Dublin High School students impressed both judges and peers at the Alameda Science and Engineering Fair held at the Alameda County Fairgrounds, from March 20th to March 22nd. The students competed for awards and recognition at the three-day event. However, the importance of the science fair is not checks for 100 or 75 dollars- or even a trip to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for the Intel Science and Engineering Fair- but it is the scientific research that actually matters.

Freshman and participant Tyler Law said, “I enjoyed the science fair because it helped with responsibility, it was a great opportunity to learn more from judges’ criticism, and it helped express creativity.”

Students, mostly freshmen and sophomores, who enrolled in Janet Kaehms and Carrie Fichter’s Biology with Research classes had to do a science fair project. Despite being younger than most of the competitors, they still did well in the round of judging. They took pleasure in viewing other people’s projects and seeing how people their age contributed to the scientific community.

In addition, Biology with Research teacher Mrs. Kaehms explains why the class benefits students. She said,  “Biology With Research gives students plenty of hands on lab skills and practice making connections between the curriculum and real world issues. The hands on approach builds a deeper understanding in students. Hands on work also builds confidence in students that they can solve problems that are real world issues.”

Dublin High School even brought in several winners. There are many 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place winners from our school. Maybe when you see them in the hallways or during lunch, say congratulations if you know that they won. They deserve it for the diligence and thought they put into every one of their brilliant projects!

Out of all the science fair projects from Dublin High, one stood out. Meet our one Grand Prize winner this year- Hannah Edge. With her project, she qualified for the Intel Science and Engineering Fair, a global science fair held in Pittsburgh this year. It’s called ‘3D-Printed Bluetooth Android-Based Spirometer with HIPAA-Compliant Secured Cloud Data Storage’.

If you’re like me and don’t know what that means, Hannah explains, “I built a 3D-printed medical device measures lung capacity and can connect to the Android Interface to display the data. It can also connect to a HIPAA-secured Cloud platform to share the information with a physician so they would be able to interpret the results and manage the patient’s treatment plan.”

This project also has an impact on society. It could help people with respiratory conditions such as asthma and COPD.

But Hannah’s not just the whiz kid who won the science fair (although she is really smart). She also enjoys horseback riding and drawing.

Again, congratulations to everyone who participated in the science fair, especially Hannah (as she represents Alameda County and Dublin High School at Intel). And if you’re feeling the science fair blues because maybe you didn’t win an award or prize money, remember that everyone’s a winner and it’s not about the fame- it’s about the little difference you made in the big world.