| AUSTRIA:
Biology |
AUSTRIA:
Biology |
AUSTRIA:
Engineering |
 |
 |
 |
Using
DNA as a molecular computer
DNA, which carries the genetic instructions
for all higher forms of life, is exceptionally good
at storing, retrieving and processing information.
Over the last decade, a new field of interdisciplinary
research has come together to harness this capacity
- in effect using DNA as a molecular computer to
help solve problems in information science and cryptography.
This project looks at the chemical aspects of developing
a DNA computer.
Participants: Philip Babcock |
An
environmentally friendly way of producing hydrogen
As its use in engines and fuel cells grows, demand
for hydrogen will increase. The usual ways of producing
hydrogen involve oil, natural gas and electricity,
but this project looks at a more environmentally
friendly way of producing it. The contestants located
purple hydrogen-producing bacteria, and designed
and built generators that would provide the ideal
environment for them.
Participants:
Susanne Cernak, Markus Metz and Felix Faschinger |
A
faster, cheaper way of checking computer components
An Austrian technology company needed to check printed
circuit boards for mistakes in their manufacture
- but their design made it impossible to do it manually
or electronically. To solve that problem, this project
developed an innovative image-recognition system
that also saved time and money.
Participants:
Nikolaus Ederer and Christian Streitwieser |
BELARUS:
Computing |
BELARUS:
Space |
BELARUS: Physics |
 |
 |
 |
A
new solution to the travelling salesman problem"
The travelling salesman problem is the name given
to a type of complex calculation, illustrated by
the difficulty of finding the shortest route for
a salesman who has to visit a number of different
cities. This project has developed a new way of
solving the problem by means of a program that can
be run on a standard PC. It has a great number of
uses, including - in this case - making a robot
welder more efficient.
Participants:
Uladzimir Pashkevich |
A
new theory of active galactic nuclei jets
One of the main problems in modern astrophysics
is how to account for the formation and dynamics
of active galactic nuclei jets. No complete theory
deals with the problem, but this project aims to
do so by explaining it in terms of dark attracting
matter. The result corresponds with data from some
of the world's largest telescopes.
Participants:
Aliaksei Kazlouski |
Studying
tsunamis in shallow water
A tsunami wave is an example of a soliton - a nonlinear
solitary wave with a steady structure. In the past
there has been no experimental research on the shape
of the solitary wave front, but this project proposes
a new procedure that will allow such research in
a variety of hydrodynamic experiments.
Participants:
Ann Mukhortava and Alena Abramava |
BELGIUM: Biology
|
BELGIUM: Physics |
BULGARIA:
Chemistry |
 |
 |
 |
The
influence of gravity on the human heart
Mira, whose great passion is astronomy and the study
of space, compares the heart activity of a parachutist
during free fall with that of Belgian astronaut
Frank de Winne during his stay on the International
Space Station. The project demonstrates that heart
rate
decreases in zero gravity.
Participants:
Mira Van Thielen |
A
home-made Tesla coil
The Tesla coil, invented by Nikola Tesla in 1890,
generates an impressive electrical discharge. Science
museums around the world exhibit them, but this
team decided to build one themselves. With some
help from textbooks and the Internet and a great
deal of trial and error, they found their own solution
for each element, then tested the theory against
their own observations.
Participants:
David Eskenazi, Nicolas Innocenti and Antoine
Paulus |
A fuel cell
based on biochemical reactions
This project presents a new type of fuel cell that
allows electricity to be generated in an environmentally
friendly way - by using a mechanism found in living
organisms. A prototype of the Direct Aluminium Quinone
Cell has been produced and tested, with a multimedia
presentation to communicate the results.
Participants:
Hristo Nikolaev Kolev |
BULGARIA: Physics |
BULGARIA: Physics
|
CHINA: Environment |
 |
 |
 |
Balls with super bounce
Sonya analyses two different models of how balls
bounce off a hard, flat surface. One, called Walton's
model, describes how a hard ball bounces. The other
model, developed by Sonya, describes how an elastic
ball bounces.
Participants:
Sonya Hadzhieva |
Does
the star RZ Cassiopeiae have a third companion?
Amateur observations of this variable star suggest
that it has a third companion, and the project set
out to study this hypothesis. Petar also calculates
the characteristics of the third companion, concluding
that it must be a red dwarf, almost impossible to
observe directly even with the most powerful equipment.
Participants: Petar Georgiev Todorov |
Using
brewer's yeast to treat pollution
Nan Wu was looking for effective, low-cost materials
that would remove the heavy metal Cr(VI) from industrial
wastewater. She conducted tests on active carbon,
pulverised fuel ash, vermiculite, the dregs of honeycomb
briquette - and brewer's yeast. She found that using
brewer's yeast cost less than traditional methods
and produced no secondary pollution.
Participants:
Nan Wu |
CZECH
REPUBLIC: Biology
|
CZECH
REPUBLIC: Environment
|
CZECH
REPUBLIC: Mathematics |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Using plant
extracts to protect wheat and barley
This project investigated the use of plant extracts
to protect wheat and barley from fungal diseases.
It then tested various ways of producing the extracts,
determined the optimum concentration and looked
at the effect of environmental conditions, including
temperature. Zuzana found that treating winter wheat
with an extract of wild garlic (mixed with olive
oil) protected against leaf rust.
Participants:
Zuzana Tvaruzkova |
Using
small forest ponds to maintain biodiversity
When cultivation forces out certain varieties of
plant life, they can sometimes find a refuge beside
ponds in small forests. This project combined historical
and botanical approaches, reconstructing the development
of vegetation and looking at eutrophication. As
a result, Zdenek identified some steps for maintaining
biodiversity, and conservation groups have already
shown an interest.
Participants: Zdenek
Janovsky |
Solving practical
problems by colouring graphs
Many practical problems can be represented by graphs,
and graph theory is an important part of discrete
mathematics. Connected by lines, the points on a
graph are called vertices. This project proposes
a way of colouring these vertices that allows relationships
between them to be defined.
Participants:
Alexander Kazda
|
DENMARK: Biology |
DENMARK:
Medical |
ESTONIA:
Biology
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
Genetically modified organisms (GMO)
The purpose of this project is to give people a
clear understanding of the implications of GMO technology.
Helle gives a practical and theoretical explanation
of the subject, describing how GMO can be created
and backing it up with accounts of experiments with
GM crops to illustrate how they could be used to
solve practical problems in the production of food
and medicine.
Participants:
Helle Roager Jensen |
Helping elderly and handicapped people with
their stockings
Every day, many elderly and handicapped people are
hospitalised by falls while taking off or putting
on socks or stockings - a task they often find difficult
and arduous. This project presents a device that
allows socks or stockings to be put on or taken
off while sitting down - so lessening the danger
of falling.
Participants: Gitte
Ahlquist Jonsson
|
Why do orchids
grow in industrial landscapes?
Kaidi's and Mari's interest in orchids began when
they heard that the flowers are often found growing
on the ash-mountains created by mining and processing
oil shale around Kohtla-Järve in Estonia. Their
project investigates why and how orchids grow in
such landscapes.
Participants:
Kaidi Karu and Mari Saru
|
ESTONIA:
Mathematics |
ESTONIA:
Social Science |
EUROPEAN
SCHOOL: Biology |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
Generalisations
of the Fibonacci sequence
This project analyses the generalisations of the
Fibonacci sequence with the recurrence relation
Un = pUn-1 + qUn-2. It finds they have much in common
with the original sequence, and proves two formulae
that allow many others known for Fibonacci numbers
to be applied to these sequences too. It also investigates
the connection between these sequences and Lindenmayer
systems.
Participants: Margus
Niitsoo |
Do
school and social origin influence pupils' beliefs
about justice?
The aim of this research is to study the effect
of social origin and school on pupils' beliefs about
justice. Maarja analysed data he gathered from three
secondary schools in Estonia using a questionnaire
that includes questions used in several international
studies. He finds that school and social origin
do indeed influence support for egalitarian principles.
Participants: Maarja Saar
|
Taking a
fresh look at vision
It has been calculated that 80% of all our memories
are visual. As children we learn to associate certain
shapes and colours with certain objects, and even
people with slightly impaired vision can make out
the shape of a flower or a ball. The goal of this
project was to find out exactly what percentage
of an image needs to be shown in order for it to
be identified. The study shows that colour and shape
are the two main factors involved in sight.
Participants: Holly Gamble, Laura
Marinello and Mothusi Turner |
FINLAND:
Physics |
FINLAND:
Biology. |
FRANCE:
Physics |
 |
 |
 |
Building
a spectrometer to analyse light sources
Using everyday materials and equipment, Timo built
an emission spectrometer - an instrument that analyses
the radiation emitted or absorbed by matter. He
then used the instrument to conduct spectral analyses
of many light sources, including a fluorescent lamp,
an ultraviolet lamp and two fluorescent materials:
zinc sulphide and white print paper.
Participants:
Timo Paavola |
Using bacteria to clean contaminated soil
and help plants to grow
The aim of this project was to find bacteria that
could be used to help clean contaminated soil. Emma
studied bacteria (Pseudomonad) in lead-polluted
soil taken from a shooting range. This bacteria
could be put on a plant's root system to help it
to suck lead - or another contaminant - from the
soil, enabling it to clean the soil and grow in
a difficult environment.
Participants:
Emma Maria Haapaniemi |
How
to win a race - using the laws of optics
This project studies the refraction laws of optics
- Snell's laws - in an orienteering race through
the woods. Light takes the path of least time, not
the shortest distance. When travelling from one
point to another in different transparent media,
it changes direction (refracts) somewhere near the
boundary between the two. This also works for people
racing through different terrains.
Participants:
Jacques Bois, Jean Baptiste Guy and Paul De Surmont
|
FRANCE:
Engineering |
GEORGIA:
Biology |
GERMANY:
Chemistry |
 |
 |
|
 |
A speedometer
for rollerblades
Carole, Jonathan and François were frustrated
to find that there was no way of knowing how fast
they were going on their rollerblades, and, as there
were no rollerblade speedometers on the market,
they built their own. Not only does it accurately
measure the skater's speed, it also transmits it
by radio waves to a handheld LCD screen.
Participants:
Carole Dufour, Jonathan Faugier-Tovar and François
Simplex |
Recognising
cancer cells
By studying the nucleolus, malignant tumours can
be differentiated from benign ones. This project
focused on spatial rearrangement and 3D modelling
of the nucleolar ultrastructure of tumour cells
in human mammary glands.
Participants: Ekatherine Bakradze |
Lab on
a chip - an advance in pharmaceutical research
and production
This project could enable some pharmaceuticals
to be researched and produced more simply, and
without using dangerous compounds as catalysts.
Using miniaturisation and a method called anodic
polarisation, organomagnesium and organolithium
compounds can be synthesised more easily and in
greater quantities. This has made it possible
for the first time to deposit magnesium by electrolysis
using inorganic salts.
Participants: Stephen Schultz
|
GERMANY:
Physics |
GERMANY:
Physics |
HUNGARY:
Medical |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| When water
has corners
Every day, when we run the kitchen tap, we see
a hydraulic jump" - where the water hits
the basin it spreads out thinly, but a little
further out the water level suddenly jumps"
and becomes much deeper. This project investigated
the phenomenon under laboratory conditions, and
found that under certain conditions the border
between the shallow and the deep water was not
circular but polygonal: the water had corners.
Participants: Igor Gotlibovitch
and Renate Landig
|
The physics
of ventriloquism
A ventriloquist needs to make all the sounds involved
in everyday speech without visibly moving his
lips or jaw - but how? This project shows that
it is physically possible for two sounds that
are perceived to be identical to be produced in
completely different ways. Jorg and Marcel use
a computer program to model speech, analysing
and simulating the sounds ventriloquists use.
Participants: Jorg Metzner and
Marcel Scmittfull |
Minimising
the suffering of animals when testing new heart
drugs
Cardiovascular diseases are becoming more common,
but it is difficult for medical research to examine
the factors involved. Long-term testing of new
medicines is also difficult and often involves
the death of hundreds of laboratory animals. In
this project, a model was developed that allowed
drugs to be tested on living, conscious animals
with minimal pain and harm.
Participants: Adrienn Nikoletta
Kocsis
|
HUNGARY:
Medical |
HUNGARY:
Computing |
ICELAND:
Social Science |
 |
 |
 |
| What
does the brain have to do with stomach ulcers?
This project is a long-term effort to identify
the neural regulatory pattern of the two most
important regions responsible for ulcer formation,
the antrum of the stomach and the duodenum of
the intestine. The aim is to discover the overlap
between antrum- and duodenum-specific neurons
as well as their neurotransmitter pattern in the
brain.
Participants: Peter Kurucz and
Timea Micsko |
Tracing
burglars and monitoring your home - by remote
control
There are a lot of machines in homes and other
buildings that can break down. This project developed
three systems for controlling these machines,
relaying warnings to their owners and even tracing
burglars. The Computational Supervisory System
monitors sensors in a house, and sends an SMS
when an error occurs. There are also Mobile and
Telephone Supervisory Systems.
Participants: Akos Kapui |
Cuddle-me
clothes - a massage bodysuit for children
Massaging children has been shown to strengthen
the bond between parent and child, help with physical
problems such as stomach aches, and make the child
calmer. Parents are more likely to massage their
children if they are reminded to do it, and shown
how. This team designed a bodysuit for infants
to do just that.
Participants: Una Guolaug Sveinsdottir,
Lily Erla Adamsdottir and Valdis Osp Jonsdottir |
IRELAND:
Computing |
ISRAEL:
Biology |
ISRAEL:
Medicine |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Croma:
a new web programming language
Writing sophisticated programmes that run on the
web is notoriously difficult and complex. Croma
is a new programming language, based on Lisp,
designed to make web programming easier. It uses
an integrated web-server, and its programmes are
much shorter than ones written in other languages,
making them cheaper to develop.
Participants: Patrick Collison |
Preparing
DNA libraries for directed evolution
The aim of this work is to prepare gene libraries
that will be used to direct the evolution of a
new DNase (an enzyme that cuts DNA) inhibitor.
In directed evolution we mimic the natural evolution
of proteins, in order to study how evolution occurs
in nature and to understand the connection between
the protein's structure and its function.
Participants: Fowad Hasona |
Can
fish oils help control Parkinson's disease?
Parkinson's disease is a disorder of movement,
caused by a loss of neurons containing a neurotransmitter
called dopamine. This study investigates the influence
of DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid most often found
in fish oil. The results suggest that a diet with
enough DHA can help to prevent damage to the dopamine-producing
system.
Participants: Ronit Shapira |
ISRAEL:
Engineering |
ITALY:
Mathematics |
ITALY:
Engineering |
 |
 |
 |
| A more
accurate way of monitoring satellites
A new type of satellite is appearing in space.
Pico-satellites are the size of a mobile phone
and weigh less than a kilogramme, yet they can
perform several important tasks. They are especially
useful for monitoring larger satellites, but it
is difficult to accurately control the direction
in which their cameras point. This project found
a new way of improving accuracy, opening a new
field of space engineering.
Participants: Yonatan Winetraub,
San Bitan and Yuval Nativ |
Genes and
games
This project uses the processing power of computers
to determine which genes are responsible for which
illnesses. By creating an enormous spreadsheet,
with genes listed in rows and people listed in
columns, the team was able to analyse an enormous
amount of data.
Participants: Valentina Ceriani,
Daniela Monza and Sara Villa |
Designing
intelligent speed bumps
One of the problems with road humps or speed bumps"
is that they are uncomfortable to cross even if
you are within the speed limit. Is it possible
to design an intelligent hump to prevent this?
This project analysed what happens when a car
goes over a road hump, and created a computer-based
virtual lab" to quantify the driver's discomfort
at each of a hundred different speeds.
Participants: Michele Bolzoni
and Marco Riccio |
ITALY:
Environment |
JAPAN:
Computing |
LATVIA:
Mathematics |
 |
 |
 |
Practical
ways of powering a building using renewable energy
Fabio calculated how much energy a large building
such as a conference centre uses at its period
of peak demand in summer, when it is running air
conditioning systems and refrigerators. He then
looked at ways of producing that power from renewable
sources, coming up with two possible solutions:
geothermic and hydroelectric.
Participants: Fabio Colletta |
An easy
way to analyse stones
This software, based on Microsoft Excel, helps
scientists who study stones, particularly igneous
rocks or granite. When you study stones, it is
very important to know what they are made of,
and this software analyses a sample to indicate
the mineral elements of which it is composed.
Participants: Shiori Yamashita
and Tomoe Hanaki |
Arranging
particles by means of networks
Roads, electronic circuits and even the human
brain can be conceived of as networks, made up
of elements that can be connected in various different
ways. This project explores how particles can
be rearranged by means of networks, and posits
a way of calculating the number of different ways
in which a network can be crossed by a single
particle.
Participants: Arturs Kanepajs
and Rudolfs Kreicbergs |
LATVIA: Engineering |
LATVIA: Chemistry |
LITHUANIA: Physics |
 |
 |
 |
Building
and using a small-scale aerodynamic wind tunnel
The odd wings and plates that festoon Formula
1 cars all have an aerodynamic function, but it
is almost impossible to see what it is - never
mind design them - without a wind tunnel. Kristaps
has developed and built a small wind tunnel that
allows flow patterns and aerodynamic forces to
be accurately analysed.
Participants: Kristaps Dambis |
Preventing
oil leaks - with clay
Organoclay is a means of preventing oil leaks,
which pollute the environment. This project demonstrates
that Trias clay, which is plentiful in Latvia
but not suitable for industry, is especially suitable
for use in organoclay - allowing Latvia to take
advantage of its raw materials while improving
the environment.
Participants: Inese Sarcevicha |
New applications
of the isospin method
The isospin method allows all the main atomic
theory quantities to be determined. This project
shows that the isospin method can be used to analyse
highly charged ions, which has applications in
many branches of physics, such as thermonuclear
plasma diagnostics. The project also involved
using the programming language Maple 9.0 to calculate
the main atomic quantities.
Participants: Gediminas Kirsanskas
and Erikas Gaidamauskas |
LITHUANIA:
Environment |
LITHUANIA: Biology |
LUXEMBOURG: Biology |
 |
 |
|
 |
Do magnetic
fields influence radiation? A post-Chernobyl study
After the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power
plant in 1986, a radioactive cloud passed over iron
ore fields in Lithuania. This project studied the
influence of deposits of ore on the distribution
of caesium-137 - a radioactive pollutant. The hypothesis
is that natural magnetic fields influence the levels
of caesium-137, and the team propose setting up
artificial magnetic fields to protect sensitive
areas and prevent leaks at power plants.
Participants:
Vytautas Zarauskas and Atajeva Gulera |
How cranberries
adapt
The aim of the project was to investigate the physiological
and morphological changes that happened as American
cranberries adapted to the acidity of different
substrates - both in a test tube and outside. The
investigation was carried out with three cultivated
varieties of cranberry: Bergman', Black Weil' and
Bain 10'. The first two are more adaptive to acidity
than the last.
Participants:
Rugile Stanyte |
Gall builders
Galls are proliferations of cell tissue in plants,
and they are often very organised structures. This
project investigated galls found in the autumn in
two areas of Luxembourg. It asked what caused galls
in these areas and what species of animal are encouraged
by the galls produced by Diplolepis rosae wasps.
Participants: Eric Dele and Pierre
Haas |
MALTA:
Environment |
NORWAY:
Biology
|
POLAND:
Biology |
 |
 |
 |
DBG - Domestic
Biogas Generator
The aim of this project is to produce biogas from
ground-up waste organic matter. The matter is preserved
in a black-sprayed plastic container, which absorbs
heat from its surroundings, encouraging decomposition.
An extractor creates pressure so that the gas enters
a container and is kept there by one-way valves.
When a valve is opened, the flammable biogas is
ignited, generating renewable energy. The sludge
in the containers can then be dried and used as
compost.
Participants: Daniela
Bartolo, Mark Abela and Andrea Micallef |
Spices: natural
ant repellents?
Ants damage food and property, but they are notoriously
difficult to keep away. This project evaluates the
ant-repellent properties of certain household spices
- many of which have traditionally been used in
India for the purpose. It is believed that the plants
from which these spices come may have evolved ways
to repel ants. The aim is to find natural products
that are effective at repelling ants, safe for home
use, biodegradable, and easily available.
Participants:
Shilpa Narula |
If music be
the food of dogs
Shelters for homeless dogs help to keep them alive
and healthy, but dogs find them very stressful.
This project evaluates the use of classical music
for relieving dogs' stress. They were observed with
and without music, and the effect of varying the
volume was analysed. While the dogs had their own
preferences, most became calmer and less aggressive
when music was played.
Participants:
Kaja Gizewska |
POLAND:
Physics |
POLAND:
Biology |
PORTUGAL:
Biology |
 |
 |
|
Discovering
a variable star
Agata has always been interested in variable stars.
Unlike ordinary stars, their brightness varies in
a regular way, in periods of hours, days or years.
Every weekend for the past two years, Agata has
made the long journey to a university observatory,
scanning the skies for variable stars. She has investigated
one of them and come to some interesting general
conclusions about such stars.
Participants:
Agata Karska |
Do
artificial herbicides kill natural ones?
Herbicides, along with artificial fertilisers and
other chemicals, are routinely used in modern agriculture.
This project evaluated the influence of a new herbicide
on an important insecticidal fungus. Kamila found
that the herbicide inhibited the fungus's growth,
but even the highest concentration didn't kill it.
She concludes that herbicides change ecosystems
and may impede natural insecticides.
Participants:
Kamila Zapalowicz |
The
algae of Serra da Gardunha
This project aims to contribute to our knowledge
of the algae in Serra da Gardunha, linking its diversity
and abundance to environmental conditions. It also
investigates the role of algae in maintaining the
trophic chains of the local aquatic ecosystems.
Participants: Ana Inês
Rondão, Andreia Raimundo and Dora Henriques |
PORTUGAL:
Medical |
PORTUGAL:
Physics |
RUSSIA: Engineering |
 |
 |
 |
Heather: a
natural antioxidant?
Heather is a common shrub and its flowers are used
in folk medicine. The project assessed its antioxidant
properties by studying an extract of the plant.
This showed significant antioxidant capacity, protecting
well against lard peroxidation, very probably as
a result of the flavonoids it contains.
Participants:
David Medroa
|
Make holograms
the easy way: in a sand box
The usual way of making holograms requires heavy
and expensive equipment. This project describes
and tests Alexandre's sand-box system", proving
that despite its low price, its results can be just
as good as with professional equipment. Alexandre
hopes to use this to interest people - especially
at school - in science in general and physics in
particular.
Participants: Alexandre
Lopes |
Protected
network messaging system
This project is a software package for protecting
and transferring confidential data. It makes it
much more difficult to crack the ciphers used to
encode data, and it allows low-capacity networks
to be used. This stand-alone software also allows
an administrator to control the way it works.
Participants: Oleg Strikov |
RUSSIA:
Engineering |
RUSSIA:
Biology |
SLOVAKIA: Mathematics |
 |
 |
 |
My answer
to terrorism
Alexander's project aimed to find technical solutions
for use in the struggle against terrorism. These
solutions include a device for restricting the explosive
effect of bombs on vehicles, a device for clearing
mines, and an explosion-proof dustbin. All have
been recognised by specialists and two have been
patented. One is now in production, the other two
are being prepared for manufacture.
Participants:
Alexander Petrenko |
Do mobile
phones damage human cells?
The debate rages over whether electromagnetic radiation
- especially in mobile telephones - damages health.
This study proves that mobile telephones using high
radio frequencies have a negative influence on the
morphological and physiological properties of cells.
The project also includes a tape, offering some
rules on safe ways of using mobile telephones.
Participants: Igor Yaroshevich |
Fractal algebra
Fractal geometry is the branch of mathematics that
studies the properties of fractals. However, the
fractal algebra that should accompany it does not
yet exist. Matej's treatise proposes appropriate
mathematical functions for fractal algebra on the
basis of theoretical models such as the set theory.
Participants: Matej Korbel |
SLOVAKIA:
Physics |
SLOVAKIA:
Chemistry |
SLOVENIA: Engineering |
 |
 |
 |
How to remove
gases from water - and use them to breathe while
diving
Using Henry's and Dalton's laws, this project explains
the physical mechanism of extracting gases from
natural water and looks at uses for that mechanism.
Frantisek explains how to build an efficient machine
to supply a diver with breathable air by using the
gases dissolved in the water. He also looks at uses
for water which has had its gases extracted.
Participants: Frantisek Malina |
Household
cleaning that doesn't harm the environment
Cleaning agents can be bad for the environment,
but new kinds of surface-active agents can solve
that problem. Juraj and Julia designed and tested
an environmentally friendly cleaning product that
could be used in the bathroom and kitchen. Prolit,
their cleaning paste, is a mixture of organic,
biodegradable components, and it contains no phosphates
or inorganic salts.
Participants:
Juraj Ohradzansky and Julia Hvojnikova |
Doubling the
power of a petrol engine
This project shows how to double the power of a
car engine by remodelling the compressor turbine
and the intercooler and adjusting the car's electrics.
Jure tested the whole procedure on his Nissan car,
and found that the biggest problem he had to overcome
was installing the compressor turbine.
Participants:
Jure Krof |
SLOVENIA:
Biology |
SPAIN:
Biology |
SPAIN:
Environment
|
 |
|
 |
 |
Teenagers,
education and antibiotics
An increasing number of bacteria have become resistant
to antibiotics because doctors prescribe them improperly.
This research investigates the extent to which education
influences teenagers' knowledge of antibiotics and
prevents bacterial infections. It concludes that
antibiotics, bacterial infections and standards
of hygiene should all be part of the curriculum.
Participants: Tina Bizjak and Katja
Zalokar |
Sonchus leptacaulis:
a new species in Gran Canaria
The purpose of this research was to find out whether
some plants discovered in 1998 belonged to a new
category that had not yet been described. It also
investigated whether similar specimens were to be
found in other places around the Canary Islands.
Participants: Javier Lopez Martinez
Fortun, Carlos Machado Carvajal and Eliecer Perez
Robaina |
Urban solid
waste in the town of Salou
Mariona studied the way urban solid waste (USW)
is managed in the Salou municipality. She analysed
the way residents separated USW from other waste,
and their attitudes to it. She also analysed the
collection of USW in Salou between 1997 and 2003,
comparing it with data for the whole of Catalonia,
and has used the results to draw up guidelines for
improving performance.
Participants:
Mariona Boix Surroca |
SWEDEN:
Biology |
SWEDEN:
Engineering |
SWEDEN:
Biology |
 |
 |
 |
Examination
of an eco-friendly fuel
This study compares regular diesel fuel with the
eco-friendly fuel EcoPar. Experiments were conducted
to show how EcoPar and diesel affect the human metabolism,
the health of worms, and the growth, cell division
and health of plants. It looks particularly at the
effects of residues, fuel vapour and spills on animals
and plants.
Participants: Nina
Kallin, Emma Klintbo and Nordstrand Runsvik |
Engines, emissions
and fuels
Fuel consumption experiments were conducted with
four Volvo cars with different engines and transmissions
and one Volvo truck. The measurements were conducted
at constant speeds and accelerations between 0 and
100 km/h.
Participants: Joel
Svensson |
Adventures
with tropical orchids
Orchids are fascinating plants with a remarkable
variation of species. They also have an interesting
biological and ecological function as well as being
successful survivors. In this project, Markus and
Martin focused on experiments, biology and ecology
- including how to take care of orchids, potting
methods, their history, and the threat of extinction
hanging over wild orchids.
Participants:
Markus Axelsson and Martin Axelsson |
SWITZERLAND:
Medical |
SWITZERLAND:
Physics |
SWITZERLAND:
Engineering |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
Preventing
urinary tract infections from catheters
When Silvana's grandmother went to hospital with
a urinary tract infection, Silvana resolved to prevent
it from happening again. Post-operative urinary
tract infections are caused by the use of catheters,
but the standard treatment (oral antibiotics) is
often ineffective because a film develops on the
catheter's surface, protecting the bacteria. Silvana's
solution was to use a high-tech polymer to impregnate
the catheter itself with antibiotics, which is also
better for the patient.
Participants:
Silvana Konermann |
Construction
of a low-cost wing-in-ground effect craft
Wing-in-ground effect (WIG) vehicles take advantage
of the fact that flying very close to the ground
gives an aircraft extra lift - thus making them
more efficient. Dominique and Christoph made a detailed
investigation of the conditions necessary for a
stable and controlled WIG flight - even building
their own wind tunnel. Having done this, they built
and tested two vehicles, and are now investigating
the use of WIG design elements in water-skis and
wakeboards.
Participants: Dominique
Alain Seuret and Christoph Wangler |
Tom & Jerry:
the robots
Matthias and Stefan meticulously designed and built
two robots that mimic the behaviour of a cat and
mouse. The mouse robot uses its sensors to detect
and evade anything within range, while the cat robot
has video-camera eyes which it uses to find and
track the mouse. Both robots act entirely independently,
using artificial intelligence that was programmed
and modelled in advance.
Participants:
Matthias Raphael Bühlmann and Stefan Dahinden |
TURKEY:
Physics |
TURKEY:
Chemistry |
UKRAINE:
Medical |
 |
 |
|
The speed
of light in a moving medium
This project studies the behaviour of light in moving
material and uses a new method to find out how much
of the speed of the medium is added to the speed
of the light in it. Another goal is to prove Einstein's
addition of velocities formula, stated in his special
theory of relativity.
Participants:
Serdar Karatekin and Bilkan Erkmen |
Preventing
gas poisoning
Using materials readily found in the electronics
industry, this project combined the principle of
a vacuum water pump with the fact that heat causes
gas to rise, and that gases create homogeneous mixtures
among themselves. These principles combined to create
a suction force that draws gases out of the environment.
Once he had proved the idea, Rudi applied the system
to a scale model to show that it could be used in
daily life to prevent gas poisoning.
Participants:
Rudi Ruben Maca |
A new way
of measuring the effects of smoking
Although smoking always causes people serious harm,
some substances in tobacco smoke can be partially
neutralized and excreted by kidneys. This research
determined the effect of tobacco on the surface
tension (ST) of urine, in order to use it as a measure
of the kidneys' functioning. It also investigated
the relationship between ST and the state of the
lungs.
Participants: Mariya
Paliyenko and Kateryna Kotenko |
UNITED
KINGDOM: Biology |
UNITED
KINGDOM: Engineering |
USA:
Engineering |
 |
 |
|
How fishy
are prawn crackers?
It was suspected that some prawn crackers contain
very little actual prawn, so electrophoresis was
used to analyse prawns and prawn crackers. Although
slightly inconclusive, experimental results confirmed
the initial suspicion. Qualitative protein analysis
also suggested that the prawn" used in prawn
crackers may be of questionable origin.
Participants: Andrew Adam, Katy
Steel and Emma Lindsay |
A pre-failure
warning system for oil-lubricated bearings
The aim of the project was to create a device that
warned of potential failure in a large plain bearing.
The requirements of the device were broken down
into power, input, process and output, to enable
all the components of the model to be tested individually
and as a complete system. The final design monitors
the condition of the lubricating oil in the bearing
- a reliable indicator of imminent failure.
Participants: Naomi Wheeler and
Claire Fugill |
Using the
thermoacoustic effect to cool electronic devices
Microelectronic devices, such as the components
of computers, create a great deal of heat, which
can cause them to break down unless they are constantly
cooled. Today's computers use mini-fans to do this,
consuming more power. Pen-Yuan and Wei-Kang realised
that microelectronic devices create enough heat
to trigger the thermoacoustic effect. They then
designed a way of using this effect to create convection
currents that have a significant cooling effect,
thus using the problem to solve the problem.
Participants: Pen-Yuan Hsing and
Wei-Kang Huang |
