2,893 Inspirational Passion Project Ideas
Turn inspirations into your passion project.
This collection of project ideas, shared by Polygence mentors, is meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.
- AI/ML
- Animation
- Arts
- Biology
- Biotech
- Business
- Cancer
- Chemistry
- Cognitive
- Computer Science
- Creative Writing
- Dance
- Dentistry
- Economics
- Engineering
- Entomology
- Environmental Science
- Ethics
- Fashion
- Finance
- Game Design
- Healthcare
- History
- Illustration
- Languages
- Linguistics
- Literature
- Math
- Medicine
- Music
- Neuroscience
- Nutrition
- Organizational Leadership
- Philanthropy
- Philosophy
- Photography
- Physics
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Public Health
- Quantitative
- Social
- Social Science
- Sports Analytics
- Statistics
- Surgery
All-optical computing
Computers currently have billions of devices all jam packed into a small chip that allow them to store, process, and send information. In the past couple of decades, the increase in computation speeds has followed this exponential increase (Moore's Law). However, these devices are getting so small that they're reaching a theoretical limit! In this project, you will research ways to utilize photons instead of electrons to pursue these computations. You will understand how devices can be made that control light, as well as the current drawbacks light has versus conventional electronics.
Engineering
Ancient Analogs for Natural Disasters
To best project how natural hazards will change in the future, it is critical to understand how they have behaved under historical climates. Prior to the relatively recent invention of satellites and recording equipment, however, we rely on historical observations that only exist for less than 200 years. Geological analogs can provide new information about hazards presence and severity and can even span several millennia. Yet, their implementation to broader natural hazard modeling and projections has been limited. In this project, the student would conduct a detailed literature review on datasets and methodologies for using such analogs for hazards like hurricanes, flooding, heat, etc. Based on the student's findings, they will create a central database and review paper for available data sources/analogs and their potential impact for different natural hazards.
Engineering, Statistics
Healthcare Innovation and Entrepreneurship - how to increase and accelerate the success of startup creation?
Here we are interested in looking at various factors that drive the creation of new ideas and ultimately new startups in the healthcare industry. What are the different factors such as the problem space, the innovation, the founding team, the resources, and the environment or ecosystem that leads towards a higher success rate for healthcare startups and a more accelerated pipeline from ideation to impact? Once a specific area of focus is identified, a deeper dive project can be developed such as the role of macroeconomic events is on startup creation, the gender disparities see in startup founders or investor workforce, the relationship between startups and their investors, etc ... This type of research starts with literature research of peer reviewed publications as well as public reports, web searches, and occasionally customer discovery research holding interviews with relevant stakeholders. This research involves data collection from both readily available databases such as Pitchbook and Crunchbase but also from not so well curated sources of information about startups, innovation programs and initiatives, investors, accelerators and incubators. This research can also involve the development of new tools via programs and scripts that can be used to automate the collection and analysis of certain data sets. The potential outcomes of this research can range from new programming tools for data collection and analysis, new web apps for visualizing the data, and/or research paper summarizing the current state of the field.
Physics, Engineering, Chemistry, Business, Medicine
Space Debris Problem
Have you ever wondered what happens to the remains of a rocket that goes into space? Or a satellite that is no longer in use? They remain in space as floating junk forming a layer around Earth. They even have a name, Spcae Debris. In this project, we will investigate the problem of space debris and its impact on spacecraft and satellite operations. Develop a project to analyze and classify the orbits of known debris objects using publicly available data from organizations like NASA. We will identify regions of space that need more attention and look at possible ways of reduce and eliminate space debris. We will learn to write computer programs that will help us visualize the debris floating in space.
Physics, Engineering, Math, Creative Writing
Audition Solo
The student will choreograph a solo for themselves to use at auditions, focusing on analyzing their strengths and expressing what dance means to them. I will help guide them through this process providing feedback on their choreography and challenging them to explore movement in new ways including elements of space, time, and shape.
Biology, Dance
Design of easy and inexpensive water treatment system for use in remote locations
Design a water treatment system utilizing readily available resources that can be easily constructed to produce drinking water in a remote location chosen by the student. Demonstrate that the system works by building a prototype and testing it.
Engineering
Create an NBA trade simulator
Scrape NBA statistics using python or google sheets and basketballreference.com, identify a metric to compare different players on different teams, and run a statistical hypothesis test to determine if the teams involved would accept the potential trade! Then create an interface to run your simulator and view the result
Engineering, Economics, Math
Impact of LLMs on enterprise data and processes.
The advent of LLMs such as chatGPT and ClaudeAI create massive opportunities to replace data synthesis processes in common business activities. Rather than rely on people to apply business knowledge and organizational context, AI systems are increasingly able to take in a wide context of data beyond the capabilities and narrow scope of reinforcement learning technologies to improve the flow of information.
Engineering, Business
Water Absorbent Polymers for Home Gardening
You'll conduct experiments to determine what commercially-available water absorbent polymers are useful and cost-effective for home gardeners and write a research paper summarizing your results. You'll dive into polymer and agriculture science while also learning research skills such as: 1) How to perform a literature search, 2) How to design a robust experimental plan, 3) How to collect and analyze data, 4) How to write academically.
Biology, Engineering, Chemistry
Biotechnology to Solve Global Challenges
In this project, students will identify a real life problem. It can be a global challenge like famine, climate change, health issue, or a topic of personal curiosity. Together we will extend your understanding of the problem. Then I will guide you in developing your own original biotech solution to the problem. We will explore gene editing, gene therapy, synthetic biology, genomics, and genetics. At the end of the project, students will have a deeper understanding of the steps involved in developing biotech solutions or therapies. The students will have an original biotech solution for a global challenge.
Biotech, Neuroscience
Immunoengineering
Cancer vaccines. Supercharging bone marrow transplants. CAR-T cell therapies. In this exercise, we will explore how engineering can be used to exploit the immune system in the context of disease. Students will learn basic immunology and the latest bioengineering approaches to treating diseases of or involving the immune system. At the end of the exercise, students will be able to (i) understand the underlying immunological and engineering principles of immunotherapy, (ii) create a tangible project that attempts to tackle a disease that can benefit from immunotherapy, and (iii) create a short presentation and written proposal on said project.
Biotech
3. Conduct University-level Research in Drug Delivery
Are you interested in conducting research on drug delivery systems at the university level? While it can seem intimidating to get started in academic labs led by leading professors in their fields, this project will go through the most important factors for maximizing the chances of landing a position in an academic lab at local, highly ranked research institution. Through this project, the student will be introduced to i) techniques for applying to existing stipends for university-level research as a high schooler, ii) tips for identifying cogent areas of a professor’s research that a student could shadow under and possibly contribute to, iii) techniques useful in developing an effective research proposal in a given timeline, and iv) potential connections to renowned faculty in bioengineering, chemistry, and nanotechnology. The scope of this project may consist of three phases: i) identifying a specific research area in drug delivery and finding potential labs that the student can request to work under, ii) developing an understanding of the scientific literature in the desired field of drug discovery and in these labs in particular, and iii) crafting emails including short posters/presentations which demonstrate vested interest in a given laboratory and applying to work experiences as a high schooler interested in drug delivery research.
Biotech
Renewable Energy Diversification
Renewable energy will soon become a large source of power production in the world. However, implementation of certain technologies does not make sense in different parts of the world (i.e. hydroelectric power in the Sahara). This project would involve researching the advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy implementation in different parts of the world or your country of origin.
Engineering, Chemistry
Building an Interactive Student Project Portfolio Website
Field of Expertise: This project delves into the realm of website design and development. It's focused on creating a digital platform where students can showcase their academic projects, achievements, and learning experiences. Knowledge and Skills Gained: Students participating in this project will gain an understanding of the principles of website design, including layout, color theory, typography, user experience (UX), and user interface (UI) design. They will learn to code using HTML, CSS, and possibly JavaScript, depending on the level of interactivity desired for the website. They will also learn how to plan and manage a digital project, gather and respond to user feedback, and present their work in a digital format. Information Gathering Process: 1. Begin with understanding the basic principles of website design and how to use design to communicate effectively online. 2. Learn HTML and CSS for the basic structure and style of the website. JavaScript can be added for more interactivity, such as filters for project types. 3. Explore portfolio websites for inspiration, noting what works well and what could be improved. 4. Research best practices for presenting work online, including how to write project descriptions, how to take and choose photos, and how to organize information in a clear and engaging way. 5. Collect feedback from potential users to guide the design and development process. Potential Student Outcomes: The result of this project will be a live, interactive portfolio website showcasing the students' projects. This digital platform could include photos, descriptions, and reflections for each project, and potentially even downloadable resources or documents. The website could also include features such as filters for different project types, a contact form for visitors to leave feedback or ask questions, and links to any relevant external resources or references. As part of the project, students will also create a "process book" or documentation that records their design and development process, the choices they made and why, and what they learned. This could take the form of a digital document, a blog, or even a section on the portfolio website itself. This project will not only provide students with valuable technical and design skills, but also leave them with a professional online presence they can continue to build on in the future. It will be a platform that can grow with them, showcasing their academic journey and achievements.
Engineering, Computer Science, Business
Microbes Around Us
When we hear about bacteria, we usually think about the pathogenic ("bad") bacteria that cause infections. However, there are also many "good" bacteria in items we consume such as yogurt and kombucha. In this project, you will study the role of bacteria in making a certain food, and explore any variations that can result in changes to the final product.
Biology, Engineering, Chemistry
Small Off-Grid Battery Bank
How can you build a small off-grid battery bank for your next camping trip? This project would involve investigating battery supplies, management tools, and potentially a small solar bank? Size and build your own small power bank!
Engineering
Advanced Drug Technologies
Explore state of the art drug platforms and their potential to revolutionize the way patients are treated for cancer, heart diseases, infections, autoimmunity, and more.
Medicine
Public Dataset Analysis: What trends are found in publicly available clinical data that can inform future treatments?
Find a publicly available dataset. This can include clinical trials, specific sequencing data to be analyzed (ex. TCGA), general patient data (ex. Medicare SEER). Decide on a topic that interests you (ex. cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes). Decide on a question you hope to answer using the public data (ex. genes correlated with certain cancer types and poor or good outcomes, why multiple clinical trials fail and why some work - what can be done here, medications associated with positive/negative outcomes in CV disease/diabetes). Conduct a brief literature review to ensure your question has not been directly answered, and start your project. Different tools can be used to analyze your findings (JMP, MATLAB, RStudio). Deliverable: report describing your topic, reasons for choosing the topic and approach, methods, findings, discussion of findings
Neuroscience, Engineering
Pan-cancer signature identification with machine learning tools
The goal of this project is to analyze Single-cell RNA-Seq data of T cells in the blood samples of many cancer types to capture signature genes for the detection of cancer compared to healthy donors. The student will work on data collection, batch collection, RNA-Seq analysis, machine learning model building, and marker identification.
Biology, Engineering
Cooperation in multi-robot systems
What’s better than one robot? How about a bunch of robots working together! This field of research is known as “multi-robot systems” or “swarm robotics”- using a group or of coordinated robots to complete complex tasks. What are the benefits and challenges in coordinating a group of robots? For a group where all the robots are a single type vs. a group of multiple different types of robots, how do these considerations change, and how do they stay the same? This project will explore the current state of the art of multi-robot systems, compare the benefits and challenges of various robot systems, and make recommendations on their usage.
Arts, Engineering, Computer Science
