I knew someone who reached the final stage of one of these science fairs. Project was done at a lab in an Ivy League university over a couple of summers. Relative was a senior scientist at the lab and guided them every step of the way. Not to discount what these kids are doing, but the reality is that these science fairs have largely become a contest about how well your family is connected to science-fair-friendly research facilities and how good your presentation skills are. I mean, do we really think 17 year olds are out there doing human trials on novel cancer therapies? I’m sure there are some projects that are genuinely thought of and done by the students themselves, but looking at a lot of these PhD level research that are supposedly done as after school projects of high school kids, I can’t help but think the whole thing has become a bit of a farce.