2008 California State Science Fair Reflection

by Alex Zivkovic, 7th Grade, Vista Verde School. <br><br><small> Alex placed third in the Product Science (Biological) Category. His project is titled "Got Water?"</small>

LOS ANGELES, Calif.  Most people assume that when you're not at school, you do nothing academic besides your homework. However, if you were at the State Science Fair held at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, you would think otherwise. Congregated in an old basketball stadium were 953 students representing 359 schools. Everyone was from all across California, and we were all locked in a competition for over 60,000 dollars worth of prize money.

Money, however, was not the reason we signed up to come; nor was it the reason we drove all the way to LA from as far away as Siskiyou County and as close as Orange County. No, the real reason we all came was to discuss our one common interest: science.

Before we could compete and discuss, we needed to set up our projects. This was done the day before judging so we all had a chance to see how magnificent this fair was. We waited in lines, had our picture taken, and set up our projects, all while dazed at the enormity of the fair. After the set-up, the majority of us went to our respective hotels since we would need to be back in the morning by 8:30. My plan was slightly different, as my family took the long drive back to Orange County and followed the same route back to LA the following morning at 7 o’clock.

After arriving after a long drive, as I sat to listen to the instructions for the judging, I looked around at my peers. All of us had a looked anxious. Despite being told by our teachers and parents that simply being here is a feat, no one really believed it. We all wanted to win, but our main purpose was to discuss our projects and better our scientific minds. Lucky for us, we would have many different discussions throughout the long day.

The chairman finished his directions, and again we heard words like “It’s a great thing just to be here,” and “Everyone’s a winner.” Nervously, we shuffled out of our seats towards the center where our projects were. Each of us found our projects and anxiously awaited for the judges to come. We were set up into aisles, organized into 20 categories. I was in #18 - Junior Biological Product Science, which happened to be a group with nearly the largest number of judges. Since we were in aisles, I could see the judges approaching me: three spots down, two spots down, one spot down, until finally they got to me.

We introduced ourselves and immediately got to work. At first I sounded cold as I tried to suppress my nervousness. I began with a summary of my project, then explained the variables, the hypothesis, and the procedure. After that briefing was over, each judge would ask a specific question such as “Which water was the best in regards to bacterial counts?” or “How did you control the experiment?”; each trying to find a flaw. The interview would take between 5 and 10 minutes for each judge. In between judges, we tried to relax and initiate small talk with the closest participants. 

The talk stopped as another judge grew near. Again we all froze and ended our conversations. Each judge approached me with clipboard and papers in hand. They carried each of our project abstracts and wrote notes on it, leaving us to ponder the nature of their notes. After several judges, I felt like a performer repeating his tricks. My summary became muscle memory and it flowed from my lips. My conversations were warm as I began to feel more confident in myself. Sometimes they would interject with a question, which I obediently answered. Then I would patiently wait for more questions. This happened a total of eight times; once for each judge.

By the end of the day, we stopped talking between judging as we were exhausted from presenting our projects. The lack of chairs made us even more exhausted during the three and a half hours of judging. When the announcement came that it was over, a feeling of relief swept over us all. Everyone began to scurry out of the stadium in order to get a good spot in the growing line for lunch. I left and met my parents. Then we headed to a nearby food court to avoid the line.

At four o’clock, after a three hour hiatus, we all returned for the awards ceremony. Every competitor tried to find a seat in the student area so that we could have easy access to the stage. However, many of us, including myself, got sent to the seats reserved for parents and  teachers which made getting to the stage harder.

They started the ceremony, thanking sponsors and benefactors. Few students were listening, as most of us were too excited to care about anything but the awards. I had a very long wait, as my division was among the last. After about an hour, there were only a few more divisions: 18, 19 and 20.

Their routine was to call up four middle school students who received first through fourth place, followed by four high school students who also placed. As the students made their way to the stage, the judges announced all the honorable mentions.

In the case of category 18, there was only a junior division, which meant that you had less time to get to the stage. They called four names, alphabetically so that you do not know what you got, to come up. My name was last and I slowly squeezed through the tiny rows and made the long trip down to the stage. Before I could get there, they already called fourth place. I began to run up the stairs when I heard my name called. Third Place! I got third place. My heart was pounding as I was on the stage. All of us flashed huge smiles despite all wanting to get first since we all knew that getting any award here is good enough.

Our picture was taken and we stepped off the stage. There we received a box for our heavy medals and a form telling us how much money we each won. I made my way back to my seat, stepping on many toes as I went and hearing “congratulations” from every angle. When the ceremony finished, I met with my parents who had picked up my project already. On the trip back home, my smile still did not fade.

The true success from this science fair was not my award, but the fact that on the way home, I was already planning for next year.