Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I am trying to fill out a Informed Consent form for my experiment and ISEF forms and I'm having trouble thinking of risks that might happen. Do you know of any? For my experiment I am having my test subjects walk across a floor balance beam as many times as they can before falling or stepping off. They will also be using no pole, a short pole, and a long pole. Please respond ASAP. Please and Thank You.

Hi there,

With a balance beam, there is a risk that your subjects could injure themselves during a fall. Even though it's a floor beam, it would be fairly easy for someone to twist an ankle.

Hope that helps.
Heather

I definitely agree, twisting an ankle would be possible if someone were to fall off of the balance beam. In addition, I think that you could include fracturing an arm or a similar injury. Even though it is less likely, it is possible that someone would fall in an awkward way.

Hope this helps!
Nithin Tumma