(California Science Center: Los Angeles) -- More than 900 top students from California’s middle- and senior-high schools will convene for the final round of competition in the 60th annual California State Science Fair, May 2–3, 2011, at the California Science Center in Exposition Park near downtown Los Angeles. A combined total of more than $50,000 in cash prizes will be awarded. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Gary Michelson, an orthopedic surgeon and inventor specializing in spinal surgery, who will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame this year. The public is welcome to view this year’s innovative projects on Monday, May 2, from noon to 4 p.m. Admission is free.

Students representing 32 regions and counties throughout California must first qualify at the regional or county level before advancing to the State Science Fair. Its projects span 22 categories—from aerodynamics and hydrodynamics to zoology—and will be judged in two age divisions. Serving as judges are more than 300 scientists and engineers volunteering from private industry and higher education organizations.

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