Details at ISEF website.

ETHICS STATEMENT MODIFIED

Under Integrity (page 3) final sentence has been reworded for clarity.
The project should reflect independent research done by the student(s) and presented in their own words with proper citation. The presentation of fraudulent data, the evidence of plagiarism or the inappropriate use of AI are prohibited and grounds for the project to fail to qualify. 

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The last sentence of the last paragraph has been reworded for clarity. 
Scientific fraud and misconduct are not condoned at any level of research or competition. This includes plagiarism, forgery, use or presentation of other researcher’s work as one’s own and fabrication of data. A violation of this ethics statement may result in disqualification from participating in ISEF and ISEF-affiliated fairs, and forfeiture of any awards, prizes, and acknowledgment received. 

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HUMAN PARTICIPANT RULES

Under Prohibited Studies, 1d was added.
Students are prohibited from disclosing results or data from their study to the human participants. 

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Under Rules, #2a, written parental permission is now required for all human participant projects working with minors (students under the age of 18).
All human participant studies involving minors (students under 18 years of age) must receive assent from the student participant and written parental permission from a legal guardian. 

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Under Documentation and Approval, #3 was added. 
3. When working with a facility where participants live or attend programming (e.g. retirement home, daycare, prison, etc.) written approval from the facility must be obtained as well as informed consent for the individual participants. 

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VERTEBRATE ANIMAL RULES

Under What are considered vertebrate animals? #6 has been added.
6. Cephalopods are to be treated as vertebrate animals 

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Under What are considered vertebrate animals? a NOTE has been added to clarify the difference between a vertebrate animal project and a tissue project. 
NOTE: A project is not considered a vertebrate animal study if tissue is obtained from an animal that was euthanized for a purpose other than the student’s project. (See Tissue & Body Fluid Rules) 

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Under Prohibited Studies, rule 6 was edited to include barbed hooks and live bait.
Students are prohibited from fishing with barbed hooks, live bait, or from performing electrofishing.

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POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS BIOLOGICAL AGENTS (PHBA) RULES

Under Prohibited Studies, language was added to clarify the prion prohibition.
All studies involving the use of prions or purified prion-like proteins are prohibited. This includes studies working with amyloid-b (Ab), tau, a-synuclein, transactive response DNA-binding protein of 43 kDa, and amyloid fibrils.

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Under Rules, #3 has been edited to clarify BSL-2 safety 
Research determined to be a Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) must be conducted in a laboratory rated BSL-2 or above and follow BSL-2 safety conditions throughout the study. (Commonly limited to a RRI).  

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Under Rules, #7 and #8 have been added 
7. Projects involving water samples collected from active Harmful Algal Blooms are considered BSL2 studies.
8. Insect and arthropod vector-borne pathogens such as Malaria, Lyme, etc. are considered BSL-2 studies. 

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Under Rules, #9 was added to clarify the prion rule.
9. Studies involving animals or animal tissues that have been bred to express prion-like proteins (such as C. elegans and Drosophila) are permissible if conducted in a BSL-2 laboratory setting at an RRI.

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TISSUES & BODILY FLUID RULES (page 16-17)

This is a new section that has been added to clarify what constitutes a tissue project and how to conduct such a project safely. None of the information listed in this section is new material or new rules but was simply pulled from other areas of the rules book. 

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Page 16, under Rules
4. The culturing of samples from fresh/frozen tissues or body fluids or meat and meat by-products obtained from food stores, restaurants, or packing houses must be considered biosafety Level 1 studies and must be conducted in a BSL-1 laboratory or higher.
6. Human breast milk of unknown origin, unless certified free of HIV and Hepatitis C, and domestic unpasteurized animal milk are considered BSL-2. All other breast milk is considered BSL-1.

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HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS, ACTIVITIES, OR DEVICES RULES

Last sentence of the Introduction was added. 
Hazardous activities are those that involve a level of risk above and beyond that encountered in the student’s everyday life. The student researcher must minimize the impact of an experiment on the environment. 

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Under Rules, #5 was added.
5. Projects using chemicals with a Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) safety rating of 1, 2 or 3 or National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) safety rating of 3 or 4 must be conducted in a school or laboratory setting. Projects conducted with chemicals outside these ratings may be conducted in a home setting under the following conditions: 

a. Projects in a home setting must follow standard lab practices for chemical handling, safety, ventilation, and specific disposal procedures used as outlined in the Safety Data Sheets (SDS).  

b. Any cookware, utensils, and/or equipment used during the experimentation cannot be reused for food preparation. 

c. Be conducted with a Direct Supervisor with proper training and knowledge of the chemicals being used.

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Under Rules, #6 was added.
6. Disposal procedures shall be described in sufficient detail to ensure compliance with EPA Guidelines as outlined in the appropriate Safety Data Sheets. Examples include minimal quantities of chemicals that will require subsequent disposal; ensuring that all disposal is done in an environmentally safe manner. Proper chemical, sharps and other hazardous materials disposal must follow local, state, and federal guidelines.  

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Under Rules, the following heading and text were added.
CHEMICALS
1. Projects using chemicals with a Globally Harmonized System (GHS)* safety rating of 1, in any of the classifications, must be conducted at an RRI.
2. Projects using chemicals for their intended purpose and with GHS safety ratings between 2 – 5 in any of the classifications, may be conducted in a home, school, or RRI setting.
3. All projects using chemicals NOT for their intended purpose and with GHS safety ratings between 2 – 5 in any of the classifications, must be conducted in a school or RRI laboratory setting. A chemical is NOT used for its intended purposes when it is mixed with other chemicals, changes temperature, larger volumes are used, etc.
4. All projects using chemicals in a school lab or home setting must be conducted under the following conditions:
a. Follow standard lab practices for chemical handling, safety, ventilation, and specific disposal procedures used as outlined in the Safety Data Sheets (SDS).
b. Discard or repurpose any cookware, utensils, and/or equipment used during the experimentation; they cannot be reused for regular household use.
c. Be conducted with a Direct Supervisor with proper training and knowledge of the chemicals being used.

 

*NOTE: Chemicals may also be rated on the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) scale. This scale runs from 0-4, with 4 being the most hazardous. A GHS rating of 1 is equivalent to an NFPA of 4.