms. The team's mentor was Dr. John R. True, SUNY Stony Brook. Pollack and Khanna won at the regional level in November, where their project was judged by leading research scientists at Carnegie Mellon University. With a regional win, the team advanced to the National Finals held at New York University in December 2005. Pollack was a semifinalist at the 2004 Siemens Westinghouse Competition, and won 3rd place in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair last year. George Chen, another Science Buddies Mentor, earned a $1,000 runner-up award with his team at the Siemens Western Regional Competition at the University of California at Berkeley. His team's project, "Paladin: A New, Fast, and Secure Symmetric Block Cipher," concentrated on the development of a new encryption algorithm for protecting sensitive data. The Siemens Westinghouse Competition originated in 1998 to recognize America's best and brightest students in math, science, and technology. In 2005, over 1,500 students entered the competition to earn national renown for high school science projects. Congratulations to Ben and George for their fine work! (November 29, 2005) Science Buddies is currently conducting a contest for the best Starter Kit covering topics in a variety of technical fields. Through a generous donation by Autodesk, Inc., Science Buddies is able to offer the grand prize winner his or her choice of either Autodesk AutoCAD 2006 or Autodesk 3 ds max, which have approximate retail values of $3,750 and $3,495, respectively. Seven runners-up will also receive prizes. The deadline is April 30, 2006. Please see the complete contest rules: Autodesk Best Starter Kit Contest Official Rules New Computer Science Interest Area Page Available
(November 21, 2005) Explore the basics of computer programming on the new Computer Science Interest Area page. Follow the link below to find a set of four different JavaScript projects that together make a good tutorial for getting started at programming. You'll also discover an image file compression project and a project using a cool Java applet for making interactive diagrams to illustrate Geometry proofs (and a tutorial to go along with it). New Sports Science Pages Feature Project Ideas for Sports-Minded Students
(November 9, 2005) If you want to do a sports-related science fair project, you're in luck. We have projects related to soccer, baseball, football, tennis, hockey, and more. Click on the link below to see project ideas that apply science to sports. Who knows, by thinking scientifically about your favorite sport, your science fair project might even help you become a better athlete! Learn the Dos and Don'ts of Display Board Preparation on Our Updated Resource Pages
(November 9, 2005) Setting up a legible, professional, and organized display board requires a lot of work. Our overview of the right and wrong ways to display your science fair project will save you time in deciding how to arrange your presentation. Click on the link below for tips and photos on display board preparation. Discover the Secrets of Success at Top Science Competitions
(November 9, 2005) Every year more than two million students in grades K-12 enter a science competition. Of those, only several thousand students in grades 9-12 participate in the topmost levels of competition. Each of these competitions is distinctly different, but they all have extremely high standards for success, generally far beyond what is expected at other levels of competition. Please visit our Top Science Competitions page for fair-specific information; blogs, essays, and tips from Amber Hess, a Science Buddies Mentor who had great success in several top competitions; and a display board guide for top fairs. Best Genomics Presentation Competition Announced for 2005-2006 School Year (November 3, 2005)
Toyota USA Foundation Announces Four New Recipients of Mathematics and Science Education Awards (September 19, 2005) – New York, NY – The Toyota USA Foundation today announced that an additional four education organizations will receive awards totaling $498,469. Awarded semiannually, the funds will be used by these organizations to help implement programs that enhance the teaching of science and mathematics for K-12 grade students across the country. Award recipients are Wayne State University, Detroit, MI; Fairleigh Dickinson University, Teaneck, NJ; The Challenger Center for Space Education, Alexandria, VA; and Science Buddies (legal name: The Kenneth Lafferty Hess Family Charitable Foundation), Carmel, CA. "We are committed to education and supporting programs that emphasize the value of math and science to K-12 students," said Patricia Pineda, Group Vice President, Corporate Communications and General Counsel, of Toyota Motor North America, Inc. "Each of these four organizations have demonstrated an innovative approach to teaching and we are delighted to play a small role in helping them in their quest to improve their math and science initiatives." As part of the award, Wayne State University will receive $186,469 to expand and double the size of its successful Math Corps, by adding a second six-week summer camp. This will allow 200 junior and senior high school students from Detroit public and charter schools to participate in an intensive and rigorous mathematics' study program developed and directed by faculty members. A grant of $112,000 will allow Fairleigh Dickinson University's School of Computer Science and Engineering to implement the first year of an expanded, multi-year Technology Enrichment and Outreach Program (TEOP). This program is designed to strengthen and enhance the knowledge of upper-level high school students who are motivated and interested in science, engineering, mathematics and technology. The Challenger Center for Space Science Education will use its $150,000 award to develop and distribute space education materials, written in direct relation to the National Science Standards. The materials will be disseminated through Challenger Learning Centers around the U.S. to assist 3rd – 8th grade teachers and students in underserved and underprivileged school communities. An award of $50,000 will enable Science Buddies, www.sciencebuddies.org, to create new "How-To" online materials for 3rd – 8th –grade students and their teachers involved in science projects and science fairs. The materials will be based on the National Science Standards and the organization's successful 9th – 12th -grade Internet program. The Toyota USA Foundation is a $40 million charitable endowment created to support innovative education programs serving kindergarten through 12th grade in the United States, with special emphasis in the areas of mathematics and science. For additional information about the Toyota USA Foundation, visit www.toyota.com/foundation. For additional Science Buddies press releases, click here. Science Buddies Win Top Awards at Intel International Science & Engineering Fair
Science Buddies ISEF Participants:
Blog from Intel Science Talent Search (March 7, 2005) Science Buddies Mentor Amber Hess has done a blog from the Intel Science Talent Search competition in Washington, DC, where she participated as one of 40 finalists from across the nation. Science Buddies Mentors Score Big in National Science Competitions After submitting twenty page scientific papers describing their science research, six different Science Buddies Mentors received recognition in prestigious national competitions. Four Science Buddies Mentors have qualified as semifinalists in the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science & Technology. And four have also qualified as semifinalists in the Intel Science Talent Search, winning $1000 each as well as $1000 for their schools. Often considered the "junior Nobel Prize", the Intel Science Talent Search is America's oldest, pre-college science competition.
Molecular Sciences Institute Triples Award for Genomics Projects to $750 The Molecular Sciences Institute (MSI) works at the forefront of genomics, and to encourage students to learn more about this exciting area MSI has once again teamed up with Science Buddies to sponsor two awards for science projects in the area of genomics. This year students can win up to $750. Read more. Science Buddies Advisors Make Headlines with Bird Migration Discovery Science Buddies' volunteer Advisors William Cochran and Martin Wikelski recently had a paper published in the prestigious journal Science. The full article, entitled "Migrating Songbirds Recalibrate Their Magnetic Compass Daily from Twilight Cues," was published in the April 16, 2004 edition of the magazine. The journal called additional attention to the groundbreaking work of Cochran, Wikelski and their co-author, Henrik Mouritsen, by including a highlight piece entitled "Songbirds Check Compass Against Sunset to Stay on Course" in the beginning of the issue. The world took note. After Science published their article, the Associated Press picked up the story and many newspapers and other media across the country and in Europe followed. The team's research was supported by a grant from the National Geographic Society's Committee for Research and Exploration. A story explaining the team's exciting findings can be found on NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.COM. Congratulations from Science Buddies to William and Martin and Henrik on their fine accomplishment! |
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