Wanted: winning project: how can you tap into your interests to create a stellar science project? Judges offer you their advice

Every day is a good day for science! At least that's what Dexter, the boy genius on TV's Dexter's Laboratory, would say. But unless you're like the brainy cartoon character who spends his days in the lab, the thought of choosing a topic for your science project might seem daunting. No worries, says Sarah Gerin, a finalist in the Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge (DCYSC). "You can take pretty much anything and turn it into science if you just look," she says. That belief led Sarah to investigate the effects of secondhand smoke on spiders (see Tangled Webs, p. 14)--plus it earned her a prize in the DCYSC competition!

WHAT DO YOU LIKE?

The trick is to identify your interests and then come up with some questions about that topic. "The best projects are ones that have a personal tie to the individual--a challenge that will benefit them directly," says Mike Kenney, a judge for the Christopher Columbus Awards (CCA). He explains: "If a person in Tallahassee, Florida, is researching [the insulating properties of] goose down versus wool, there's no value in it for the kid."

That's why many competitions give awards for projects that solve a personal challenge or improve conditions in the local community. Take one team of finalists for the CCA: The students designed a color-coded tornado alarm. Why? Most alarms use sirens to warn people of twisters. Their new alarm alerts those who don't hear well--like their teacher, who is deaf (see Alarming Twisters, p. 10).

ONE STEP AT A TIME

Once you've pinned down your project idea, you'll want to keep in mind the scientific method, a step-by-step process that scientists use to perform experiments (p. 10). But remember, says Kenney: "The scientific method is an outline for a process to be followed that will hopefully lead to more questions. It's only meant as a guide."

Often the scientific method includes some heavy-duty data collection. So how will you ever make sense of it all? As Bryce Melton, another DCYSC finalist, found during his study of different sunblocks: It helps to organize your data into graphs (see The Scoop on Sunscreen, p. 18). Steven Jacobs, a judge for that competition, adds, "Just as a picture is worth a thousand words, well-thought-out charts and graphs can replace five minutes of verbal description." And when competition is stiff, that can make or break a project.

READY. SET, GO!

Now that you have a game plan, it's time to get down to business. As Dexter knows, the world can't save itself--sometimes it needs help from a scientist ... like you.