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.

Check out some projects

Become a Student Entrepreneur

Entrepreneurship is such a buzz word these days, but what does it really take to bring your product or service idea to market? Learn how to develop a business model, conduct customer discovery, develop a minimum viable product, and tap into local support systems for your business idea.

Nutrition

Ashton

Carbohydrate content of the diabetic patients diet and assessment of their nutritional status

This study will assess the awareness of diabetic patients regarding their diet. It will include carb counting and low glycemic index foods.

Nutrition

Shafya

Decreasing stigma around mental health in high school students

Perform a literature review on successful ways to increase dialogue in mental health in high school students. Use this to create either a website or a student group to implement these efforts.

Psychiatry, Nutrition

Amy

What is on the menu?

Eating right can be fun if you are able to get creative with your meals. Using the dietary guidelines, you will create a menu that satisfies all of the daily requirements, and also sounds delicious!

Biology, Nutrition, Public Health

Emma

It must be Something in the Water

2. Moderate Research Level More than 90% of the US population has detectable levels of pesticides and their associated metabolites in blood or urine samples (1). Women living in or near agricultural areas have shown increased risk of infertility and adverse pregnancy outcomes (1). Males are not immune to this phenomenon. A meta-analysis showed consistent associations between pesticide exposure and sperm concentration (2). Atrazine, the most widely used herbicide in the US, has shown varying degrees of association with infertility. These inconsistent results have been interpreted by some that Atrazine is not connected to infertility but rather that other contaminants in the drinking water are the culprit. Perhaps, there is another answer. What if Atrazine is connected to infertility but the intensity of that association depends on your genetic predisposition? Certain metabolizing enzymes in the liver breakdown pesticides. There is a possibility that certain polymorphisms in an array of enzymes that break down atrazine could: 1) increase the activity of these enzymes and increase the concentration of metabolites that may be associated with decreased fertility. 2) decrease the activity of these enzymes and increase the concentration of atrazine (pre-breakdown) which may be associated with decreased fertility. Your objective is to: 1) Explore the existing literature on the association between atrazine, infertility, and genetic polymorphisms 2) Building off of the existing literature, propose a project that determines if there are key genetic polymorphisms that are associated with atrazine exposure and infertility. References: (1) Chiu Y, Williams PL, Gillman MW, et al. (2018) Association Between Pesticide Residue Intake From Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables and Pregnancy Outcomes Among Women Undergoing Infertility Treatment With Assisted Reproductive Technology. JAMA Intern Med, 178(1), 17–26. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2017.5038 (2) Martenies, S. E., & Perry, M. J. (2013). Environmental and occupational pesticide exposure and human sperm parameters: a systematic review. Toxicology, 307, 66–73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tox.2013.02.005

Nutrition

Donald

Health in my City

examine the health outcomes of people in the city and develop strategies, programs, or policy ideas on how to combat the negative health outcomes and promote positive outcomes.

Nutrition

Ricardo

The Effect of Lifestyle (eg, Nutrition, Exercise) On Human Health or Disease

In this project, a student can dive deep into the evidence on the effect of a healthy lifestyle (eg, plant-based diet, exercise, etc.) on a specific medical condition (eg, hypertension, acne, arthritis, mental health). The project is highly customizable to the interest of the mentee and can result in an evidence-based blog post, review paper, or infographic.

Nutrition, Public Health, Medicine

Andrew

Nutrition and Cardiovascular Health

Although genetic factors influence many health outcomes, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other chronic diseases are largely "preventable" and can be managed with proper diet and physical activity that we can control. Animal meat and processed foods have been linked to higher risks for chronic diseases like CVD. What are the ideal dietary patterns, if any, that can help mitigate disease?

Biology, Nutrition, Public Health, Medicine

Aubrey

Awareness of people regarding zero waste kitchen

This study will assess the awareness of people about zero waste kitchen and then plan an educational tool to spread awareness.

Nutrition

Shafya

Nutrition in the United States

Despite being a resource rich country, many communities in the United States suffer from malnourishment. The way we approach food in the US has changed, continues to change, and differs among other countries. This project can go in multiple directions (how we educate people, produce, access, process, cook, etc. food) and can be presented in a variety of forms (research paper, video, podcast format, or an experiment where we collect our own data).

Biology, Nutrition, Medicine

Kim

Under the Dermatoscope: A Fact Check of Common Skin Care and Sun Protection Advice

This blog (or podcast) series explores commonly held beliefs regarding proper skin care and sun protection, applying a Mythbusters-like approach to discern facts from fiction in the world of dermatology. Using the power of evidence-based medicine, Under the Dermatoscope provides an up-to-date resource exposing dermatologic myths and verifying helpful truths about skin health.

Biology, Nutrition, Medicine

Austin

Novel model of load bearing-induced muscle hypertrophy

Muscle rapidly responds to mechanical stimulus by increasing in size at the cellular and tissue level. Efforts to investigate the regulation of this process at the molecular level are hindered by a lack of translationally relevant rodent models of load bearing induced hypertrophy. The current standard model of muscle hypertrophy in lab rodents utilizes synergistic ablation, a highly invasive and non-translational model that is quite dissimilar to the common conception of load bearing. In this model, one of two muscles that cooperate to facilitate limb movement is surgically removed from an animal, forcing the other muscle to take on additional mechanical load. There are many limitations to this model. For example, this experimental design does not allow the experimenter to periodically remove the excess weight to allow muscle recovery in the absence of mechanical load. It would be extremely useful for the field of muscle biology if someone developed a non-invasive, translationally relevant method to stimulate mechanical load bearing in live lab mice.

Nutrition

Pieter

Food Product Development!

Got an interesting idea for a new food product, snack or beverage? Learn all the fundamentals of what you need to know, from formulation and food safety to branding and marketing.

Nutrition

Ashton

The Safety, Efficacy, or Societal Benefits of Medical or Surgical Interventions

In this project, the student can explore the benefits of a medical intervention (eg, hip replacement, heart valve replacement). For example, one may be interested in improvements in quality of life after a hip replacement, or how hip replacements help society at large (eg, by keeping people functional members of the community). This project is highly customizable to the interests of the mentee and can results in an evidence-based blog post, review paper, or infographic.

Nutrition, Public Health, Medicine

Andrew

The effect of plant-based diets on athletic performance

Plant-based diets ("vegetarian" or "vegan") are growing in popularity and have been adopted by an increasing number of elite athletes. Plant-based diets often contain more fiber and carbohydrates, but potentially less protein than traditional omnivorous diets. How does this impact athletic performance (i.e. strength or endurance), and how does this compare to diets containing animal meat or other dietary patterns?

Biology, Nutrition, Public Health, Medicine

Aubrey

Biomechanics of Injury

The human body is a marvel. In the world of elite athletics, it is interesting to see how the body develops with respect to different sports and subsequent injury when the body attempts to perfect the same movement related to that activity. For example, why are there so many torn ACLs/MCLs/meniscuses in women soccer but more sprained ankles in volleyball? Many variables are included: terrain of play, height, muscle development, common movements, etc. We could explore together these variables and examine the biomechanics of injury and potential ways to reduce said injury.

Engineering, Nutrition

Santita

Assessment of the nutritional status of infants at weaning age

This study will include height and weight of children in order to assess the relationship of their diet and anthropometric measurements.

Nutrition

Shafya

Investigating the cultural inclusivity of current nutrition guidelines in medicine: a literature review

This proposed project would investigate whether current nutrition guidelines for US adults reflect cultural humility, awareness, and inclusivity and work in tandem with (rather than in opposition to) the various cultural food practices of Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities, highlighting the potential need for potential updates to current dietary recommendations.

Cancer, Neuroscience, Nutrition, Medicine

Micayla

I Think, Therefore I am

3. Advanced Research Level African American health disparities is a notable issue in the United States. African Americans are two times more likely than non-Hispanic whites to die from the number one killer in the US, heart disease. This ethnic group is also 50% more likely to experience high blood pressure than their white counterparts. Chronic stress is known to be associated with the two aforementioned conditions. What is less known are some of the molecular underpinnings by how stress may influence heart disease and high blood pressure. It has been illustrated in animal models that exposing them to chronic stress conditions can change the epigenetic landscape in neurons and other cells. These changes have been associated with behavioral, biochemical, and physiological alterations. It has also been shown in a limited number of studies that these epigenetic alterations have the potential to be passed down to the next generation. Could it be that years of racial discrimination against African Americans have played a role in altering the epigenetic landscape of neurons and that this alteration is associated with increased risk of heart disease and high blood pressure? The purpose of this project is to: 1) Explore the existing literature regarding the proposed connection between African American racial discrimination, stress, health disparities, and epigenetic alterations. 2) Building off of the existing literature, propose a project aimed at investigating if there is causality with the aforementioned factors. To put it another way, you are proposing a project based off of the following hypothesis, "Chronic Stress induced by African American discrimination has caused epigenetic alterations in neurons that induces biochemical and physiological changes that lead to increased risk of heart disease and high blood pressure."

Nutrition

Donald

So You Wanna Start a Podcast?

Learn how to translate your passions into podcast. Explore how to develop a novel concept, communicate to a broad audience, execute, and publish!

Nutrition

Ashton