Boys’ School Students Put Ideas to the Test at Auckland Science Fair
Boys’ School students achieved another outstanding set of results at the 2026 Earth Sciences New Zealand Auckland City Science and Technology Fair, with eight projects securing top placings, including one first place, five second places and two third places, and a further eight receiving Highly Commended recognition. These students also collected nine Special Prizes.
Behind the results was a diverse range of investigations, with students putting their ideas to the test in areas ranging from structural design and magnetic braking to microplastics, food science and human behaviour.
James Shanks led the results with first place in Planet Earth and Beyond, having tested five structures he built in his backyard using both a major earthquake and a minor earthquake to compare their strength. His results showed that a design featuring a single diagonal was the strongest, using both tension and compression. His project also received the ASTA Award for Experimental Design.
The laws of motion were explored by Lucas Yan and Ryan Wu, where they investigated how track shape and marble size affected the time taken for a marble to reach the finish line. They tested three different tracks over ten trials each. The large Brachistochrone curve was the fastest in every trial, showing that the straight line was not always the quickest path. Their project placed second in Physical World and received the MOTAT Award.
In the Human Behaviour category, Jay Hughes placed second for his investigation into which substance inside a stress ball lowered heart rate most quickly after a stress-inducing activity. Fifteen boys were tasked with testing homemade stress balls containing different substances, with their heart rates measured before and after a maths test. He found that cotton performed best, lowering heart rate by more than 10%. Jay received an additional Science Awards Trust Prize for his work.
Food provided another avenue for experimentation. Seb Schurr and Max Willis investigated how different types of sugar affected SCOBY growth and acidity in kombucha. Their results showed that white and raw sugar acidified the fastest, while coconut sugar produced the heaviest SCOBY. The project earned second place in Food Science and the Special LearnWell Publications Prize.
Meanwhile, Dylan Busch and James Ogden investigated the presence of microplastics in different water sources. They collected water from a beach, river, lake and tap, alongside bottled and pure water samples, before filtering and examining one litre of each under a microscope to count microplastics. Beach water contained the most microplastics, followed by river and lake water, while tap water had the fewest. Their investigation placed second in Planet Earth and Beyond. They also received the Auckland Council Sustainable Schools Award.
Jeffrey Chen turned his attention to magnetic braking by investigating how the electrical conductivity of different metals affects the way magnets cause a car to stop. Using the magnetic brakes found on rollercoasters as the basis for his project, Jeffrey created a small ramp and track fitted with metallic sheets for his testing. The project placed second in Material World and also received a MOTAT Award.
Two more investigations from our Boys’ School students secured third-place recognition. Brodie Metcalfe tested four fertilisers to determine which was best for growing grass in Grow Big or Go Home, measuring the grass by height and weight over two weeks. His project placed third in Living World and also received the House of Science Award. Darren Lin and Benson Yang took third place in Physical World with Green Giants, investigating factors affecting the voltage generated by a wind turbine and water wheel.
Further Recognition Across a Range of Projects
The strong showing at the Fair extended beyond the placed projects, with a further eight investigations by our Boys’ School students receiving Highly Commended recognition. Jayden Huang tested different materials for their resistance to water, while Leo Jamieson compared toothbrushes and toothpastes in an investigation into oral care. George Doole and Winston Franklin developed a non-electric automatic washing line cover; Angus Linwood and Jordan Metcalfe compared feedback from AI and a human cricket coach; and Lenny Vaz and Henry Sim investigated the tensile strength and seawater solubility of different bioplastics. Harrison Sutherland explored how weight position and car shape affected the speed of a derby car, Zac Danish developed a mobile app using image recognition to identify refrigerated foods and suggest recipes, and Jackson Seymour and Angus Prescott compared reading speed and comprehension on paper and an E-reader. Jayden also received the Auckland Council Sustainable Schools Award, while Leo received the Auckland Dental Association Prize.
From structural design and environmental investigations to food science, technology and AI, the projects showcased the many different ideas students chose to explore and test. Congratulations to all our Boys’ School students recognised at this year’s Fair on an outstanding set of results.
