“The skills students learn when going through the process of developing an idea and seeing it through to the end are applied in many other areas of life,” said Cliff Coveyduc, program director of NS YES, Nova Scotia’s provincial organization for science fairs. “We are delighted to have sent the largest-ever delegation of students to the Science Fair this year; the future of Nova Scotia is in great hands.”

Elise Tessier, a Grade 12 student at West Kings District High School, won a gold medal in Life Sciences for her analysis of spinach grown under different light intensities and durations to determine if bioactive compounds can be enhanced without compromising crop yield. Her findings could potentially lead to tailoring plants to combat many diseases, including some cancers. Elise also received the Actuarial Foundation of Canada Award and the Manning Innovation Achievement Award for her project Can Stress Bring Out the Best?


Arash Marzi, a Grade 11 student at Dr. John Hugh Gillis Regional School, won a gold medal in Computing and Information Technology for his study on the application of the bees algorithm, embedded with an artificial neural network to determine practical yearly reductions for minimizing oil, natural gas, and coal emissions in Canada’s manufacturing sector based on the Copenhagen Targets for Canada for 2020.



Chantal Surette, a Grade 9 student at École secondaire de Clare, won a gold medal in Engineering for her project L’appareil orque – une nouvelle façon de capter l’énergie dans les vagues. L’appareil Orque utilise une colonne d’eau oscillante pour faire tourner une turbine mais contrairement aux autres appareils de colonne d’eau oscillante qui utilisent des turbines bi-directionnelle, utilise une turbine uni-directionnelle. Je fais une comparaison entre l’appareil Orque et les deux types principaux d’appareil de colonne d’eau oscillante.

The other winners include:

Adrian Peter Howie, Citadel High School: Silver medal in Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Sciences for Arctic-Ceuticals

Kelsey Keddy, École du Carrefour: Silver medal in Earth & Environmental Sciences for Augmenter l’énergie potentielle du moteur à combustion

Hannah Gillis, Chedabucto Education Centre-Guysborough Academy: Silver medal in Computing & Information Technology for Emergency Measure Access Plans; EMAP

Ria Van der Linden, Chedabucto Education Centre-Guysborough Academy: Silver medal in Life Sciences for Fledglings and Fleas

Robert Barrett, Riverview High School: Silver medal in Physical & Mathematical Sciences for Knock Out: Momentum of a Kick Boxers Punch

Alex Ianta, West Pictou Consolidated School: Silver medal in Computing & Information Technology for Semantic Genie

Tim Cooper, Horton High School: Silver medal in Computing & Information Technology for swn: a multi-purpose scripting language

–Natalie Fisher, South Colchester Academy: Silver medal in Health Sciences for Is Its Bark Worse Than Its Bite?

Maxwell Poole, Maple Grove Education Centre: Bronze medal in Engineering for Reengineering LED Traffic Lights to Prevent Snow or Ice Buildup.

Colin Hooper, Malcolm Munroe Memorial Jr High School: Bronze medal in Physical and Mathematical sciences for Take a Bow.

Travis Landry, Bridgewater Junior-Senior High: Bronze medal in Life Sciences for Blanding’s: A Species at Risk.

Mitchell Hanna, Riverview High School: Bronze medal in Health Sciences for Max VO2 Versus Resting Heart Rate.

Hannah Martin, North Colchester High School: Bronze medal in Health Sciences for Complaining about Training

Riviera Marshall and Alitta Sylliboy, Eskasoni High School: Bronze medal in Environmental Innovation for Invisible Plough.

Kurtis Turnbull, Pictou Academy-Dr. T. McCulloch School: Bronze medal in Life Sciences for A Radical Theory: Why Antioxidants May Not Always Be Good

Briony Rose Merritt, Oxford Street School: Honourable mention in Health Sciences for Seeing Red – The Science Behind Colour in Marketing

Juliana Ali, West Pictou Consolidated School: Honourable mention in Health Sciences for Let the “D” Shine In

Macall Robinson, Central Kings Rural High School: Honourable mention in Life Sciences for Carbon Counts

Roman Koszucki, Wolfville School: Honourable mention in Life Sciences for The Spill on Dawn

Alex Mann, Centre Consolidated School: Honourable mention in Earth and Environmental sciences for Up in the Air – VOC Production by Phytoplankton

Peter Holland, Malcolm Munroe Memorial Jr High School: Honourable mention in Physical and Mathematical Sciences for Get the Most Out of Your Game

Congratulations Team Nova Scotia 2010!

Annapolis Valley Region

Elise Tessier
Macall Robinson
Roman Koszucki
Tim Cooper

Cape Breton-Victoria Region

Colin Hooper
Kyle Lefort
Mitchel Hanna
Peter Holland
Robert Barrett

Chignecto East Region

Alex Ianta
Hannah Martin
Juliana Ali
Kurtis Turnbull

Chignecto Central West Region

Alex Smith
Emily Taylor
Lauren Doane
Natalie Fisher
Rumana Rafiq

Conseil Scolaire Acadien Provincial

Chantal Surette
Kelsey Keddy

Halifax Sci-Tech Expo

Adrian Howie
Brandon Holland/Ryan Garland
Briony Merritt
Laura Rigg/RosaLee Poirier-McKiggan

Mi’Kmaq Region

Alitta Sylliboy
Riviera Marshall
Lauren Silliboy

South Shore Region

Alex Mann
Hanna Longard
Kristen Ernst
Travis Landry

Strait Region

Arash Marzi
Chris Melchin
Hannah Gillis
Ria Van der Linden

Tri-County Region

Ethan Minard
Maxwell Poole
Melissa Renn

May 7th and 8th at
St. Mary’s University, McNally Auditorium
Open to the Public
May 7: 3:00pm to 5:00pm
May 8: 11:00am to 1:00pm

Come and meet the minds behind the award-winning grade 7-12 science fair projects from across Nova Scotia: Robotics, Alternative Energy, Novel Inventions, Biological Studies, and much much more!

40 bright students from the South Shore to Cape Breton make up Team Nova Scotia, which will be representing the province at the 2010 Canada-Wide Science Fair in Peterborough – a prestigious event that attract over 450 of Canada’s top students annually.

Please show your support!

CLICK HERE to download an Invitation in PDF format.

CLICK HERE to download Poster in PDF Format

CLICK HERE to download in PDF format

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Team Nova Scotia 2009

More Photos

Here is a partial list with more to follow:

Medford Lutz (Annapolis Valley)
Hope Latta (Annapolis Valley)
Kristy Doyle (Annapolis Valley)
Tim Cooper (Annapolis Valley)

Alyssa Moss (Cape Breton)
Kathleen Orrell (Cape Breton)
Najala Orrell (Cape Breton)
Todd Mercer (Cape Breton)

Nathan Martin (Chignecto East)
Christine Ingham (Chignecto East)
Alexandru Ianta (Chignecto East)
Juliana Ali (Chignecto East)

Natalie Fisher (Chignecto West)
Brandon Verboom (Chignecto West)
Conrad Yiridoe (Chignecto West)
Susan Lynch (Chignecto West)
Ben Lynds (Chignecto West)

Élise Tessier (CSAP)
Roland Troke-Barriault (CSAP)
Riley Troke-Barriault (CSAP)

Nayani Jensen (Halifax)
Adrian Howie (Halifax)
Gregory John Farrell (Halifax)
Emily Jingyi Chua (Halifax)
Gabriel Smith (Halifax)
Isaac Adams (Halifax)

Steadman Evans     (South Shore)
Isaac Longard (South Shore)
Erin McCarthy (South Shore)
Kathryn    Wagner    (South Shore)

Christian Muise (Tri-County)
Maxwell    Poole (Tri-County)
Nolan James (Tri-County)

Cody GooGoo (Mi’qmaq)
Kaylyn Bernard (Mi’qmaq)
Scott Peters (Mi’qmaq)

Before heading off to the Nationals, the top 40 grade 7-12 scientists that make up Team Nova Scotia are invited to Halifax for three days of fun at the ninth annual Team Nova Scotia Showcase!

Team Nova Scotia 2008

At the Showcase all members are given signature blue and yellow Team Jackets – needless to say, Team Nova Scotia makes quite a presence at the Canada Wide Science Fair each year!

Held at Saint Mary’s University, this team-building and media event gives the Team the opportunity to meet one another and participate in some fun and educational activities and tours as a reward for all of their hard work. The young scientists will present their award-winning projects to members of the corporate, government, and educational communities, as well as the community at large, giving them a final chance to sharpen their presentation skills before heading off to Winnipeg.

Some of this year’s event highlights include:

• Take apart a Blackberry! An interactive activity presented by Research In Motion (RIM)
• Astronomer Luigi Gallo’s keynote presentation in honour of the International Year of Astronomy
• Evolution and the Fossil Record: a look at real fossils and evolution from a geological perspective
• Tour of the National Research Council’s marine biology lab in Halifax
• Dinner with Scientists: students will have dinner with members of the scientific community
• Glow-in-the-dark Mini-Putt
• …and much much more!

Students and chaperones will be staying and dining in the Loyola Residence on SMU campus.

Rules and regulations are the same as presented in the Canada-Wide Science Fair Registration Handbook (you’ll need to register online, then click on Documentation). If you have further questions about this, please contact your local teacher or parent chaperone.

For a tentative Team Nova Scotia Showcase schedule, please click here.

You’re Invited to Meet Team Nova Scotia!

The public is invited to come and view these award-winning projects during one of the two public viewing times:

• Friday, May 1 from 3 – 5:30pm
• Saturday, May 2 from 11am – 1pm

We hope to see you there!

To download your Invitation in PDF format, please click here.

What can I do to prepare for the Canada-Wide Science Fair?

This question has been asked so many times. It can be nerve-wracking to compete at the National level. That’s the reason why Youth Science Canada and Canada-Wide Science Fair Alumni members created the Stepping-Up Guide to tell you everything you need to know before heading off to the Canada-Wide Science Fair.

The Stepping-Up Guide will tell you how to deal with judges, how to improve your oral and visual presentations, what to wear, what to pack, what to expect when you arrive in Winnipeg, and much much more:

• Top 10: Mistakes People Make on their Boards
• Display Board Gallery
• Top 10: Mistakes Judges Make
• The Judge Wish List
• Top 10: Mistakes People Make During Judging
• Top 10: Things to do on Your Way to the Fair

Click here to find out the Top 10 Things We Love About Science Fairs.

Congratulations to all regional science fair winners from the South Shore to Cape Breton who have been selected to represent Team Nova Scotia at the 2009 Canada-Wide Science Fair in Winnipeg, May 9-17!

Science Is My Business is an initiative designed to make the connection between science and everyday life at work.

Science in the workplace is not limited to working in a university lab or space exploration with NASA. Science is in our pharmacies, our factories, our parks, and our concert halls.

Science is all around us.

Science Is My Business 2009-2011 Calendar

NS YES! teamed up with EnCana Corp and Trivium Design to present Science Is My Business: a 36-month calendar for classrooms featuring young Nova Scotians who have unique science and technology-based careers.

Meet these 11 bright Nova Scotians who have found exciting careers in design, digital animation, horticulture, aircraft repair, and some who have started their own businesses based on science and technology.

NS YES! feels it is important for the future of Nova Scotia’s economy to show youth what types of exciting careers are available right here in Nova Scotia for those with science education or technical training.

Please contact us today to order a free copy of Science Is My Business for your classroom!

Download English Calendar [PDF Format]

Download French Calendar [PDF Format]

In coming weeks we hope to include feature ‘Science Is My Business’ interviews here. If you would like to participate – please contact us.

Science Is My Business Questionnaire

Please read over the following interview questions and think about how science has entered into your life as member of the labour force.

1. Where do you work?
2. What is your job Title and description?
3. What made you decide to take this career path?
4. What were you doing before you took this job?
5. How does SCIENCE (your own definition) fit in to your job?
6. What advice would you give someone who was interested in following in your footsteps?