During the 2004 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, OMSI staff hosted online Q&A sessions from the Portland convention center with Intel ISEF participants from around the world. We hope you enjoy browsing through our archived questions and answers from these chat sessions!
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Most recent answers:
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Do you have science fair projects on the Circulatory system
(Danielle, 13, Indpls, IN) |
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I'm sure there are quite a few projects with relation to the circulatory system. The directory on the ISEF webpage (http://www.sciserv.org/) could answer your question in more depth! (Answered by Samuel C..)
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If baking soda and ammonia will be mixed will it foam? (Jon, 28, Zamboanga City, Philippines) |
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Well...baking soda foams when mixed with varying strengths of acids. Ammonia acts, in different instances, as an acid or a base, but I believe it does.
The best way to figure this out, though, is to take a teaspoon of each...and try it! (Answered by Samuel C..)
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how do nuclear power plants create there energy (murray, 13, ilchester, somerset) |
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When a nuclear reaction (fission reaction) occurs, large nuclei such as those of uranium or plutonium undergo a change such as emitting an alpha particle (a helium nucleus), a beta particle (either a electron or its antiparticle, a positron), or gamma radiation. The result is usually a smaller nucleus, plus the emitted particle. However, if you were to look at each side of the equation, you would see that the products have slightly less mass than the reactants. This slight difference is known as the "mass defect" of the reaction. So where did this mass go? Einstein said this mass becomes energy (as governed by his famous equation E=mc^2), which is released as heat and used to spin the turbines in a nuclear power plant, which in turn creates electricity. (Answered by Bruce Halperin.)
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describe an owls bones? (Ellie, 13, goffstown, N.H) |
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An owl has bones that are much like that of any other bird: they are hollow and light (relative to any bone that we may have of the same size) because the more a bird weighs, the harder it is for it to fly. (Answered by Boris Hanin.)
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What is gypsum? (Menna, 9, Cairo, Egypt) |
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Gypsum is a solid compound found in the desert. It is a red coloured crystal also known as the 'desert rose'. It is so called because of its rose-like features. (Answered by Nur Aizaan.)
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CAN YOU GIVE ME A WEBSITE THAT HAS ACTIVITIES ON LIFE SCIENCE.
(ASHLEY, 11, NEWYORK, NEWYORK) |
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This site might not have activities, but it has a lot of information:
www.webelements.com (Answered by Jessica Millar.)
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what is a substance containing two or more substance
(mario, 17, clinton, wi) |
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There are two possibilities for a substance to contain two or more substances. The first is the strict chemical definition of a substance which means that the two or more things are chemically bonded and then its called a compound and if the two or more things are just physically bonded, it is called a mixture.
(Answered by Boris Hanin.)
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What ways are each of the fossil fuels used in the united states: coal, oil, and natural gas. (travis, 15, freeport, il) |
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Maybe my answer to your question is beyond what you want for the simple reason that I come from China. But I felt it meaningful if you were to make an comparison of the circumstances between China and US, which are two of the most energy-consumed countries.
In my country, coal is the main source of energy for the great storage amount of coal while in America, oil is imported from the GULF area.
Of course, I should mention the headaches brought by coal. That's pollution in case coal is not well made use of. Great amount of pollutants and carbon dioxide, sulfur compounds are given off into the air. In short, the energy
structure in our country is worth optimizing. In my personal opinion, US ought to reduce the dependence on oil as much as possible. In case an oil crisis appeared, it is likely to be a great disaster for the whole America and the world.
And natural gas, I should also mention, might be a kind of clean source of enery we would like to substitude for coal. In north-western part of China, great amount of gas has been detected. I'm not sure the exact condition in China, but I believe US energy department is also emphasizing on the development of exploiting natual gases.
Nevertheless, people are now trying to discover a new energy to substitute for the current energy, which might be exhausted in the next few decades. Hydrogen nuclei power may be the best choice , our government is trying to reach the goal, but there still needs a long way to go for the controlling technology. (Answered by Zhang Yi.)
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What do you want to do next? (Anders, 27, Portland, OR) |
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I am currently a junior in high school. I plan to attend a university in the fall of 2005. I wish to study engineering, astrophysics, and philosophy. (Answered by Andrew Scheur.)
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When was Mars discovered? (Davis, 11, Monrovia, ca) |
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Mars was discovered as soon as humans could see comprably to us because for at least part of the time it is visible to the naked eye.
(Answered by Boris Hanin.)
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