10219/Happy Harbor: Spring Science Fair

From Heroes Assemble MUSH
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Happy Harbor: Spring Science Fair
Date of Scene: 20 March 2022
Location: Gymnasium - Happy Harbor High School
Synopsis: The 2022 Happy Harbor Science Fair goes off without a hitch...or well...almost!
Cast of Characters: Morrigan MacIntyre, Madison Evans, Virgil Hawkins




Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
IT. IS. SCIENCE FAIR TIME!

The Happy Harbor High School Science Fair has been something that has been a staple for the school since it opened. It allowed the teens to exercise their imaginations while inviting others around the state to also show off what they could do. In the end, it was a good time.

Unless there were giant ants involved that made the Headmistress cry in her shower later, but that's not important!

The gym has been streamlined in it's set up for allowing more electric plugs to be used and for those that need extra room to make sure they inch it in. The Twins, Declan and Delia have made a super volcano this year and that is something that has made SEVERAL faculty members wary of it.

There are banners directing those where to go and there are people mingling and having a look at all the setups. There is also food provided given this was an all day sort of affair, then the teens could well and truly enjoy their Spring Break. Morrigan's standing off to the side of the doors wearing a black pencil skirt, dove grey shirt and black heels. She's got a smile on her face as she welcomes guests that arrive.

Madison Evans has posed:
    Madison arrived early to set up, and has a traditional tri-fold back drop with photos, and text all over it. Across the top? The title of her project: BAKING IN SPAAAAAACE!
    The photos feature images off a widely smiling Maddie, with her brown hair floating wildly around her head, and her feet... off the ground. The oven she's using is bolted to the floor, and inside, round globs are floating around, and in some cases joined together. In addition to the photos, a small tablet is playing video on loop of the process of baking various baked goods IN SPAAAAAAAACE.
    The backboard also features various charts comparing bake times and temperatures in her home kitchen, with bake times IN SPAAAAAACE, along with photos of various attempted bake times and what the cookies, brownies, and breads looked like when baked for that length, or at that temperature.
    On display are examplar cookies, brownies, and breads she'd set aside, all perfectly spherical in nature, and with no browning from being in contact with a baking surface. But it's cruel to put SPACE! cookies on display without letting people try them - so a large dish has been set out with toothpicks, and pieces of quartered cookies and brownies, and slices of bread with large gas pockets.

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
Virgil also had to get there little early to set up, as there were a couple things that was only able to get hold off with the promise of safety procedures and supervision -- such as some crystalline minerals and a small tank of liquid nitrogen. But he was able to get everything in good order with promises of caution, which he dutifully exercised.

And so his booth was set up with a topic that had gained more-than-passing familiarity with: superconductivity. A trio of cardboard standups detail the nature of the the phenomenon, the progression of early superconductors to modern times, the challenges in achieving production-level room-temperature superconductivity and the theories of what it could do for daily life.

On the table in front of those standups are two practical displays: one is a display of the Meissner effect, a small magnet seeming hovering suspended above a pool of smoking liquid nitrogen in a styrofoam cup, the below-zero bath drawing out the magnetic field from the mineral disk submerged within it.

And the second displays one of the practical modern applications of superconductors: a scale-model version an MRI machine made out of motorized Legos, a little battery-operated motor whirring as table with a reclining figuring moves in and out of the circular machine, a tiny light-up display showing an MRI film with an artist's interpretation of what a Lego-man's brain would look like.

(The finishing touch being a small card that apologizes for not having an actual working model for Fair-goers to enjoy, giving a breakdown of the costs of maintaining and operating an actual MRI machine along with figures for the number of bake sales that would have been required to supply one. No way *that* was getting past the student council's treasurer.)

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan was checking the time before starting to look around at things. Tyler is absent from this event, which might be a weird thing given he's usually seen with the twins or with Morrigan herself. The Irish Doctor makes her way down the first few tables, reading over the cards that are posted and watching the clips. Teens were going all out and this is what she liked to see.

Duncan is also present, the assistant principal of the school being his usual big happy self and helping out with guiding people to tables and helping to change out bad wires or saving someone with a piece that's not working. Duncan was an angel...well...not literally, but you get the point!

There are guest judges here today, each going around to where the students have set up their spots. They look a bit stuffy, but a few of them are there to give out scholarships, so that tends to go with that. "Baking in Space? I could get behind this." one of them comments as they approach Madison's set up.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "Hello!" Madison says brightly, as the judge approaches. She's dressed up with a chef's coat and hat for the event - just to add a little more theatricality to her presentation. "Welcome to Madison's COOKIES. IN. SPAAAAACE! bakery," she announces dramatically - in exactly the tone you would imagine. "Since I knew that people have to adjust cooking and baking for high altitudes, I wanted to see what it would be like to bake in Zero G's on Asteroid M, which was a lot of fun as you can imagine. I theorized that bake times would increase - but I was shocked to see that baking chocolate chip cookies went from 10 minutes of bake time - to a full 12 hours. At first I theorized that this might be because decreased air pressure reduces the boiling point of water meaning that if the liquids in the batter boil off at lower temperatures - then less heat is transfered to the dough, increasing bake time - but the air pressure at Asteroid M is 14.7 psi, the same as at sea level. So I'm still left with the mystery of what the bake time increased a full 12 fold," she says in a serious tone.
    "Now - as you see, the cookies come out spherical due to the lack of gravity, meaning that it does take longer for the heat to penetrate to the center of the cookies. And oven temperatures did have to be decreased, to allow the outside and inside to reach doneness at the same time - so that accounts for some of the increased bake time. But I think I'm still missing part of the reason why the bake time has increased so dramatically, so continued experimentation with controlled variables will be required to get to the bottom of the mystery.
    "Please! Try a cookie! And the brownies are extra gooey - but you don't get the crispy edges, unfortunately, because you can't get the batter to stay in contact with a baking vessel. Baking in Zero G's definitely has its limitations."

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
"Aww, maaaan." Although Virgil decided to put genuine effort into his workup, he also decided in the end, it should just be about having some fun and passing along -- maybe even picking up -- some nifty science facts. So although he wanted to make a good showing it, he figured he could be okay with no taking a prize home to Pops this year.

All of which is to say that's *not* the reason he sounds so dejected, as he exclaims quietly to himself. No, it's because even though they're not fresh out of the (zero-G) oven, he can smell how good Madison's samples are from here. It's enough to make his stomach gurgle, and he can't help but lean over and peer as the judges cluster around her table. Not just interested in the baked goods, but also a bit curious about what snippets of conversation he can make out. Baking in space? That's kinda wild! "Eat your heart out, Alton Brown... " Whole different brand of culinary science, right there.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan seems impressed by all that the students have put up for offerings! Declan and Delia give a beaming smile as she heads their way, "Hello Doctor MacIntyre!" the greet her in that Twin Unison that they do. She gives them a smile, "If you set that thing off please don't do it under a sprinkler." she whispers to them as she marks them on the list and then heads down the row.

The judges seem VERY impressed with Madison's work, "If they could manage crispy edges in space this would be perfection." one of the judges comments before marking down a few notes.

Then they are heading off towards Virgil. It's go time!

Madison Evans has posed:
    "Thank you for visiting Madison's COOKIES. IN. SPAAAAAACE! bakery where everything is truly Out Of This World!" Madison says enthusiastically. "I'll have to experiment further to see if we can find a way to replicate crispy edges: IN. SPAAAAACE!"
    Maybe if she rubbed all the brownie pieces in oil before she baked them? ...but somehow she doubts that would work. Hrm.
    It's hard to run too many trials with the massively increased bake times, though.

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
Eep! Thoughts of food flee his head as Virgil sees the judges coming his way, straightening up and clearing his throat. Game face on! A deeeeep breath. And:

"Ladies and gentlemen, step right up! See the most e-lect-rifying display of the Dak- er, Happy Harbor Science Fair! Or at least, the most electromagnetic!" he adds brightly. "Welcome, to the wonderful world of superconductors! And demonstrated here for your viewing pleasure, with literally no strings attached, the Meissner effect!"

Making a show-hands pose at the little cup display to one side of his table. "Courtesy of Misters Meissner and Oschenfeld, we have a disc of yttrium barium copper oxide, just chilling -- literally! -- in a bath of liquid nitrogen! And with its temperature reduced, so its the disc's innate resistance to electrical flow, to the point where it actually exerts own magnetic field -- which you can see repelling the magnet above it!" Another dramatic wave of the hand. "No mirrors in *this* levitation act, folks! Optics is next year's experiment~."

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
There is an echoing of 'IN SPAAAAAAAAAAACE!' that plays somewhere close. Duncan might be to blame. Possibly.

Definitely.

The judges meander over to Virgil's science display and all of them listen intently as he explains what it is he's done. The judges look impressed with things, reading over the readouts and other information that is left out for them. "This is all very impressive, Mister Hawkins." one of the judges tells him. And it was!

"Though if you'd like to do this with an actual MRI machine sometime we'd be happy to help with that." another offers.

Madison Evans has posed:
    Madison leans over curiously, watching as Virgil goes into his own animated, salesmen-like pitch, a curious look on her features. Superconductors was no a subject she'd studied yet. She'd heard the term before - but honestly has very little notion about what it means. Idly, while listening to his presentation, she spears a bit of brownie with a toothpick, and nibbles at it.
    Without the crispy bits - it was almost like fudge, but she'd put in some sunflower and pumpkin seeds to give it a little crunch, while still keeping them nut free. It was pretty good.

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
Virgil actually brightens at that offer. "Huh? Really? That's be great!" And genuinely meaning it -- the glance he gives to the card he put down is enough to emphasize that he didn't he'd get the chance to. For some, getting to see a working piece of hospital machinery probably isn't their idea of a fun time, but for his own reasons he's actually excited for the chance to experience one! "Er -- I mean, thank you sir, I'd appreciate it!" Whoops. Musn't get carried away!

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan's giving a smile to the judges as they are talking to Virgil and the woman just continues to be a directing presence to most. Allowing others to do things for the moment. The judges give a smile to Virgil and there's a nod to him, "We'll see about setting it up." the man tells Virgil.

Then they putter on past, going to check out a few more of the entrants.

Ten or so minutes later there is a voice that comes over the speakers, "If everyone wants to take a break and get a snack we'll be announcing our top three projects shortly." the announcer tells the crowd.

Madison Evans has posed:
    Madison rocks back and forth on her toes and heels for a few moments as the announcement is made - nervous energy flowing through her. The //last// science fair had been just a fun lark - she hadn't expected to win. This time she has a //title to defend,// and she's really uncertain about how she'll fair, up against so many excellent projects.
    Of course, that's how she felt last year, too.
    But this time - she did everything on her own, and without the help of one of the faculty bankrolling and advising her on her project. How well would she fare - doing it all on her on?
    To avoid stewing nervously, she snatches up her platter of baked goods, and starts to wander around to visit the other students at their exhibits.
    "SPACE! cookie?" she asks each in turn - until she ends up in front of Virgil.

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
As soon as the word 'snack' came over the speakers, Virgil turned to make a beeline towards the booth that had so captured his imagination (or at the very least his appetite). Which means he meets Madison halfway. "Absolutely! Thanks!" Picking up the offered cookie and taking a moment to look over the spherical shape before proceeding to take a bite...

...and then going on to wolf the rest of it down, leaving his hand empty within moments. Turns out the cookie was every bit as good as it smelled. "Mm! Can't speak for the judges, but you -definitely- got my vote for top prize this year!"

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan's the one announcing things! Which means that when she steps over to take up the mic there is a bit of a look around. "I wanted to thank our students who have come out today and shared their projects with us. It takes a lot to get over stage fright sometimes, I still have it even at my age." she chuckles.

"This year we have three prizes thanks to generous donations from private donators as well as others. So if you would all like to give a round of applause to our mysterious benefactors." she gives a smile.

"Our third place winner with a ten thousand dollar scholarship, with their super volcano is Declan and Delia Montgomery. I pray that your mothers carpet will recover." she muses. "Our second place winner with their Baking in Spaaaaace, and a twenty thousand dollar scholarship is Madison Evans." she grins.

Then she clears her throat, "And our first prize winner, with a fifty thousand dollar scholarship is Mister Virgil Hawkins!" she claps for Virgil.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "I don't know, maybe. I mean - there's a lot of really, really great projects out here," Madison answers a bit sheepishly - smiling at Virgil.
    As Ms. MacIntyre begins to speak, though, she immediately falls silent - stomping her feet instead of clapping, since her hands are filld with her tray, as the volcano gets third place. As she and Virgil get second and first place she adds, "Well. Guess you get the title this time! I'll just have to beat you next year," she says brightly. If she's at all disappointed in not 'winning' - it doesn't seem to show.
    Besides, $100,000 in scholarship money was //ridiculous//. Why be greedy? $70,000 over two years as already amazing.
    She starts towards the stage to collect her prize - tray of cookies still in hand - thanking the judges politely, and asking everyone to please help her finish off all the baked goods because her mother is not letting her bring ANYMORE of them home.

Virgil Hawkins has posed:
"Hey, yours was plenty cool! *And* delicious -- putting those two together can't be easy!" The kinds of people who can successfully put those together probably dress like aristocrats while taking bites out of bell peppers on TV.

But then it's time for the winners to be announced, and while Virgil willingly applauds the runners-up, he gives a little 'tsk' as his personal vote doesn't play out. Still, second place *and* twenty grand towards college tuition is nothing to sneeze at!

And then it comes time to announce the winner, and --

-- well, of course. Virgil nods to himself, he was satisfied with just putting on a good show. And besides which his original idea did run into a bit of a snag, so naturally --

Wait.

Did she say... "Virgil Hawkins?"

.... WHAT?!

Virgil's mouth falls open as he stares wide-eyed around for a moment, but it doesn't look like a mistake, seeing people clapping and waiting for him to come on up. Feeling a bit numb as he starts walking towards the stage as well...

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan's delighted to announce things and just as she is getting ready to put the mic down there is a bit of a shriek that comes from the back of the room...

Right where Declan and Delia's super volcano is...

"Oh no..." the Irish woman whispers. Not again!

There is the little giggle from Delia before there is a spray of reddish orange...GOOP that comes showering over the crowd that's nearby and starts to spread out like the Blob seeking its next victim.

There is orange goop everywhere. Ceiling, floor...poor Morrigan's clothing. "DECLAN!" the Irish woman bellows as she takes a few steps and then slips.

"I live here now..." she whispers to herself.