Today we continue to introduce you to our projects and are ready to present the third one: “How much water do plants contain? Measurements with a Homemade Calorimeter.

Some plants die at the first frost, while others easily survive the Yakut winter with temperatures below 50 degrees Celsius. How is this possible? The answer lies in water, or more precisely, in its free and bound fractions. You will learn all the details and assemble a real scientific instrument – ​​a differential scanning calorimeter. You will assemble an electronic circuit, create a sketch, calibrate the device, and then use it to measure the bound water content in birch leaves, lingonberry twigs, moss stems, and more. During the project, you will also acquire skills in physics, engineering, and biology.

Two brilliant mentors will assist you in this research. Fyodor Protopopov is a senior researcher at the Institute of Biological Problems of the Cryolithozone, a PhD candidate in biology, and the author of over 50 scientific articles on plant biophysics and adaptation mechanisms. Marianna Syrtseva is a student in the biotechnology department at MIREA – Russian Technological University, she has extensive experience in field research in various regions of Russia and is deeply passionate about botany.

Want to join? Details on the project page! https://irschool.org/project_calorimetr2026_ru