Montreal Regional Science & Technology Fair

By Chelsey St-Pierre
The Suburban

Adam Hamdaqa, a Grade 7 student at Pierrefonds Community High School (PCHS), received the highest distinction at the Montreal Regional Science & Technology Fair (MRSTF)’s regional finals, held at Laval Senior Academy with his “Guardian Helmet” design project.

The 1st place prize, which includes a $750 bursary and a trophy, was reserved for the best project in all categories. Hamdaqa’s project was submitted in the Engineering, Computer Science and Robotics category. There were 131 students who put a total of 83 projects on display. Some students presented solo while others paired up in a team of two.  

The Guardian Helmet was designed with safety and security in mind. With a built-in accelerometer and fall detection, the Guardian Helmet can determine how fast a person is riding their bicycle and can contact their guardian as well as emergency services with the rider’s location if a fall is detected. 

“This project solves a real problem. Adam thought of something that is marketable, something that people would want to buy. Not every parent can make it out on a bicycle ride with their kid or its just the kid’s way of getting around, sometimes just around the block, but where they can’t be seen,” said Natasha Vitale, Director general of educational alliance of science and technology (EAST) and organizer of this event.

Hamdaqa also won a prize for participation in the Hydro-Québec Super Expo-sciences, Gold in the Junior category, Curium of BLD Publications Award – a two-year subscription to the Curium Magazine and the ADRIQ Young Innovators Award, for a design project with the most original solution to a concrete problem with the potential for commercialization.

As part of a regional delegation of 15 projects selected by five expert judges, Hamdaqa will take part in the Hydro-Québec Super Expo-sciences Quebec Final which will be held from April 19 to 21 along with two of his peers from PCHS. Selected projects at the provincial finals may reach the Canada-Wide Science Fair, to be held from May 25 to June 1, in Ottawa. All participants first participated in their school’s science fairs. The winners move on and up with a total of three students from PCHS. All students who participated in the fair come from Anglophone schools in the Greater Montreal Area.