Scientifically Speaking, Teens' Projects Inspiring

Twenty-six students from have been chosen to compete against more than 400 students from four counties at the Jersey Shore Science Fair on March 17 at Richard Stockton College.

Looking at topics ranging from the minds of serial killers to optimizing a catapult, the students – from freshmen to seniors – were selected from among several dozen of their classmates at the school’s Science Fair on Thursday night.

“Over the years, I have learned a great deal at our science fairs,” said Lacey High School principal Will Zylinski. “I don’t eat two things anymore because of what I’ve learned: I don’t eat McDonald’s hamburgers and I don’t drink soda.”

“In viewing the science fair, I noticed there are projects that excite us,” he said, “and experiments that could possibly change our world.”

Sue Andrews, chair of the science department at the high school, said the science fair is a culmination of four months of work by the students. They choose subjects in November, research them and prepare their presentations, from three-dimensional models to slide-shows. The students whose projects were selected among the top three in each category can compete in the fair at Stockton, which draws students from Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May counties. The top three finishers in each category there advance to the Delaware Valley Science Fair, a regional event hosted by Drexel University for students from Delaware, southeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, where the top students can win cash prizes and even scholarships to Drexel.

That event is scheduled for April 3-5 at the Greater Philadelphia Convention Center in Oaks, Pa.

“The kids are really passionate about what they select,” Andrews said.

You could look no further than Samantha Ferreras to see that.

The sophomore, who earned best in show for her project looking at how the body turns food into energy, lights up when she talks about science.

"I love physics!" she said, the words spilling out like a soda bubbling over. "I'm a physics junkie. In physics you're given a formula ... and you bring it to life, and it works and it moves and it's so exciting."

Her project reflects that passion: in looking at how the body converts food to energy, Ferreras went on to explain how that process could be used to fuel pacemakers and other implanted devices that currently run on batteries.

"It's barbaric that they have to go back in through surgery to replace batteries in a pacemaker," she said. Her experiment took milk and eggs and hydrochloric acid -- "that's the acid found in your stomach that helps digest food," she said -- and produced hydrogen sulfide, which creates energy. She believes that it would be possible to take that energy and someday use it as a permanent fuel source for pacemakers and battery-operated prosthetic devices.

Ferreras, whose father, Thomas, is an electrical engineer and whose mother, Joanne, is a secretary in a medical office, said she went all the way to the Delaware Valley fair last year as a freshman, and hoped to do the same this year.

The projects have a greater impact, Andrews said; students have come back years later and told how the research involved in the science project helped them be successful in college.

Awards were presented in the following categories, with separate awards for ninth- and 10th graders (A Division) and 11th- and 12th-graders (B Division) in most. Students are listed with their project title:

APPLIED ART: Projects had to include a three-dimensional model.

A Division

1. Gina Gesualdi, What is a peritonsillar abscess?
2. Shawn Kollmer, What is diabetes?
3. Zach Benjamin, Mammoth appetite

Honorable mentions: Leah Korygoski, Why do snakes shed?; Claire Salisbury, How do planets orbit the sun?; Nicole Fiore, Stages of mouse development; Anthony Foglia, How do neurons send signals to the brain

B Division

1. Taylor Kollmer, Is a serial killer’s mind different?
2. Jamie Sandborn, Down syndrome
3. Luke Fernandez, How does global warming affect polar bears?

Honorable mentions: Erica Keeley, How does thalidomide hurt a baby?; Alexis Pinsley, Can conjoined twins be separated?

DEMONSTRATION: Projects support the explanation of some scientific principle and have moving parts.

A Division

1. Andrew Como and Ryan Stillings, Air cannon
2. Quinn Lamb, How do hamstring injuries occur?
3. Nick Bland and Brett Kinsey, Which surface has the most bacteria?

Honorable mentions: Ray Hughes and Richie Smith, the acceleration of the green banana; Amelia Pawlowski, What are crystals?

B Division

1. Brendan Harper, At what frequency are non-newtonian fluids most active?
2. Christian Green, Mike Costa and TJ Herdt, Ballistics
3. Brian Strohmetz, How does a tuning fork work?

Honorable mentions: Jeremy Huhn, Drums; Jeremy Horvath, Effects of directional forces in billiards

COMPUTER SCIENCE/CADD: Projects demonstrating instructional applications of computers, such as a computer game with some educational value or a purely educational program.  The program must be original work.

1. Tori Lawrence, How frame rate affects the movement in animation?

There were no other awards in this category.

CLASSICAL EXPERIMENT: Projects involve development of a classical experiment or an original invention in accordance with the scientific method.  A hypothesis should be proposed, and a procedure developed and carried out. The materials used, data gathered, graphs and results, and written documentation are displayed.

A Division

1. Trace Dittenhoffer, Phase separation of 122 gallons E10 ethanol-blended gasoline
2. Abbie Gauther, Plants
3. Hailey Mauro, Hair dye

Honorable mentions: Jacob Hastick, Is milk more viscous than water?; Jonathan Reuter, How smart are rats?; Mark Prowse, Reactability of the three phases of water; Jenny McKay, How does temperature affect the corrosion of copper?; Morgan Engler, Ice pack chemistry; Michelle Mendez, Who has the greatest lung capacity?; John Rice, Effects of antibacterials on common household bacteria; Maria Nitka, Pickle juice vs. sports drinks; Kelsey Jacome, Which plastic wrap works best; Joshua Howlett, How acid affects the corrosion of metals

B Division

1. Rachel Brignola and Lauren McGuire, How do different materials react to static electricity
2. Evan Powell, Does temperature affect an electromagnet?
3. Rich Henwood, Which factors will optimize a catapult?

Honorable mention: Andy DiAngelis, Is terminal velocity attainable in Portal 2?

MEDIA: Videos, filmstrips, or slides of a serious nature that describe the structure or function of biological organism, chemical substance, or the application of a scientific principle. A demo board is a must. (This category had just one division.)

1. Gavin Rozzi, The chilling effects of GMO foods
2. Jenna Lagowicz, How does oil affect birds?
3. Rebecca Fino, Where does garbage go after it leaves the curb?

Honorable mention: Marcos Vasquez, How does wind generate energy?

GREEN:  Projects focused on environmental awareness and/or responsible environmental stewardship. (One division.)

1. Danelle Leovitt, Hydrogen energy
2. Robert Trout and Tyler Webb, Biodiesel
3. Maria Coppola, Which water bottle will release the most BPA?

Honorable mention: Tyler Britske, Recycling starts at home