Science Olympiad for North Jersey schools set for Jan. 12 at NJIT

Call this event the true battle of the brains as some 500 middle and senior high school students from throughout Northern New Jersey descend on NJIT Thursday, Jan. 12, 2012 to compete vigorously among themselves to be crowned the best of North Jersey's future scientists and engineers.

If you've ever had any doubt that students today don't care about math, science, engineering and technology, then come to this event and learn otherwise. You'll see three dozen teams of enthusiastic, excited and even at times exasperated 12-18-year-olds roving the campus for hours joyfully competing in events ranging from building the best "Rube Goldberg" to testing vehicles powered by mousetraps.

Dedicated and occasionally ecstatic high school science teachers will usher their hometown charges through the proceedings. The winning teams will be announced about 3 p.m. Screams are allowed. The top teams will have the chance to compete this March in the statewide Science Olympiad against students from central and south Jersey. Eventually the best of those best go on to the late spring national competition. To learn more, see http://www.njscienceolympiad.org/content/news/2011BrochureSO.pdf

Teachers say don't miss the following events:

Towers: Students will design and build the most efficient tower meeting the specified requirements.

Mission Possible: Teams must design, build, test, and document one "Rube Goldberg®-like Device" that completes a required final task using a sequence of consecutive tasks.

Mousetrap Vehicle: Teams design, build, and test one vehicle using one mousetrap as its sole means of propulsion to reach a target as quickly, accurately and close to their predicted time as possible.

Sounds of Music: Prior to the competition each team was asked to build two different instruments, of any type, based on a 12-tone tempered scale. At the Olympiad they will be asked to describe the principles behind their operation then they will perform a major scale, a required melody and a chosen melody with each instrument submitted.

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 this description.

Participating high schools by county include the following:

Bergen: Al-Ghazaly, Teaneck; Bergen County Academies, Paramus

Essex: Livingston (2 teams); Millburn; West Essex, North Caldwell; Golda Och Academy, West Orange

Hudson: Miffaahul Uloom Academy, Union City

Mercer: Hopewell Valley Central, Pennington; West Windsor-Plainsboro South (2 teams), Princeton Junction

Middlesex: Al Minhaal Academy, South Plainfield; J. P. Stevens, Edison; Piscataway

Monmouth: Christian Brothers Academy, Lincroft

Morris: Mendham; Randolph

Somerset: Bridgewater-Raritan, Bridgewater

Sussex: Sparta

Warren: West Morris Central Regional, Washington

Participating middle schools by county include the following:

Bergen: Alpine ES, Alpine; Rising Star Academy, Bergenfield; Haworth Public School, Haworth; Eisenhower, Wyckoff

Essex: Glenfield Middle; Montclair Kimberly Academy, Mount Hebron, all in Montclair; Heritage, Livingston; First Avenue, Newark; Roosevelt Middle School and Golda Och Academy, West Orange

Hudson: Waterfront Montessori School, Jersey City

Mercer: Thomas Grover, West Windsor

Monmouth: Avon ES, Avon-By-The-Sea

Morris: Mt. Olive, Budd Lake; Mountain View, Mendham; Mendham Township, Mendham; Randolph, Randolph; Robert R. Lazar (2 teams), Montville

Somerset: Central Jersey College Prep Charter, Somerset; Montgomery, Skillman

Provided by New Jersey Institute of Technology