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LLI GOLINE/NORMAN WELLS - Norman Well’s Siobhan Quigg said her science fair project kind of happened by accident.

The Mackenzie Mountain school student won first overall at the Sahtu regional science fair last Saturday with her project called “No Drips”.

Siobhan Quigg of Mackenzie Mountain school in Norman Wells stands with her science fair project at the Sahtu Regional Science Fair last Saturday. Quigg finished first and will be representing the Sahtu at the National Science Fair being held in Winnipeg in May. - photo courtesy of Renee Closs

The project determined which brand name tampons had the best absorption rate. Quigg, a Grade 9 student, said she was playing with soap bombs in her friends sink when the plug got jammed and they needed to drain the sink.

“Her sister had to use the washroom and we needed to get the water out of the sink,” she said. “We couldn’t get the water out of the bottom of the sink so we used tampons to get rid of it. I needed a science project and I thought this would be a good idea.”

Quigg, along with Tulita student Reanna Campbell, who finished second with a project on dry skin and Mackenzie Mountain school student Sam Hodgson, who finished third with a project called Inconnu, will represent the Sahtu region at the National Science Fair being held in Winnipeg in May.

Quigg was able to determine that Tampax Compact had the best absorption rate out of all the different brands they tried. The worst was O.B., but Quigg said it wasn’t so much because of the ability to absorb.

“When we took it out of the test tube it just fell apart and was really messy,” she said. “We rated it the worst because of that. No woman wants that.

Knowing what tampon works best is something girls want to know.

“It’s important to know so girls don’t waste money on buying the wrong products,” she said. This will be Quigg’s second year representing the Sahtu at the National Science Fair. Quigg did a project on blood sugar levels and diabetes last year.

“I didn’t win anything but I had tons of fun,” she said. “I learned a lot. Some of the projects were life changing, things you would see on the news or on T.V.”

With more than 18 projects in the fair, students represented Norman Wells, Deline, Colville Lake and Tulita, wellness counsellor and teacher Renee Closs said the event was a great success.

“It went very well,” she said. “Students presented their projects to the four judges and they deliberate and choose what projects finished in the top three.

“The science fair allows them to explore a topic of interest that is important or they find exciting to get more in depth than what they might get in the classroom.”