MASSACHUSETTS SCIENCE OLYMPIAD Bob Goldstein, High School Director (617) 842-6483 Martha Moore, Co-Director, Event Coordinator Dwayne Bell, Co-Director 340 Windjammer Lane EASTHAM, MA 02642 August 29, 2018 Dear Science Team Coaches, Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a great summer! The purpose of this letter is to update you on the Science Olympiad Martha Moore, Dwayne Bell, and I (Bob Goldstein) will be running the State Competition at Framingham State again this year I will be collecting the registration fee ($125) at the Coaches Meeting I have included brief descriptions of the events Please look at the trial events at http://soinc.org/trial_events prior to the Coaches meeting We have converted to all electronic mailings If you specifically want the forms mailed to you via USPS, you will need to check the box on the enclosed registration form Rules Manuals (Coaches Manuals) will be available free online at the Science Olympiad Store starting 9.4.18 We will hold the Coaches Meeting on Saturday, October 13th 2018 at 10:00 a.m at Framingham State University in room HA 425 The main purpose of this meeting will be to discuss which events would be most appropriate and to make an initial list of event runners and helpers The tentative date of the Science Olympiad is Saturday, March 23, 2019 Framingham State’s Academic Calendar determines this date Very soon after this meeting, I will send out more detailed information about the events and how to register for the state competition The information will also be posted on the Massachusetts State Science Olympiad web site http://masciolympiad.x10host.com/ I have also enclosed a pre-registration form and dues invoice The amount is $125 Please note that the due date for the pre-registration form is November 16, 2018 and that our capacity is 50 teams, determined by the number of lab stations Teams over that number may be considered on a conditional basis Dues payment must be sent in by Jan 7, 2019 Teams that have not paid dues by then are in danger of losing their slot to other teams on the waiting list We have available grant money that will be distributed to 10 Science Olympiad Level C teams The amount is $400 per school Schools that were in the top 10 last two years are not eligible because they received a $400 prize at that time This money was a one-time award from Hologic and we are trying to use it to support as many schools as possible The deadline is December 31, 2018 To apply for the money, please send an email to Bob at Robert_Goldstein@MEEI.HARVARD.EDU with the following information: 1.Name of school 2.Address where the money should be sent 3.Person or team to which the check should be made out 4.A ONE paragraph budget stating how the money should be spent (travel and dues are not allowed) If anyone has any feedback about which events should be included, but cannot attend the meeting, feel free to call me at (617) 842-6483 I look forward to working with all of you this year If you have any questions, feel free to call me Hope to see you on October 13th! Sincerely, Bob Goldstein, Ph.D Senior Computer Analyst Schepens Eye Research Institute 20 Staniford St Boston, MA 02114 work: 617 912 2513 cell: (617) 842-6483 mailto:Robert_Goldstein@MEEI.Harvard.edu 2019 National Science Olympiad Level C Events Understand the anatomy and physiology of the human body systems: cardiovascular, lymphatic and excretory Astronomy Teams will demonstrate an understanding of stellar evolution in normal and starburst galaxies Boomilever Teams will design and build a Boomilever meeting requirements specified in the rules supporting a minimum load and to achieve the highest structural efficiency Chemistry Lab Teams will complete one or more tasks and answer a series of questions involving the science processes of chemistry focused in the ares of Physical Properties and Acids and Bases Circuit Lab Participants must complete tasks and answer questions about electricity and magnetism Codebusters Teams will cryptanalze (decode) encrypted messages using cryptanalysis techniques and show skill with advanced ciphers by encrypting or decrypting a message Designer Genes Participants will solve problems and analyze data or diagrams using their knowledge of the basic principles of genetics, molecular genetics and biotechnology Disease Detectives Students will use investigative skills in the scientific study of disease, injury, health and disability in populations or groups of people Dynamic Planet Students will use process skills to complete tasks related to glaciers, glaciation and long-term climate change Experimental Design This event will determine a participant's ability to design, conduct and report the findings of an experiment conducted entirely on site Fermi Questions Teams provide answers to a series of Fermi Questions, which are sciencerelated questions that seek fast, rough estimates of a quantity which is either difficult or impossible to measure directly Forensics Given a scenario and some possible suspects, participants will perform a series of tests which along with other evidence or test results will be used to solve a crime Fossils Teams demonstrate their knowledge of ancient life by completing selected tasks at a series of stations including but not limited to fossil identification, answering questions about classification, habitat, ecologic relationships, behaviors, environmental adaptations and the use of fossils to date and correlate rock units GeoLogic Mapping Teams will demonstrate understanding in the construction and use of topographic maps, geologic maps, and cross sections, and their use in forming interpretations regarding subsurface structures and geohazard risks Herpetology Participants will be assessed on their knowledge of amphibians and reptiles Mission Possible Participants design, build, test and document a Rube Goldberg-like device that completes a required action through an optional series of specific actions Mousetrap Vehicle Teams design, build and test a vehicle using one or two snap mousetraps as its sole means of propulsion to push a paper cup forward, reverse direction, and stop as close as possible to a target point Protein Modeling Students will use computer visualization and online resources to construct physical models of the CRISPR Cas9 protein that is being engineered to edit plant and animal cell genomes, and answer a series of questions about the chemistry of protein folding and the interaction of structure and function for model proteins Anatomy and Physiology Sounds of Music Teams must construct and tune one device prior to the tournament based on a 12-tone equal tempered scale and complete a written test on the physics of sound Thermodynamics Teams must construct an insulated device prior to the tournament that is designed to retain heat and complete a written test on thermodynamic concepts Water Quality Participants will be assessed on their understanding and evaluation of aquatic environments Wright Stuff Prior to the competition teams design, construct and test free flight rubberpowered monoplanes to achieve maximum time aloft Write It Do It One student will write a description of an object and how to build it, and then the other student will attempt to construct the object from the description