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ARMONK, N.Y. -- Science Olympiad, an annual contest that involves 33 schools in the Lower Hudson Valley, has been going on for about 27 years, but Byram Hills has only participated in the past three.
Weve been very successful and finished third, fourth and fourth the first three years, said Evan Horowitz, the honors chemistry teacher at Byram Hills who is also the Lower Hudson Valley Regional Coordinator of the Olympiad.
This years event takes place Saturday at Byram Hills, with most events open to the public. It starts at 7 a.m. and concludes at 5 p.m.
Seven hundred students will participate in the Olympiad, aiming to qualify for the state tournament in March that has been held at West Point in the past but will take place at Canisius College in Buffalo this year.
There are 25 events in the Olympiad covering all areas of science, from biology and physics to robotics and astronomy. Students have prepared items they will enter in some events, while others are lab projects they will enter at the Olympiad.
Students have built helicopters that will maintain flight for the longest time and magnetic levitation carts that carry weight down a track, Horowitz said.
Cassandra Vitacco, a tenth grader, built a wooden tower that holds as much weight as possible while weighing as little as possible.
I drew a two-dimensional design, laid down the balsa wood, glued it together and put together a two-dimensional tower, Vitacco said.
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