Kunming city in Yunnan province held the final of the 30th Kunming Youth Science and Technology Competition on March 22 with an oral defense of participants' products, innovation and investigations.

The competition attracted more than 3,000 entries, among which there were 211 student innovations, 87 teacher innovations, 170 teacher theses, 52 innovations co-produced by teachers and students, and more than 2,900 paintings. The entries covered 13 fields, including biochemistry, computer and social sciences.

Most of the entries were beneficial to daily life, such as the innovation of a clothes stand which can help students heat up their washed clothes on winter days and an investigation into the performance of different boots on wet pavements to help people with visual difficulties.

"This year's entries are closer to our daily life and students are more active in participation", said Li Jun, head of the city's Science and Technology Association's promotion department. He also explained that taking the form of oral defense as the final was aimed to helping students become more familiar with their investigations and innovations.

Edited by Jacob Hooson