Steve Jobs’ 8th grade science fair project sells for $34,375 — after rare Apple memorabilia sold for $2.75 million at auction

Eventually, Chovanec took ownership, carefully “safeguarding this rare artifact of Jobs’s early technical curiosity and family history.”

Along with 148 other items up for auction, Jobs’s handmade project on the silicon-controlled rectifier sold to the highest bidder on August 20 for $34,375.

An eye-catching report with instructions for judges

True to form, the Jobs-designed science fair project is eye-catching. With a backer made of thin wood and a curved wooden banner asking onlookers “What is the SCR?,” the project has typed descriptions and explanations stapled to the backer as well as two test circuits showcasing the functionality of the semiconductor devices, which are used to control electrical power.

There’s also a note to the judges, urging them to “please unplug!” the circuit after using it. (Even in eighth grade, Jobs was apparently a control freak.)

A written report, bound in a blue folder with hand stenciling, was also included with the item.

“For my science project I have selected to do research and experiment with the silicon-controlled rectifier,” Jobs wrote in the report.

“I am making a circuit that demonstrates the basic properties and characteristics of this semiconductor. The silicon-controlled rectifier is the most widely used of a family of four-layer semi-conducter power devices that exhibit regenerative or latching-type switching action. The silicon-controlled rectifier is widely known as the SCR. International standards describe the complete family of semiconducter regenerative switches under the name Thyristors.”

Other memorabilia drew eager bidders

While the science project has the most direct ties to Jobs, Apple collectors have a lot to choose from when it comes to company-focused memorabilia.