Science Fair Projects - Complete Guide to a Winning Science Project Step 2 - Topic Research

First, get yourself a spiral notebook to be used as your journal. All science fair projects need to have notes taken as you work though them. This notebook is where you will record your topic research and your project research. It should have your ideas as well as those you get from printed information or from other people. It will also need to include descriptions of your experiment along with diagrams, graphs and other recorded notes of your results.

You will want all information written in the journal to be as neat as possible and make sure to include the date. This will be your complete and accurate record of your project from beginning to end. The information in the journal will be used to write your written report. Your journal will be displayed with your completed project.

Selecting a Topic

You want to get the best grade possible on your project, win awards at the fair and learn anything new about science you can. Judges will evaluate the science fair projects on a number of criteria. You will be able to achieve some or all of these as long as you spend the time working on your project it needs, so you will want to choose a topic you are interested in. If you can, it is best to choose a topic and stick with it. Don't bounce around from topic to topic.

Look at the World Around You

By using an exploring question you can turn things you see everyday into a science project. For an example, the grass in your neighbor's yard is always greener than in your yard. Why is his grass greener than ours? You have a question about plants. Could you turn it into a project? If you keep thinking about it, you might start to realize there is some nutrient in his soil that is not in yours.

If you keep your eyes and ears open and you start asking more exploring questions, you will find numerous things that could be turned into a project. You may wonder about the difference in paints. There are many questions you may have, but you don't always ask them.

Find a Topic in Science Magazines

If you find a topic in a science magazine, do not expect them to come with instructions on how to do the experiment. You will have to come up with that one on your own. Just look at facts that seeming interesting to you. If they lead you to ask and exploring question, you may have a project topic. You can even try looking into a science fair project book or Science Experiment Books.

Three Steps to a Topic

You have decided to enter a project into the science fair, but you really don't know where to start. The first thing you have to do is come up with a project idea. Start with a topic that interests you will have fun and learn something while working on this project. Here are a few hints for coming up with a project idea.

Look at these ideas and find a topic that interests you.

People
Animals
Plants
Rocks
Space
Weather
Electricity

There are many projects you can come up with using any one of these topic ideas. Come up with a question you have about one of these topics. You can start off with a simple question and make it a better question. Such as, "Why does it rain?" You want to get more specific about your question. So then you expound on it to become "How much rain did California get last year compared to 5 years ago?" Good topics for science fair projects include anything that you can do an experiment on to see if it is true or false.

Categories of Topic Ideas

Check with your teacher, but usually every fair has a list of categories. You may need to ask the advice of your teacher to find the right category for your project. You must have your project entered into the right category to win. If your project happened to get entered into the wrong category, you can be penalized because the judges are required to judge a project based on its category. For a list of categories, check out the resources on the web site below:

Your next step is to download a free copy of Easy Steps to Award-Winning Science Fair Projects to lead you through your own project.

A great resource for science project ideas, as well as how to do them, is the science project blog. Definitely worth bookmarking.

Good luck!

About the Author
Aurora Lipper has been teaching science to kids for over 10 years. She is also a mechanical engineer, university instructor, pilot, astronomer and a real live rocket scientist (You should see the lab in her basement!) She has inspired thousands of kids with the fun and magic of science.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Career in Life Science Industry - Guide to Clinical Research Jobs

The Life Science Industry is eying every avenue of life with its microscopic lenses. Innovation is at the core in the Life Science Industry than in any other industry. The life science industry innovates new ingenious ways of putting science to good use for the benefit of millions of people worldwide. People play a crucial role in the Life Science Industry. People who make the life science industry move are miraculously involved in researching new pharmaceuticals, in developing the latest industrial processes, in production, logistics and wide range of other support services.

There is a pool of opportunity for people who wish to pursue a career in the life sciences, and have a strong inclination to make new discoveries.

We can display a whole list of different scientific disciplines that could be considered life sciences.

Molecular Biology: Molecular Biology looks at the fundamental chemistry of life.

Cell Biology: Cell biology looks at cell.

Genetics: Genetics is the study of the blue prints that we are all born with and we will pass on to our children.

Developmental Biology: The study of how Life develops and reproduces.

Evolution: The study of how life came to be the way we now know it as.

Life Science is spread over such a wide array; there are surplus job opportunities in this industry that are highly exploring in nature. Notwithstanding the current economic downturn that has left few industries unscathed, the life science industry holds a great promise of better career prospects due to increase in demand for overall better health care worldwide.

There is a wide variety of different specialized fields in the biological sciences, and the list is growing rapidly. Although many life scientists are primarily involved in research and development, and work in the laboratory or field, you may decide you want to work in another area within the science.

In layman language Life Sciences are our developing knowledge of living organisms and the use of that knowledge to grow and do things to improve our lives. Developments in the life sciences will change our lives in fundamental ways - how we live and die, what we do, our eating habits, how we manage our health and so on.

The Life Sciences focuses on developing opportunities in:

o Bio-products and Bio-materials

o Bio-energy

o Health

o Nutrition

o Environment and Climate Life Sciences

Development of new and existing strengths in this area will produce the opportunity to create value in traditional sectors and ensure that economic growth is sustainable.

Clinical Jobs - An unfolding phase of Life Sciences

Clinical research is a multinational, multi-billion and multidisciplinary industry. Clinical Research is the next big thing in offering wider scope of job opportunities in the life sciences industry. The pharmaceutical industries are among the fastest growing sectors boosting the economy making rapid strides over the years.

As compared to prior years, clinical research has undergone a remarkable evolution in the scope, sophistication and power of its methodologies. There is a remarkable change in the approach to data collection, experimental design, and data analysis and these changes provide a strong basis for clinical research jobs. Numerous advances can be cited to describe opportunities in clinical research.

The Life Science Industry is climbing the ladder of success unceasingly. It is anticipated that this industry will generate $55 billion in revenues by 2020 and will have created new high-tech and value added jobs.

Tom Justa is the proud author of this quality article on Life science and biotechnology jobs, the author is the senior recruiter manager in Tag44 one of the leading staffing firm in US, for more source log on to http://www.tag44.com

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Science Fair Projects - Complete Guide to a Winning Science Project - Step 2 - Topic Research

I'm going to point out a few helpful hints to help in making successful science fair projects. With a little help, you should easily be able to make a great project!!

If you're still not quite sure how to pick a topic, let me help.

It is really important to make sure you pick an interesting topic for your science fair project. After all, you are going to have to do a lot of research and experimenting. Here are some broad examples for topics:


Plants
Animals
Weather
Outer Space

Obviously, you don't want your topic to be too broad. So think about what you're interested in, and then narrow it down. For example, if you're interested in plants, think of something a little more specific. Maybe you're interested in the differences between growing a plant outdoors and growing a plant indoors.
Now that you've decided on something a bit more specific, it's time to go one step further. Think of ways you can narrow even that down. It's really important to be as exact as possible. Think of a very, very specific question you would like to answer. For example, what is the difference between petunias grown inside versus petunias grown outside?

So you've got the topic. Now it's time to do some research.

Here are the three main types of science fair projects:

Investigation


Ask yourself questions and test them out!
Observe the differences between a plant living outside in the sun or a plant living inside in a dark room


Use a kit/model

Any science or craft store should help out with this one
Model airplanes

Demonstrate and experiment with a scientific principle

And most importantly, make sure to use the scientific method!!

If you've forgot what it is, I'll break it down for you one more time...

Purpose:- ask yourself a question. What is it you want to find out or test?
Hypothesis:- predict a possible answer to your question
Procedure:- do your research and experiment
Results:- this is where you get to make charts, tables, diagrams, etc. to represent all of your hard work
Conclusion:- now you can talk about what you've learned from doing the project and list any additional questions you may have

Some tips for research

Look around

This seems so obvious, but it is so true. Look around and ask yourself some questions. Statement starting with "I wonder" make excellent starting points. Look and listen to those around you. You'll probably get some great ideas.

Every day, you go through many different experiences worthy of testing. Think of the people and environment you constantly interact with. Are you curious about the weather? How about the plant life? Use every day experiences and interactions to come up with an idea for a project.

Use science magazines

Science magazines are a great way to find ideas for your science fair projects. For example, perhaps you read an article about bears and hibernation. Maybe you wonder why bears need to hibernate, and other animals do not. Science magazines are great sources for research because they can help to answer very specific questions.

If you still need a little help picking a science project, download a free copy of the "Easy Steps to Award Winning Science Projects" from the link below.

With all these tips, you should be on your way to a great science fair project! Be creative, and have fun!

Your next step is to download a free copy of Easy Steps to Award-Winning Science Fair Projects to lead you through your own project.

A great resource for science project ideas, as well as how to do them, is the science project blog. Definitely worth bookmarking.

Good luck!

About the Author Aurora Lipper has been teaching science to kids for over 10 years. She is also a mechanical engineer, university instructor, pilot, astronomer and a real live rocket scientist (You should see the lab in her basement!) She has inspired thousands of kids with the fun and magic of science.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Global Science Research and the Value of International Collaboration

Science research spending around the globe has increased by 45 percent to more than $1,000 billion (one trillion) U.S. dollars since 2002. In 2008, 218 countries generated more than 1.5 million research papers, with contributions ranging from Tuvalu's one paper to the U.S.' 320,000 papers. The U.S. leads the world's production of science research, accounting for 21 percent of publications and nearly $400 billion worth of public and private science R&D. BRIC and other developing countries, including China, India, Brazil and South Korea, account for much of the increase in scientific publications.

Science Research in the BRIC Countries of China, India and Brazil

A study by the U.K.'s Royal Society points out that the BRIC countries, along with South Korea, "are often cited as rising powers in science." From 2002 to 2007, the China, India and Brazil more than doubled their spending on science research, bringing their collective share of global spending up from 17 to 24 percent.

Engineering is a common focus of science research in China, India and Russia. Scientific fields in which China has developed a leading position include nanotechnology and rare earths. Agriculture and biosciences are two important fields of emphasis in Brazil, which is a leader in biofuels research.

In keeping with their rapid economic development and massive populations, China and India, the world's first and second most populous countries, produce large and growing numbers of science and engineering graduates each year. In 2006, about 2.5 million students in India and 1.5 million students in China graduated with degrees in science and engineering.

International Collaboration

Today, over 35 percent of science research articles are the result of international collaborations among researchers from different countries, a 40 percent increase from 15 years ago. The number of internationally co-authored papers has more than doubled since 1990.

The U.S., U.K., France and Germany continue to be key hubs of international collaboration in science research. Researchers in other developed and developing countries actively collaborate with scientists from these countries. According to the Royal Society report, "while links between the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) have been growing in recent years, they pale in comparison to the volume of collaboration between these individual countries and their partners in the G7."

International science research often takes the form of regional collaboration. Regional political institutions, including the European Union (EU), African Union (AU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), each have their own research strategies that foster and facilitate regional collaboration in science research.

"South-South Collaboration" between developing countries is a growing form of international science research. The International Centre for South-South Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation was inaugurated in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2008 under the auspices of UNESCO. An initiative of India, Brazil and South Africa promotes South-South cooperation in several arenas, including science and research collaboration in fields such as nanotechnology, oceanography and Antarctic research.

Collaboration's Benefits and Drivers

There are a number of important benefits, motivations and enabling factors that help explain the growth of international collaboration in science research, including:

1) greater impact;

2) scientific discovery;

3) scale of research projects;

4) scope and complexity of research topics and international issues;

5) capacity-building; and

6) advances in technology and communications.

Fourteen countries experienced more than a three-fold increase in their standard domestic publication impact by collaborating with one or more of 22 partner countries. Each additional international author leads to an increase in a paper's impact, up to a tipping point of about ten authors. By collaborating with one another, scientists can access complementary skills and knowledge and stimulate new ideas.

The scale of some major science research projects is too large for most countries to undertake on their own. In such cases, international collaboration is necessary to meet extensive requirements for human, financial and other resources. The scope and complexity of certain science research topics and objectives can also drive international collaboration.

Many of the world's most pressing social problems are international issues that call for collaboration and cooperation. Climate change, food security, public health (e.g., AIDS/HIV, malaria and tuberculosis) and sustainability are just a few of the global issues that require international collaboration and solutions.

Collaboration allows scientists in one country to build their capacity to conduct significant science research by leveraging the resources of partners in other countries. Collaboration can be particularly beneficial to partners from developing and developed countries.

Advances in technology have contributed greatly to the feasibility and appeal of international collaboration. For researchers in developing and developed countries alike, improvements in communication technologies and services have made international collaboration simpler, faster and cheaper than ever before.

Success Stories

The Royal Society study presents several encouraging examples of cases where science research and international collaboration have contributed greatly to addressing important international issues.

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) encompasses an international network of independent centers of agricultural research in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Despite operating on a modest yet significant annual budget of $550 million, every $1 invested in CGIAR is estimated to yield a very healthy return of $9 worth of additional food in developing countries.

The World Health Organization (WHO) set up FluNet in 1996 as a global tool to monitor and evaluate influenza virus strains by leveraging data from a number of national influenza laboratories around the world. When the epidemic of severe respiratory illness broke out in Hong Kong in 2003, the FluNet network contributed to a coordinated, rapid response from the international science and medical community that identified the virus and helped minimize the related public health threat and consequences.

The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization has immunized more than 200 million children and prevented over 3.4 million premature deaths since receiving a start-up grant of $750 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 1999.

Royal Society Study - Knowledge, Networks and Nations

These are some of the key findings published recently in the Royal Society's examination of global science research entitled Knowledge, Networks and Nations: Global Scientific Collaboration in the 21st Century.

The Royal Society study is based on statistics from international organizations, including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the Society's own analysis of data on science research articles published in roughly 25,000 separate scientific journals by the more than 7 million researchers around the world.

Science research encompasses both research and development, the "R" and "D", respectively, of public and private R&D efforts, which range from abstract and conceptual exploration through to market-oriented development of scientific applications.

Research Findings

The Royal Society study paints an encouraging picture of growing international investment in science research. International collaboration is a highly valuable mechanism for promoting scientific discovery and maximizing the impact of science research. Publicly and privately funded science R&D has played a key role in successfully addressing key issues related to public health, food security and the environment, among others.

This article about global science research and collaboration comes from my site Global Sherpa, which publishes articles on current topics in world news, globalization, international development, cities and foreign policy.

Please drop me a line through one of the contact forms on the site with any comments, recommendations, or project ideas.

Over time, I hope the site will become a catalyst for learning and collaborative projects that will help spread the interest in world affairs and promote international understanding, development and well-being.

Article Copyright Global Sherpa. All rights reserved.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Managing Science and Research

Managing science and research requires a unique skill set that are not the same as general management skills required for other types of businesses.  General management theory is applicable to science and research management, but not sufficient to cater for the specific requirements of science and research management.  For that purpose we assume in this article that the reader is already familiar with general management principles and approaches.  Our focus here is to look at the specific requirements of science and research management.

An important aspect is understanding what would constitute good science and how to create an environment that would allow the knowledge generation aspect of science and research to flourish.  Important aspects that differ from general management principles are:

Quality assurance often supersedes the process-focused approach in organization generally.  Especially where the problems are not standard and therefore require unique approaches to be solved, it is very difficult to provide consistent quality assurance and performance indicators.
Science and research management requires a careful balance between investment and creating utility for current use.  Unless a considerable effort is made to constantly invest in more capabilities and growth of existing capabilities, management of science and research finds itself over the medium term with an increasingly stale and unproductive scientific research capability.  This requires a financial management approach that does not optimise for short term profit only, but also caters for the capability building of ongoing the investment.
The people performing the science and research work are usually a scarce commodity, and replacing them require considerable investment of both time and money.  For this reason retention and ongoing development of existing experts needs to be a focus in the business model (this is true for all knowledge-intensive innovative environments).
The work environment need to enable innovative and creative work, and facilitate and value team work.  The performance indicators for these are often difficult to define (they might even be intangible).  But giving attention to them and getting them right for the specific type of science and research work is very important for a successful science and research capability.

In addition to all of this there is the aspect of "managing science where it happens", namely to ensure the scientific work itself is of a good quality and make the best use of the available capabilities.  Usually this is catered for by the various conventions that scientists and researchers of specific disciplines adhere to professionally.

However, the various sciences have a number of differences and commonalities that make maintaining the scientific rigour when work is done in more than one of the major branches of science very difficult.  For this reasons many research capabilities either restrict themselves to only selected branches of science, or they retain the barriers between the various sciences and never really get to an integrated scientific capability that spans across the boundaries of the sciences.  In the complex and highly connected societies we live in that is becoming an increasingly untenable situation.  We need to be able to integrate the sciences to be able to provide relevant and useful new knowledge, utilising the best that science offers. Using science in an integrated way  unlocks most value in situations like this.  We need to keep in mind that

All the sciences share a common goal to search for the "truth", or "facts", or "evidence.  This common goal provides the background against which we are able to identify a number of similarities.

There are some legitimate differences between the sciences that we cannot remove by forcing one approach on all the branches of science.

Accomplishing this is not easy. However, there are two sets of features that are common to all branches of the sciences.  They can be used in all branches of science to ensure that we are able to integrate our scientific work across the traditional branches of the sciences.  They are

The scientific productiveness features:  These are the features of science that facilitate its success in knowledge generation.  Knowledge can be generated in a number of ways, but these science has illustrated over the centuries that where these features are present and used appropriately they facilitate a level of success that is not otherwise possible.
The Scientific Capability Features:  These are the features that describe the way to go about knowledge generation utilising the scientific productivity features.

We have used these two for integrated scientific work in a number of cross-disciplinary applications (mostly to solve complex real life problems in strategic management decision making).  They have proven themselves to add value in the rigor, quality and relevance of cross-disciplinary scientific work.

Compiled by Mariana van der Walt. Mariana has more than 15 years of experience in science and research management.

For more information see [http://sciencemanagement.co.nz]

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Schools and Alumni Research Guide

Finding school performance data and information on past alumni can be very difficult. But it is getting much easier through new services on the internet. Many people who are preparing to apply to a school want to know school ranking data, alumni satisfaction rates, and much more. Some of the most important things to look for that some people skip over is the employment rates of recent graduates, average salaries of graduates, and the percentage of graduates who went on to do further schooling (and where they got accepted). Some find this process to be very overwhelming because there are services that now handle each individual aspect of school information, and other larger companies try to handle it all. Many students just apply to the best possible schools (in academic terms) without considering student life and other issues. In order to make sure that you enjoy your school experience, it is important to make other considerations.

If you are researching schools, here are some things you should check:

School size: The size of a school can have a profound impact on those who attend. Schools come in all sizes from less than 100 students to more than 30,000. Both have advantages and disadvantages. An advantage of smaller schools is students tend to receive more attention and help from teachers. A disadvantage of smaller schools (especially colleges) is that they tend to be less broadly known or acknowledged which means less recruiters and sometimes less value to a degree. At larger schools, students tend to just be a number and are usually unable to seek one-on-one help from professors. But larger schools can attract more recruiters and more degree value for job seekers.

Distance from Home: The distance from home is very important for people of all ages who are looking for a school to attend. Parents who are considering schools for their children should take this very seriously. Boarding schools can have a profound impact on kids and young adults and shouldn't be taken lightly. Most teens thinking about college usually want to move a long distance away to get out on their own. This can cause homesickness, financial strain, less home visits, and more issues that should be considered.

School programs: For school seekers who are looking to specialize in a specific field (which should be almost everyone), applicants should look at test score performance, alumni job history, and what recruiters come to the campus looking for employees. They should also look for what majors are offered and what the requirements are for receiving a degree. For young kids, parents usually consider music and art programs in elementary and middle schools.

Cost and Scholarships: The price of good schooling has become extreme these days and in many cases outrageous. But in general, the higher the cost of tuition, the more value of the degree. That doesn't necessarily mean that the education is not as good at less expensive schools, but the degree might not look as good on resumes. Many schools offer scholarships that you may be eligible to receive which is worth looking into as well.

Location and Activities: Where a school is located is also a major factor. Some schools are situated in major cities and others are out in the middle of nowhere. The colleges in major urban areas tend to have more entertainment and dining choices in proximity of the campus, but that also means that no one is usually on campus. The schools in obscure areas have less to do around them but that means more student life and more participation in the activities offered by the school itself.

Student Demographics: The diversity of a school's student body is very important to the whole educational experience. Schools with more diversity can offer a rich experience because the students not only learn a lot from teachers, but they also can learn a large amount from each other. It is best to look for schools that are well balanced between genders and ethnic backgrounds.

Sports and Athletic Programs: If you are looking to get into sports it is important to investigate a potential school's athletic programs. You should look at how many teams they have, what division they are a part of, and what percentage of students who try out get accepted. For parents who are trying to get their kids involved in sports, they should also look into the various sports activities that elementary schools offer.

Do not just apply to one school, explore all your options and make sure you have back-up plans in case certain schools do not work out. Before you settle on any school, it is important to actually visit the campus and meet some of the faculty. It might even be a good idea to sit through an assembly or activity just to get a feel for what the student life will be like.

Mark Thompson is a retired school administrator with years of experience in the education industry. He regularly contributes to Schools and Reunions which is a national school information site that offers data on over a hundred thousand schools. If you are parent researching schools or a graduate looking to re-connect with old friends, please do not hesitate to visit schoolsandreunions.com.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.