Global online science fair

Global online science fair. How does a 10-day excursion to the Galapagos Islands sound? Or a front seat in the control room of CERN’s Large Hadron Collider? Both are among the prizes for the first international online science fair, launched by Google in January. “Traditional science fairs are often restricted by geography and therefore dictate which students can participate,” says Google spokeswoman Kat Eller. “By bringing the competition online, we are able to ensure that the Google Science Fair is truly inclusive and global.” However, students in Iran, Cuba, and other countries under US sanctions are not eligible.

After the contest closes on 4 April, a panel of judges, including CERN’s director general Rolf-Dieter Heuer, will narrow down the entries. In July, they will choose the grand prize winner, who, in addition to the Galapagos trip, will receive a $50 000 scholarship and additional prizes from fair cosponsors CERN, National Geographic, the LEGO Group, and Scientific American. A winner chosen by the public will receive a $10 000 scholarship. For more information, or to register, visit http://www.google.com/sciencefair .

At the contest’s launch, 14-year-old Tesca Fitzgerald, shown above, presented her winning entry from a previous science fair as a sample project: an algorithm that reduced the variance of an artificial-intelligence software in robots that could deliver linen and other items to hospital patients.