Earth Science
                            Science Fair Projects



Chicago is called the "Windy City".  Is it windier then other cities?

Chicago's beaches are eroding.  Why?  How fast?  Where is the sand
going?

The ground freezes in the wintertime, making it difficult to dig.  How
deep does it freeze?  How cold does the air have to get to make the
soil freeze?  Do different kinds of soil freeze at different rates? 
How does rainfall affect freezing?  (Hint: Use an indoor-out door
thermometer.)

How long does it take for slightly acidic ground water to dissolve
limestone to form a cave?  (Hint: try different strengths of acid. 
Weigh a block of limestone before and after soaking it in acid.  Plot
the results and extrapolate.)

What mix of aggregate, sand, and Portland cement makes the strongest
and least dense concrete?  (Hint: test compressive strength by setting
the sample on a strong base and piling weights on top.  Test tensile
strength by making a long, thin brick of the sample, clamping one end
to a table top, allowing the other end to hang out over the edge, and
stacking weights on the "Hanging out" end.)

What causes more erosion: many small drops of rain or a few large ones? 
(Hint: use a bar of soap and a slowly dripping faucet.)

Sand is transported along Lake Michigan beach.  What direction (north
or south) is it moving?  Why?  Where can you find evidence of erosion?
deposition?

Streams carry sediment along with water.  Find a stream that's safe to
wade in, and measure its depth in a line across the stream.  Check it
again after a big storm or a flood.  Has the stream bed changed?

How fast does water have to be moving to carry sediment?  Do streams
carry more sediment along their stream beds, or in the upper portions
of moving water?

Freezing and thawing makes potholes in roads and make rocks break into
pieces.  How many times must a rock freeze (in water) and thaw before
it breaks?  Do different rocks behave differently?

Construct a barometer from a 2 liter soda bottle, some colored water,
a rubber stopper, short piece of glass tubing, and some flexible
tubing.  Use it to measure air pressure over an extended period of
time.  Can the barometer be used to predict the weather?


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