Agricultural Engineering and Mechanics

Transcription

1 Agricultural Engineering and Mechanics 1. What are the most common causes of accidents on the farm? How can they be prevented? 2. Compare some common irrigation systems for energy efficiency, effectiveness, and water use. 3. How does irrigation accumulate salts in the soil? 4. How can we reduce soil erosion on cultivated land? 5. How can computers be used in agriculture? 6. How can energy be saved in agriculture? (New machines, new methods, etc.) 7. Demonstrate the use of hydraulics in doing work. Show how a small force on a small piston will balance a larger force on a larger piston. 8. Demonstrate effects of pressure on liquid level and flow. Show how friction reduces pressure. 9. Demonstrate effects of wire size on current flow and voltage. Show how voltage drop affects the intensity of a light bulb. 10. Demonstrate the flow of electrical current through circuits by wiring a 3-or-4-way switch or other types of controls. 11. Demonstrate the effects of heat on various types of metal. Show how heat causes distortions, hardening, annealing, and crystallizing on mild steel. 12. Demonstrate the use of gears in power transmissions. Show the relationship between the gear size and speed in a transmission or transaxle. 13. Demonstrate and explain how the differential in the rear axle of a tractor operates. 14. What are the sources of water for urban and agricultural uses in your county? Survey aquifers, water uses, consumptive use regulations, etc. 15. How many acres of land in your county are subject to 1984 Wetlands Law? Prepare maps. 16. How does a specific wetland area influence water quality and supply? 17. How many kilo calories of energy are required as inputs (fuel, fertilizer, etc.) to produce a given amount of corn? Page 1 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

2 Agronomy 1. What is the effect of physically restraining the expansion of soybean seeds on the time needed for the seeds to mature? 2. How much pressure is developed by a germinating seed? 3. What is the penetrating power of roots of various plants? What kind of barriers will they grow through? 4. How does a root grow around obstacles such as coarse sand or gravel? 5. How does photoperiod (day length) affect plant growth? 6. What controls apical dominance in plants? 7. How do plant hormones affect growth? 8. Design a computer simulation of crop growth and carbon balance. 9. How does temperature affect plant development (plant growth, node numbers, leaf sizes)? 10. How do root and shoot growth rates compare among plant species? 11. How can better crop plants be developed through breeding? 12. How can plant disease and insect pests be controlled through plant breeding? 13. What materials and methods make the best organic compost fertilizer? 14. What kind of manure makes the best fertilizer? Animal Science 1. How can hormones be used for timed breeding of cattle? 2. What are the causes and the possibilities of multiple births in cattle? 3. What are the benefits and what is the potential of embryo transfer in farm animals? 4. At what temperature are rabbits, chickens, or other small animals most comfortable, or gain the most weight? Page 2 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

3 Botany Agricultural Topics for Science Fair Projects 1. What are the differences between the basal meristems of turf grasses and apical meristems of other perennial herbs? 2. What characteristics separate one genus of plant from another genus? 3. What characteristics separate one species of plant from another species within the same genus? 4. Why do plants grow toward light? 5. How do plants climb? 6. What are some of the ways that plants are pollinated? 7. How and why do some plants mimic other organisms? 8. How does the color of a container affect soil temperature, root growth, etc.? Energy Programs 1. Demonstrate the feasibility of solar energy in the near home environment by building a solar oven or other functional solar-powered device. 2. Determine energy conservation potential of using solar energy for crop drying in place of conventional fuels. 3. Build a wood gasifier and demonstrate its use in agricultural applications. Entomology & Nematology 1. Biological control of root-know nematodes with a fungus, a bacterium or the two combined. 2. The influence of various inoculum levels of plant parasitic nematodes on subsequent plant growth. 3. How can household pests be controlled without pesticides? 4. How can agricultural pests be controlled without pesticides? 5. Do biological organisms control plant parasitic nematodes? 6. Do nematodes include plant disease? What are some signs or symptoms? 7. What are nematodes? Where do they exist? 8. Describe the life cycles of some insect pests, at what stage do they cause the most damage? Why? Page 3 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

4 Food and Resource Economics Agricultural Topics for Science Fair Projects 1. Analyze the economic feasibility and potential of some new agricultural technology. 2. What are the effects of U.S. Government price supports for agricultural products? What would happen to a supported product (peanuts, milk, tobacco) if the price support were dropped? Food Science and Human Nutrition 1. What are the effects of vitamin deficiencies or toxicity on animals? 2. What are some of the new products or recipes for modified diets? How are they developed and tested? 3. Do members of your peer group eat a good balanced diet? How could they be persuaded to improve their nutritional habits? 4. Analyze your school lunch menu for real protein, fat carbohydrates. What would be the best choices for people who want to lose or gain weight? 5. How does canning preserve food? 6. How does drying preserve food? 7. How does freezing preserve food? 8. Are foods cooked fresh at home of better quality than commercially processed foods? 9. Are food additives harmful, or do they improve our general health and nutrition? 10. What are the best ways to store various fresh fruits? Forest Resources & Conservation 1. Survey bird use of several species of shrubs in your yard or neighborhood. 2. Mark a cross section of a tree indicating known events in the past and tying in local conditions affecting tree growth. 3. How long does it take to dry a particular species of wood to x% moisture content to make it suitable for firewood? 4. How much water do plants (or a specific type of plant) use or transpire under different temperatures? 5. How many insects will a toad (or lizard) eat in one day? 6. How variable are cones from a single pine tree in a given year? Page 4 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

5 7. What effects does a tree have on indoor comfort in a Florida home? 8. How long does it take, and how much water is used, to water your lawn effectively? (Consider soil type, rate of flow, root depth, etc.) 9. What are the effects of competition on tree or plant growth? 10. Develop a key for identifying common urban trees in Florida. 11. What would be the probable effect of removing a particular species of animal from a food chain in a given environment? 12. What effect does providing a water source have on wildlife populations in your yard? 13. How much water do tree seedlings use? How does this compare with annual crops such as corn or soybeans? 14. What are the filtration and absorption capacities of forest surface soils for polluted water? Does this method have potential for dealing with contaminated water? 15. What is the bearing capacity of forest wetland soils? How does this compare with upland forest soils? 16. How do Florida forests respond to fertilizer? 17. How does controlled burning affect forest ecosystems? Fruit Crops 1. How does number of chill hours affect the bloom dates of peach or nectarine varieties? (or other fruits) 2. How does thinning affect the size and yield of peach or nectarine varieties? (or other fruits) 3. How does the level of various plant nutrients affect the size and yield of fruit trees? 4. What percentage of root length of citrus is infected with vesicular-arbuscular mycroohizal fungi in groves of varying cultural practices, soil types, and topography? 5. How do V.A. mycorrizal spore populations in the soil vary between groves with different cultural practices? 6. How many varieties of citrus are grown in Florida? What are their characteristics? 7. What are some of the citrus rootstocks used in Florida? What are their characteristics? Home Economics 1. Demonstrate recordkeeping methods for an agricultural endeavor. Page 5 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

6 2. What will be some characteristics of banking in the future? 3. How do molds and fungi cause food spoilage? 4. How can mildew be controlled in the home? 5. How does EDB get into processed foods? What can be done to prevent it? Marine Biology, Fisheries Production, Aquaculture 1. Compare aquatic organisms in different habitats. 2. Establish and maintain aquarium fish. Study their behavior, inter-relationships. 3. How do various chemicals or environmental stresses affect aquarium fish? 4. Develop a computer assisted teaching module for some area of fishery or aquatic ecology. 5. Describe and illustrate the life history of some marine organism. 6. How does a fish s shape relate to its habitat and behavior? What shapes are adapted for what niches in a marine habitat? 7. What organisms are present in a marine estuary? How are they important to the marine ecology? Ornamental Horticulture 1. How does photoperiod influence flowering? 2. How do growth regulators affect plant growth and development? 3. How do additives affect the vase-life of cut flowers? Which additives work best? 4. Which ornamental plants are easiest to maintain in your area? Which are hardest? Why? 5. How do buildings, trees or other landscape features affect microclimate and influence the plants that can grow there? Pesticide Information Office 1. What does the information on a pesticide label mean? 2. Are you safe from pesticide poisoning when you work in your garden or lawn? Plant Pathology 1. How can plant disease outbreaks be predicted? Page 6 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006

7 2. How many different types of disease organisms can be found in soil from a vegetable garden? Poultry Science 1. How can the hatchability of incubated poultry eggs be improved? 2. What is the nest seeking behavior of chickens? How can floor eggs be prevented? 3. What are some of the problems with small backyard or hobby poultry flocks? What are some of the solutions? Soil Science 1. How does soil testing help agricultural production? 2. How does excessive fertilizer use cause pollution? 3. What are some of the tillage methods used in Florida, and how do they relate to soil fertility, water management, pest control, erosion or water pollution? 4. How does biological nitrogen fixation benefit plants? 5. How do the soil, plants and micro-organisms interact? Vegetable Crops 1. What is the effect of high or low humidity on weight loss of different vegetables? 2. What are the effects of ethylene, a natural plant volatile and hormone, on the storability of various fruits and vegetables? 3. When is a fruit ripe and ready to eat? Veterinary Science 1. How do organisms produce disease? (general or specific) 2. Describe the life cycle and mode of actions of some infectious parasite. Page 7 Provided by FCAE 5 2/16/2006