Schools with students in Grades 7-8 may enter two projects per category. Team projects (consisting of no more than 3 students) are allowed. Team projects will compete in the discipline category to which they are related. Schools with students in Grades 9-12 may enter two projects per category except in each engineering category. Refer to Project Focus Definitions.
| Category | Project Focus |
|---|---|
| Animal Sciences (AS) | Genetics (all but human); pathology; physiology; systematics (taxonomy, phylogeny, classification) |
| Behavioral and Social Sciences (BE) | clinical & developmental psychology; cognitive physiological psychology, sociology |
| Biochemistry (BI) | Chemistry of life processes: molecular biology, molecular genetics, enzymes, photosynthesis, blood, protein, or food chemistry; hormones |
| Chemistry (CH) | Analytical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry |
| Computer Science (CS) | Algorithms and data bases; artificial intelligence; networking and communications; graphics, simulations/virtual reality; computer and operating systems; computational science; software engineering |
| Engineering (EN—M&B) and (EN—E&B) Combined for Grades 7-8 (two entries); Separate categories for Grades 9-12 (one entry per sub-category) |
Materials & Bioengineering (EN—M&B) bioengineering; civil engineering;
constructional engineering; chemical engineering; industrial engineering; materials science Electrical and Mechanical (EN—E&M) electrical engineering; computer engineering; mechanical engineering; robotics |
| Earth & Space Sciences (ES) | climatology, weather; geochemistry; mineralogy; paleontology; geophysics; tectonics |
| Environmental Sciences (EV) | air pollution, air quality; soil contamination, soil quality; water pollution, water quality; bioremediation; environmental engineering; land resource management; recycling; waste management |
| Mathematics (MA) | algebra; geometry; probability and statistics; applied mathematics |
| Medicine & Health (MH) | disease diagnosis and treatment; epidemiology; human genetics; pathophysiology |
| Microbiology (MI) | bacteriology; virology; microbial genetics; antibiotics, antimicrobials |
| Physics & Astronomy (PA) | atoms, molecules, solids; instrumentation and electronics; nuclear and particle physics; optics, laser, theoretical physics; astronomy; planetary science |
| Plant Sciences (PS) | agriculture, agronomy, horticulture, forestry, plant taxonomy & evolution, plant physiology, plant pathology, plant genetics |
Additional information regarding team projects can be found in the 2007 International Rules for Pre-college Research: Guidelines for Science and Engineering. The goal of the regional fair is to allow students to exhibit projects that are similar in research focus in each category. Consistent identification of category place across individual schools is extremely important. Please call the Science Office if you have questions regarding the focus of specific project research. Regional Science Fair reserves the right to re-assign projects to ensure consistent and fair placement for competition.
Schools with students in grades 5 and 6 may enter one project per category. Team projects (consisting of no more than 2 students) are allowed and can be submitted to represent the category. Refer to Project Focus Definitions.
| Category | Project Focus |
|---|---|
| Animal Sciences (AS) | Animal genetics; animal husbandry; animal physiology; invertebrate and vertebrate studies (except behavioral studies) Behavioral & Social Sciences (BE) clinical & developmental psychology; cognitive physiology, sociology (This category includes linguistics, learning, perception; reading problems; public opinion surveys; educational testing.) |
| Chemistry (CH) | Analytical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, general chemistry. This category includes product testing—shampoos, dyes, detergents, diapers, markers, nail polish, etc.—plastics, fuels, pesticides |
| Computer Science (CS) | Algorithms and databases; networking and communications; graphics, simulations/virtual reality; computer and operating systems |
| Engineering & Mathematics (EM) | Technology applications: civil, mechanical, aeronautical, chemical, and industrial engineering; material science; robotics; algebra, geometry, probability and statistics (mathematical analysis of data) |
| Earth & Space Sciences (ES) | Geology, mineralogy, oceanography, climatology, weather, astronomy, seismology, paleontology |
| Environmental Sciences (EV) | Air pollution/quality; water pollution/quality; soil contamination/equality; bioremediation; environmental engineering; forestry, recycling, waste management |
| Medicine & Health (MH) | Disease diagnosis and treatment; epidemiology; human genetics; pathophysiology; antibiotics and antimicrobials (bacterial and yeast studies as they impact human health) (This category includes dentistry, pharmacology, ophthalmology, nutrition, pediatrics, dermatology, allergies, speech and hearing.) |
| Physics (PH) | atoms, molecules, and solids; magnetics and electromagnetics; nuclear and particle physics optics, acoustics |
| Plant Sciences (PS) | Agriculture, agronomy, horticulture, forestry, plant taxonomy and evolution, plant physiology, plant pathology, plant genetics, fungi studies |
The goal of the regional fair is to allow students to exhibit projects that are similar in research focus in each category. Consistent identification of category place across individual schools is extremely important. Please call the Science Office if you have questions regarding the focus of specific project research. The Regional Science Fair reserves the right to re-assign projects to ensure consistent and fair placement for competition.