Pierrefonds Community High School students eye national science fair after local awards

Three Pierrefonds Community High School students have won Genius awards for their science projects.

They earned accolades at the local level and are now taking their work to higher levels of competition.

Now, they are going from a grassroots local science fair to the regionals and soon to the provincials.

Their, principal, Lucia Coretti, says she was impressed by "the creativity, the attention to detail and the innovative ideas."

Grade 10 students Isolde MacKay and Sophia Elizabeth Ross created a water purification system called "HydroPure."

It identifies microorganisms in water by testing for the proteins and enzymes they produce.

"The idea behind the protection system was that if we can speed up the process at which that reaction is happening -- with microorganisms breaking it down into a pink dye -- we could have a fast detection system, which is why there are favourable conditions for microorganisms such as the heater and the constant rotation," MacKay explained.

They also ensured their invention had solar panels to charge the battery so HydroPure could be used anywhere.

"Our issue was the fact that a lot of places around the world don't have access to clean drinking water, and especially Indigenous communities in Canada," MacKay said.

Grade 7 student Adam Hamdaqa invented the "Guardian Helmet," which identifies to your guardians if the helmet's wearer has a fall.

"What better way to tell them that I have fallen than as soon as I fall? A notification pops up on their phone saying, 'He's fallen! Better go check on him,'" Hamdaqa said.

Hamdaqa created an app on his phone that he tucks into a pocket at the back of the helmet. "It will measure the change of acceleration or the change of amplitude, because the amplitude of the acceleration is the vector," Hamdaqa said.

He explained that he invented the helmet after getting injured last year.

"I fell off my bike, and I broke my arm. It was snapped 90 degrees."

While he was convalescing after surgery, he thought of ways to help other kids avoid that kind of pain.

All three students are using science to help others.

"It's fun and interesting, and they're getting the results that they want. Or even if they're not, they're troubleshooting. They get really involved in the process, which is amazing to see because that's really what learning is all about," said their science teacher, Christine Pouget.

The students are moving onto the Super Expo-sciences later this month and, hopefully, to a Canada-wide science fair held in May in Ottawa.