New black hole picture

The science fair "Olympics"

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5/16/22 Thank you for subscribing to The Cheat Sheet, from Science News for Students. If you like this newsletter, share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up for our weekly updates. Got questions, suggestions or comments? Email us at sns@sciencenews.org and put “The Cheat Sheet” in the subject line. We’d love to hear from you. Inside Science News for Students  Last week, more than 1,700 students gathered online and in Atlanta, Ga., for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, or ISEF. Sometimes called “the Olympics of science fairs,” ISEF brings together high-school students from around the world to show off their STEM research and compete for nearly $8 million in prizes. (This annual competition is hosted by the Society for Science, which publishes Science News for Students.) Here at Science News for Students, we love showing our young readers all the cool kinds of research that high-school students can do. That’s why we’ve covered some of this year’s most fascinating ISEF projects — like two Taiwanese students’ technique to “vaccinate” crops using electric shocks. Keep an eye out for more of our ISEF coverage coming up this week. And learn about this year’s winning projects here.  But ISEF isn’t just about vying for prizes. Alumni say that competing in the fair was its own reward — helping them find kindred spirits, learn about possible career paths and more. In a pair of Q&As, we spoke with recent competitors and notable scientists who have participated in ISEF about their experiences. We hope these and other stories in our Competition Science collection will get students excited about the possibilities for doing original research before college, and the community of teens around the globe who are following their own curiosity.  Science News is a nonprofit. We depend on our readers to support our journalism. You can help by subscribing for as little as $25.   SUBSCRIBE NOW   Catch up with the latest from Science News for Students We finally have an image of the black hole at the heart of our galaxy: New observations from the Event Horizon Telescope reveal in extreme detail the chaotic region around the Milky Way’s central black hole, Sagittarius A*. Readability: 7.3  Resources: power words, videos, alternate version at Science News  Like bloodhounds, worms are sniffing out human cancers: Scents emitted by diseased cells may usher in a new era of safe, low-cost screening tests for cancer and other illnesses. Readability: 6.4 Resources: classroom questions, power words, word find puzzle, video Scientists Say: Variable: A variable is something that can be changed — such as a value in math, or some aspect of an experiment. Readability: 7.3 Resources: power words, audio recording Analyze This: Some 5,000 planets orbit stars other than our sun: A new cache of confirmed exoplanet discoveries marks a milestone in planets found beyond our solar system. Readability: 6.5 Resources: power words, data tables, alternate version at Science News Let’s learn about cellulose: The world’s most abundant natural polymer is finding all kinds of new uses, in everything from ice cream to construction. Readability: 7.0 Resources: power words, word find puzzle, video   Your bloodstream may be littered with the plastic you’ve eaten: For the first time, scientists have found plastic particles circulating in human blood. No one yet knows whether those polluting bits might pose a risk to health. Readability: 7.9 Resources: power words Electric shocks act like vaccines to protect plants from viruses: To protect crops against viruses in their home country of Taiwan, two teens invented a novel approach to fight blights. Readability: 7.0  Resources: power words What it’s like to compete in the science fair ‘Olympics’: Four recent alumni of the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair share their experiences. Readability: 7.1 Resources: power words Bubbles could help remove trash from rivers: One young engineer devised a way to make bubbles sweep away the trash floating down a creek, like the one in her backyard. Readability: 7.5  Resources: power words A major science fair set these scientists on the path to STEM success: Alumni of the International Science and Engineering Fair talk challenges and payoffs of competitive science. Readability: 7.6  Resources: power words Analyze This! A new cache of confirmed discoveries brings the number of known exoplanets to more than 5,000. Now that astronomers know of so many planets orbiting other stars, we can start understanding the diversity among those worlds. In the latest entry in our data literacy series, Analyze This, students can examine the number of known exoplanets that have different structures or were discovered through different methods.  Find out more about the resources available for using Science News for Students stories for learning. And if you like this newsletter, please share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone share this with you? Subscribe to this newsletter here. If you’ve got questions, suggestions or comments, email us at sns@sciencenews.org. Thank you for reading! Privacy policy  |  Update Profile  | Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe This email was sent by: Society for Science 1719 N Street NW Washington, DC, 20036, US