Student ingenuity on show at NIWA Auckland Science Fair
Science students from around Auckland are putting their ingenuity and analytical skills on the line at next week’s
annual NIWA Auckland City Science and Technology Fair.
More than 300 students have entered this year’s fair from about 26 Auckland schools.
This year the student with the best project will win the NIWA premier award of $600. There is also a wide range of
categories which carry cash prizes for the winners.
Organisers of this year’s fair say the standard of entries continues to be extremely high.
“Science and technology fairs are all about getting students to think about the world around them and solve real-life
problems. The students come up with new ideas and technologies that have real potential to become business enterprises.
“This is a great opportunity to view innovative and interesting ideas from our future scientists.”
Among the projects entered this year include:
Stream Water Saviour – a senior student project using biofilms of bacteria to purify stream water.
Let It Grow – a junior project comparing chemical fertilisers with homemade fertiliser comprising eggshells, banana
peels and Epsom salt to see which one makes plants grow faster.
Lung Capacity – students designed their own device to measure student lung capacity to test whether students who
practised singing or sports had better lung capacity.
Zapped Seeds – seeds were placed in a microwave for different times to determine if they germinated faster.
Judging for the NIWA Auckland City Regional Science and Technology Fair takes place on Friday and is open to the public
on Friday from 5-9pm and on Saturday from 9am-5pm. It is being held at Epsom Girls’ Grammar School hall, Silver Rd,
Epsom, Auckland. Prizegiving is on Monday.
NIWA wishes all students entering the fair the very best of luck. NIWA is also a major sponsor of the South and East
Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Canterbury and Westland, and Wellington Science and Technology Fairs.
ends