Students Showcase Projects at Regional Science Fair in Reno

For some, a love for science and technology comes at a young age. John Langon is eleven years old and loves computers. 

"I want to win first place," said Langon.  

He is not the only contender. 

"I do hope to win. Just a little nervous if we have to go on," said middle schooler Grace Hackbusch.

George Ochs is the executive director of the science fair. He's seen the type of projects change over the years.

You won't find any volcanoes here. 

"Oh, the projects have really changed," said Ochs. 

Nowadays renewable energy seems to be a theme. 

"You'll find someone dealing with solar heat generation in terms of a project that's a junior level in college," said Ochs. 

Grace's project tests different weights of trees, and Shannon Nicholson's project looks at earthquake safety and bridges. 

"They put their name on it, they have a title, they have to do the research on the background of the science and they have to work with the actual experiment," said Ochs. 

So they have lots of to be proud of. Langon is hoping his project is good enough to win a prize. 

"I have billions of a chance," said Langon. 

For high schoolers the next step is to compete at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix in May.

"Here they've got a ticket to this big dance but if they wanted to go to a real big dance perhaps the Super Bowl of science fairs they got to punch their ticket to be one of the top two high school projects," said Ochs. 

For high schoolers a whole class can compete. For middle schoolers and younger, you have to be nominated. Which is a big accomplishment.

This year they might not have room for as many projects as years' past, but the talent is just as high. The awards ceremony takes place on Thursday, March 3rd from 5:30 to 6:30 pm.