GORHAM – More than 80 high school students from Maine and New Hampshire will travel to the University of Southern Maine on Saturday, March 4, to compete in the Northern New England Science Bowl. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in Bailey Hall on USM’s Gorham Campus. This event is free and open to the public.

The bowl is one of 65 official regional qualifiers for the U.S. Department of Energy National Science Bowl in Washington, D.C., in late April. The student teams compete in a round-robin forum, answering math and science questions on topics ranging from astronomy to environmental science. The winning team will receive a trip to compete for the national title in Washington on April 27 through May 1.

The USM-based competition also includes an opportunity for teams to design and build a mousetrap vehicle that will compete for prizes in best design and best performance.

The student teams, comprised of four to five students and a teacher/coach, practice for months in preparation for the regional competition. For more information, call 780-4200.