Science Fair 7th Grade
by Ishan Deshmukh and Ayan Deshmukh
The winners for the Science Fair have been announced, and three teams of 7th grade winners have earned the right to be able to represent our school at the 2024 California State Science Fair. We interviewed the winning teams to find out more about their projects.
1st Place: Kavan Manthena and Aidan Khan
“The Construction of Affordable and Effective Smart Glasses”
Kavi and Aidan’s winning project examined how to manufacture smart glasses in a more economical way in order to bring this technology to more people.
How did you come up with your project? How did you develop your hypothesis?
We started by compiling a list of projects from online sources and eventually settled on the idea of smart glasses. We wondered if we could assemble a more affordable version of the modern smart glasses. What if we could assemble a cheaper version for everyday use?
What problems did you encounter over the course of your design process?
Our original design contained a 3D-printed compartment, but because of a broken 3D printer, we had to improvise with cardboard. If we could improve our design, then we would use 3D printed components.
What were the results of your project?
Our project first consisted of a pair of blue light glasses, which help reduce eye strain because of the glasses' blue light absorbent properties. From there, we attached a cardboard brace with an Arduino Nano wired to a micro OLED screen, which is a display screen that uses pixels to control and emit its own light. This Arduino Nano is an open-source breadboard-friendly microcontroller board, based on a microchip microcontroller, but more user-friendly. In combination with a power source, it is able to display information on its screen using precoded, uploaded information. Utilizing C++, we coded the Arduino to print various information onto the OLED screen, such as daily agenda items. Using the Adafruit GFX software, we could theoretically also display weather and time. As a result, we created a pair of glasses able to display information on a screen mounted on a cardboard arm on the side of our glasses, which appeared in front of the wearer's vision.
If you had more time, what would you like to change or do differently?
There was a problem with battery storage. Lithium polymer batteries were the original plan, but they proved to be dangerous, so a power bank was used instead with a micro USB-B connection. We could also make a 3D printed case to replace the cardboard for added durability. We also wanted to add a Bluetooth module to allow for a connection to your phone. If it was Bluetooth-enabled, then you could see messages in the glasses delivered from your phone. This proved impossible at this stage because of how complicated coding the Bluetooth proved to be.
What is the significance of your project?
The glasses offer convenience and ease of use to those with less money in their pockets, especially in countries with less advantages.
What was your favorite part of the project?
That the end prototype proved to be functional.
2nd Place: Joey Tsao and Reyang Pelkyi
“An Eggs-cellent Chiffon Cupcake”
Joey and Reyang devised an experiment to find what temperature of egg whites makes the best chiffon cupcake in regard to its fluffiness. They got their idea for this experiment by noticing that many recipes for cupcakes required egg whites to be used at different temperatures.
How did you come up with your project? How did you develop your hypothesis?
By scrolling on social media and cooking blogs, we found recipes that needed egg whites at different temperatures: from the freezer, from the refrigerator, at room temperature, and from a hot-water bath. So we developed our hypothesis through knowledge of baking we already had and by comparing different recipes. We thought the warmed egg whites would do the best, because the proteins would denature.
What problems did you encounter over the course of your design process?
We wanted to measure the “squishiness” of the cupcake as a metric to determine its fluffy quality, which is the preferred quality in chiffon cupcakes. We figured that the more it squished, the more air it was comprised of. At first, we stacked quarters to see how much the cupcake compressed, but ultimately we used a cup filled with coins to measure squishiness.
What were the results of your Science Fair project?
We found that cold egg whites produced the greatest amount of “squishiness.” In addition, it turned out that the process of whipping the egg whites had more of an effect on the outcome than we had realized.
If you had more time, what would you like to change or do differently?
We could change the independent variable. Instead of only the temperature of the egg whites, we could also experiment with different types of fat, such as oil or butter. We could also go beyond cupcakes to experiment with different types of proteins, such as chicken, beef, and pork, to determine which tenderizing agents creates more tender meat.
What is the significance of your project?
Our results can help cooks save time on whipping and to help churn out better cupcakes faster.
3rd Place: Aidan Barragan and Keaton Dornfeld
“Extendable Arm”
The 3rd place winners presented a project inspired by Iron Man.
What is your project?
It’s an extendable arm prototype, cut out of wood, with rubber bands, string, and hooks to articulate the hand. We had to use the rubber bands to generate force in a coordinated manner so that the knuckles could mimic the way a human hand moves. In addition, we used small zip ties to connect the fingers of the extendable arm to a person’s hand. The design was a prototype, and we want to eventually improve the grasp of the opposable thumbs.
How did you come up with your project? How did you develop your hypothesis?
We just brainstormed the idea when thinking of something that could improve everyday life. Having farther reach was the goal, and this idea came from how Aiden was inspired by the design of Iron Man, so he wanted to create something similar to that.
What problems did you encounter over the course of your design process?
At first we thought we would use metal and coding, but eventually after realizing the difficulty, we switched to a more mechanical design. To make sure the design would have force in all directions, we used an X-pattern of rubber bands attached to hooks. The grasp aspect was extremely difficult with our limited materials. Also, having to calculate the weight and the size of the controlling strings proved troublesome.
If you had more time, what would you like to change or do differently?
We would probably improve the opposable thumbs, in addition to the grasp aspect, with the thumb causing the most difficulty. The fingers were also not as grippy as we would have liked.
What is the significance of your project?
To enable people to reach farther. We also showed how you can imitate human anatomy with an articulated wooden hand.
What did you enjoy most about your project?
Fixing the problems, as well as how the design looked. We actually didn’t think we’d get as far as we did with it. It felt very satisfying to wear and use the arm.