/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/21464/5/sb-logo.png){kind=logo}
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/21464/5/sb-logo.png){kind=logo}
Middle School, Pure Mathematics Science Projects (25 results)
Wikipedia defines mathematics as "the study of quantity, structure, space and change." With a definition like that, it's easy to see why math is often called "the language of science." Math is essential for analyzing and communicating scientific results, and for stating scientific theories in a way that is clear, succinct, and testable.
|
Select a resource
Coding Projects
Sort by
|
This a straightforward, but interesting, project in geometry. It is a good first proof to try on your own. You should be able to figure it out by yourself, and you'll gain insight into a basic property of circles.
Figure 1 below shows a semicircle (AE, in red) with a series of smaller semicircles (AB, BC, CD, DE, in blue) constructed inside it. As you can see, the sum of the diameters of the four smaller semicircles is equal to the diameter of the large semicircle. The area of the larger…
Read more
If you like to play Tetris, then you might like this project. You will learn something interesting about the mathematics of complex shapes as you try to prove Pick's Theorem.
The strange shape below is an example of a lattice polygon, which is a polygon whose vertices lie on points in the plane that have integer coordinates.
As you can see, it is a complex shape, but there is an easy way to calculate its area, by simply counting lattice points!
If you count the number of lattice points on…
Read more
Take shots at a set distance from the basket, but systematically vary the angle to the backboard. For a basic project: How do you think your success rate will vary with angle? Draw a conclusion from your experimental results. A bar graph showing success rate at different angles can help to illustrate your conclusion. For a more advanced project: Use your knowledge of geometry and basketball to come up with a mathematical expression to predict your success rate as a function of angle…
Read more
If you've ever played or watched basketball, you might already know that your chances of successfully banking a shot on the backboard are higher in certain positions on the basketball court, even when keeping the distance from the hoop the same. Ever wondered what would account for this? Do you think you could actually explain this using geometry? This science project will put your knowledge of geometry and algebra to good use. You will calculate and quantify how much more difficult it is to…
Read more
If you have ever tried to hit a target (such as a trash can) with a wad of paper, you know that aim is everything. But it is not always easy to get it right every time! Missing is not that big a deal with a wad of paper, but what if you were in an invading army in the Middle Ages, using a catapult to hurl huge stones and knock down castle walls? For a successful invasion, it would be important to know exactly how far, and how reliably, a catapult could launch a projectile. In this project you…
Read more
People often draw conclusions from a small number of observations, and use those conclusions to evaluate the likelihood that an event will take place. But how easy is it to draw the wrong conclusion based on those observations? Will your predictions be accurate if an experiment is only performed a few times? The objective of this project is to determine what happens when a test with two equally-likely outcomes is performed only a small number of times.
You can test this by flipping a coin. A…
Read more
Block off one-third of a soccer net with a cone, 5-gallon bucket or some other suitable object. Shoot into the smaller side from a set distance, but systematically varying the angle to the goal line. Take enough shots at each angle to get a reliable sample. How does success vary with angle? For a basic project: How do you think your success rate will vary with angle? Draw a conclusion from your experimental results. A bar graph showing success rate at different angles can help to…
Read more
Almost all of the games we play are based on math in some way or another. Card games, board games, and computer games are designed using statistics, probabilities, and algorithms. Begin by reading about games and game theory. Then you can choose your favorite game and investigate the mathematical principles behind how it works. Can combinatorial game theory help you to win two-player games of perfect knowledge such as go, chess, or checkers? (Weisstein, 2006; Watkins, 2004) In a multi-player…
Read more
This project challenges you to figure out how to make geometric patterns with Rubik's Cube. Leaving your cube in one of these positions makes it much more tempting to pick it up and 'fix' it. Can you figure out how to make a checkerboard, or a cube-within-a-cube? Can you make only the center piece a different color from the rest? Can you figure out how to solve the cube from these positions?
Read more
Many industries rely on scale models to develop new products and designs. Architects, industrial designers, artists, clothing designers, and car manufacturers all use scale models. Each model is built to a scale that relates the actual object to the model through a ratio. Can you determine a formula for constructing a scale model? You can use your formula to make a model of your house, school, neighborhood, or town (CUBE, 2002). You can make scale models of the Wright Brothers aircraft…
Read more
|
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/20483/6/icon-flask.png){kind=icon}
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/2152/3/Math_img013.gif)
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/6512/6/lattice-polygon.jpg)
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/5511/10/Safe-area.jpg)
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/4415/20/ping-pong-catapult-labeled.jpg)
/-/https/www.sciencebuddies.org/Files/2756/3/Math_img054.jpg)
/-/https/img.youtube.com/vi/bOyksqTQBgc/0.jpg)
/-/https/img.youtube.com/vi/STl3JCwdOIY/0.jpg)
/-/https/img.youtube.com/vi/YxOSHj_kVlA/0.jpg)