COUNTYWIDE : Youths Probe Daily Life in Science Fair

Experiments and projects pondering the vastness of the universe are in short supply at the 33rd annual Ventura County Science Fair.

Instead, the more than 600 schoolchildren exhibiting at the fair seem to prefer problems they can relate to.

“How can I keep my puppy from eating cat litter?” “Does underwear really turn inside out in the wash?” “Can flatulence be controlled?” “What happens if I feed my houseplant Scotch?”

Students tackle these and other conundrums with scientific flair in exhibits open to the public from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. today at the Ventura County Fairgrounds.

“The best projects are the ones where the students try to solve problems they’ve come across in their day-to-day lives,” said Michael Bore, a horticulturist who is judging ninth- and 10-grade botany projects. “Those are the ones that impress me the most.”

Caroline Prijatel, an eighth-grader at La Reina, came up with her project idea when her 10-month-old cocker spaniel, Beau, wouldn’t stop eating the litter she put out for her two cats.

“The vet told me it was unhealthy,” Caroline said, “but I wasn’t sure how to get him to stop.”

Caroline decided to try two methods to train her puppy: a choke collar and dropping tin cans next to the dog to startle him when he went near the litter.

The tin cans proved the more successful method, Caroline found. “He just got confused about the collar and thought I was going to take him for a walk.”

Other students were equally pragmatic in their project choices.

Los Cerritos eighth-grader Christine Conrad’s experiment was a wash when she discovered that underwear turns inside out during laundering only half the time.

Shanna Gibbs, a Chaparral sixth-grader, found that herbal teas and crushed red pepper were ineffective in controlling flatulence caused by beans. Only a food enzyme product called Beano passed muster.

Scotch and lemonade are plant killers, determined Ervin Alexander, a La Reina eighth-grader. During his experiment, plants fed on coffee, milk and water thrived. “If you make coffee very much you might want to pour some leftovers on your plant once a week,” Ervin advised. Winners, who will be announced at a ceremony this afternoon, will be eligible to compete in the statewide fair in Los Angeles May 24 and 25.

In addition, about 30 special prizes of money, software and bookstore gift certificates will be awarded by local companies participating in the fair.