Laura Ohl's Projects, Lessons, Activities

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

What do plants need to grow? Most of us would answer that they need light, air, water, and soil. But by using a process called hydroponics, you can grow plants without soil! How does it work? Try this project and see for yourself! Read more

Simple Lie Detector Test

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever watched a great sports player and imitated his or her moves over and over again? Or have you ever felt really bad when someone got hurt or things just weren't going his or her way? If so, you might be surprised to learn that you have been practicing skills closely tied to lying! In this science fair project, you'll discover how your brain gets a workout when it moves from truth-telling to lying, and how you can detect the shift. That's no lie! Read more

Removing Microplastics from Water with Ferrofluids

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever walked next to your favorite ocean, lake, or creek and seen plastic waste everywhere? Have you ever thought about how much plastic breaks down into microplastics and pollutes waterways? Scientists are coming up with new ways to remove these microplastics from our waterways, and now you can test them out for yourself at home. Read more

Hydroponics Made Easy

STEM Activity

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Do you think plants can grow without soil? If you've tried growing vegetables, you probably planted the seeds or seedlings in soil. Soil gives the plants the nutrients they need to grow. However, plants can grow without soil, too, using a process called hydroponics. In this activity, you will transform a bottle into a mini-garden that needs only light, air, and nutrient-rich water to grow! Read more

Tracking SARS-CoV-2 Spread from Wastewater

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever wanted to know where hot spots of infection are or see how viruses spread? Are you interested in seeing how this changes over time? Check out our new science project that uses data visualization tools and tested wastewater data to track the virus that causes COVID-19 over time. Read more

Teaching Machines to Understand Sign Language

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Can AI understand human language? In the future, AI could aid in emergency interpretive service in the hospital when translators aren't available. But can current AI algorithms understand non-verbal languages like sign language? In this science project, you will test whether AI can learn sign language gestures or phrases to see if it can be used for interpretation. Read more

Upcycle Paper Products into Plantable Seed Paper

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you ever have notebooks and papers left over from the school year? Do you recycle them? What if you could use them to start your garden instead? In this science project, you will upcycle old paper into seed cards and test how paper compares to other materials as a fertilizer! Read more

Exploring the Impact of Social Media on Mental Health with Machine Learning

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you ever wonder if you spend too much time online? How can the amount of time spent on social media influence someone's mental health? What other factors play a role? In this science project, you will investigate which variables correlate with better mental health scores using a machine learning algorithm called the Random Forest algorithm. Read more

Test and Change the Air Quality of Your Environment

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you ever wonder if the air inside is cleaner or dirtier than the air you breathe outside? In this science experiment, you will test it using an air quality monitor. Have you ever wondered how lighting a candle in your room impacts your air quality? Did you cook and not turn on the fan? How did it affect your breathing, and how did it impact the air quality? In this project, you can see how these environmental factors can improve or worsen the air you breathe every day. Read more

Using AI to Detect Proper Exercise Form

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Have you ever wondered how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to improve human health and medicine? Computers can now identify human joints as key points to track our body movements. They can then use this information along with training data sets to show us if we perform exercises safely, to prevent us from getting injured. Create your own data set and test out if your algorithm can reliably detect good and bad exercise form. Read more

Laura Ohl's Projects, Lessons, Activities (31 results)

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