At Walker, there is an engineering independent research class. The class is formulated around creating something original, using observations from different experiments drawn from scratch. At the end of the semester, students submit their research to the Georgia Junior Science and Humanities Symposium.

Each student chooses a topic they are excited about and goes through with a project that takes place throughout the entire semester. There is a lab book that the students use to journal daily. This year there is a wide range of essential questions from the six students in the class. Since the beginning of the semester, the students began proposing ideas to Dr. Brady that have never been researched. The research involves hard work throughout the semester, and the students take pride in completing their projects.

The students in the class were tasked with creating essential questions:

-Can neural networks assist in diagnosing neurological gait disorders through wearable sensors? (Anjali Kanuru)

-Will a catch basin extract enough sediment/suspended solids out of storm drains to mitigate the build-up in subsequent piping? (Jason Hebert)

-Can recycled clay materials efficiently raise the pH of water by capturing dissolved carbon dioxide? (Sophia Dietz)

-Does aeration and elevated dissolved carbon dioxide levels increase mycelial growth rate in liquid culture? (Miguel Valentine)

-Can temperature sensors detect the optimal point at which one’s muscles are primed for optimized leg-specific movements? (Yash Parmar)

-Will wearable sensors that detect if a person is falling and alert the user with vibration/sound mitigate fall injuries from vertigo? (Thomas Healy)