Illinois Junior Academy of Science (IJAS) Topic List

   Students can choose an experiment in any of the following areas:

AEROSPACE SCIENCE - Airplanes, Rockets, Satellites, Other Equipment

  • Design, manufacture, and operation of aircraft
  • Space travel - rockets, satellites
  • Observations of airflow patterns within tunnels
  • The use of navigational equipment

ASTRONOMY - Space- Galaxies,  Stars, Planets, Other Objects

  • Planets and their satellites
  • Comets and meteors
  • Stars and interstellar matter, and galaxies

BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE - Animal and organism behavior

  • Humans and other animals
  • Effect of stimuli on organisms and their responses
  • Learning, motivation, emotion, perception, thinking

BIOCHEMISTRY - Living organisms and their chemical properties

  • Processes and physical properties of living organisms
  • Chemistry of absorption, digestion, metabolism, respiration
  • Photosynthesis as an organic processes

BOTANY - The study of plants

  • Plant functions including:  Structure, reproduction, physiology, growth, classification, and disease

CHEMISTRY - Study of elements and their uses

  • Structure, composition, and properties of substances and of their transformations
  • The formulation of various compounds, the study of gas laws, atomic theory, ionization theory, and the analysis of organic and inorganic products.

COMPUTER SCIENCE - Study of computer and its uses

  • The study and development of computer hardware,  and software engineering
  • Internet networking and communications, graphics, simulations/virtual reality or computational science

CONSUMER SCIENCE - Evaluating consumer products

  • Product tests
  • Color preferences
  • Quality control and product efficiency

EARTH SCIENCE - Study of earth's processes

  • Composition - rocks, fossils, minerals, and fuel
  • Geography- landforms, soils, streams, erosion, and sedimentation
  • Oceanography - waves, currents, composition of water
  • Geophysics - seismology, gravity, magnetic, electrical, electromagnetic, radioactivity
  • Meteorology - weather, weather patterns, atmosphere ,clouds, rain, thunderstorms, lightning, mirages, rainbows, halos

ELECTRONICS - Evaluating electricity and its uses

  • Electrical communication - radio, radar, laser, transistor, television, and integrated circuits
  • Electricity and Electric motors
  • Solar cells
  • Amplifiers

ENGINEERING - Designing/building equipment to help improve society

  • The design, construction, and operation of roads, bridges, harbors, buildings, and machinery, lighting, heating, and communication systems
  • Testing of building materials
  • Strength composition of building materials
  • Collection of data from operating systems to compare and contrast their effectiveness

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE - Care of the earth

  • Solar energy and its uses                
  • Water purification and usage
  • Pollution control                              
  • Soil chemistry                    
  • Insecticides
  • Ecology - ecological systems, and ecological population studies

HEALTH SCIENCE - The study of health practices

  • Proper diet
  • Care of the body including teeth and eyes

MATERIALS SCIENCE - The study of materials used in society

  • Nonmetals and metals - adapted and fabricated to meet the needs of modern technology
  • Uses of plastics, ceramics, and other nonmetals in applications formerly reserved for metals

MATHEMATICS - The study of mathematical principles

  • Arithmetic (use of numbers, symbols, and numerical systems)
  • Algebra (probability, theory of equations, progressions, permutations and combinations)
  • Geometry (topology, study of geometric figures, similar figures, and scale drawings)
  • Calculus
  • Trigonometry
  • Statistics and graphing

MICROBIOLOGY - The study of microorganisms

  • Bacteria, viruses, yeasts, fungi, and protozoa, and studies involving cells or tissues in cultures 
  • MUST BE COMPLETED IN A LAB - NOT AT HOME

PHYSICS - The laws governing motion, matter, and energy

  • Hydrostatic force and pressure                       
  • Gravity - Newton's Laws, relativity
  • Kinetic theory - Motion and  Forces                 
  • Work
  • Energy
  • Sound
  • Light
  • Magnetism

ZOOLOGY - The study of animals

  • Animal structure, functions, development, evolution, and classification 
  • Structural and functional studies of vertebrates and invertebrates
  • Physiology, heredity, and embryology