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Zoology Science Fair Project

Hamster Alertness and Time of Day

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Hamster Alertness and Time of Day | Science Fair Projects | STEM Projects
Does a hamster run a maze faster in the morning or the afternoon? Hamsters seem sleepy at some hours and wide awake at others. This project tests when they are most alert. You build a simple maze and run the hamster through it four times a day. The runs span from early morning to late evening. You repeat this for three days and record each run. The results may surprise you. The hamster in this study was fastest at 4 PM, not at night.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis is that the hamster will be more alert at night.

Method & Materials

You will borrow a hamster, build a maze, and time how long it takes the hamster to get through the maze at 8:00 AM, 12:00 noon, 4:00 PM, and 8:00 PM for three days.
You will need a hamster, a stopwatch, and materials to build a maze.

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Results

After three days of testing, it was found that the hamster was most alert and able to negotiate the maze at 4:00 PM. The hamster was also asleep after his last round in the maze at 8:00 PM and had to be woken up at 8:00 in the morning.

Why do this project?

This science project is interesting because it shows that hamsters are similar to humans in terms of alertness and sleep patterns.

Also Consider

Experiment variations to consider include testing the hamster's alertness at different times of day, such as 6:00 AM and 10:00 PM, or testing the hamster's alertness in different mazes.

Full project details

Additional information and source material for this project are available below.

Related video

These videos explain the science behind this project and demonstrate key concepts used in the experiment.
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