Online Commentary for Abstracts and the Writing of Abstracts
Abstracts - Loyola University Chicago Abstracts... · 2019-09-25 · 6525 North Sheridan Rd. Saint...
Transcript of Abstracts - Loyola University Chicago Abstracts... · 2019-09-25 · 6525 North Sheridan Rd. Saint...
The National Junior Scienceand Humanities Symposium
Abstractsof the
Research Finalists
The abstracts in this publication include science research conducted by students
who participated in the 52nd National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium
Washington, D.C. April 23-27, 2014
Sponsored by The Departments of the Army, Navy and Air Force
In cooperation with higher education
Administered by The Academy of Applied Science
Concord, NH 03301
The National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium
Program Objectives
• Topromoteresearchandexperimentationinthesciences,mathematics,andengineeringatthehighschoollevel.
• Torecognizethesignificanceofresearchinhumanaffairs,andtheimportanceofhumaneandethicalprinciplesintheapplicationofresearchresults.
• Tosearchouttalentedyouthandtheirteachers,recognizetheiraccomplishmentsatsymposiaandencouragetheircontinuedinterestandparticipationinscience,mathematics,andengineering.
• Toexpandthehorizonsofresearch-orientedstudentsbyexposingthemtoopportunitiesintheacademic,industrial,andgovernmentalcommunities.
• Toincreasethenumberoffutureadultscapableofconductingresearchanddevelopment.
Table of Contents
DirectorsofRegionalSymposia SectionI
StudentParticipantsAttendingtheNationalJSHS SectionII
AbstractsofStudentPapers SectionIII
Alabama Alaska
CatherineShields Dr.AbelBult-ItoJeffersonCountyInt’lBaccalaureateSchool UniversityofAlaskaFairbanks6100OldLeedsRoad CSEM&DeptofBiologyandWildlifeBirmingham,AL35210 307CBunnellBuildingFairbanks,AK99775-6100
Arizona Arkansas
Dr.B.L.Ramakrishna Dr.RonaldJ.TackettSchoolofMaterials DepartmentofPhysicalScienceArizonaStateUniversity 1701NBoulderPOBox878706 ArkansasTechUniversityTempe,AZ85287 Russellville,AR72852
California, Northern & W. Nevada California, Southern
Mr.RogerE.Martin Dr.George&AnnMillerBayAreaScienceFair,Inc. DepartmentofChemistryLawrenceHallofScienceSanFrancisco UniversityofCaliforniaIrvineUniversityofCaliforniaatBerkeley Irvine,CA92697-2025Berkeley,CA94720-5200
Connecticut DoDS Europe
Dr.JoyErickson Mr.BrianZimmerChemistryDepartmentU3060 DoDDependentsSchools-EuropeUniversityofConnecticut PSC851Box69055NorthEaglevilleRoad APOAE09834Storrs,CT06269-3060
Florida Georgia
Dr.MaryJoKoroloy Dr.KarenShetterleyCenterforPre-collegiateEd&Training CenterforContinuingEducationUniversityofFlorida UniversityofGeorgia P.O.Box112010,334YonHall 1197SouthLumpkinSt.Gainesville,FL32611-2010 3900ReservoirRoadNW Athens,GA30602
Hawaii Illinois
Dr.AmandaLowrey Ms.StephanieEichholzHawaiiAcademyofScience CollegeofSciencec/oTheCollegeofEducation Mailcode4403,1245LincolnDrive1176UniversityAvenueUA-4-4 SouthernIllinoisUniversityCarbondaleHonolulu,HI96822 Carbondale,IL62901-4403
Section IThe National Junior Science and Humanities Symposia
Directors of Regional SymposiaAcademic Year 2013-2014
Illinois-Chicago Indiana
Mr.WilliamKroll Dr.DaveGrabowskiLoyolaUniversityChicago DeptofSciencesandMathematicsDeptofBiology SaintMaryoftheWoodsCollege6525NorthSheridanRd. SaintMaryoftheWoods,IN47876Chicago,IL60626
Intermountain Iowa
Mr.MateoRemsburg Dr.SusanAssoulineOfficeofStudentRecruitmentandHighSchoolServices Belin-BlankCenterforGiftedEducationUniversityofUtah TheUniversityofIowa200S.CentralCampusDr.,Rm80 600BlankHonorsCenterSaltLakeCity,UT84112-9104 IowaCity,Iowa52242
Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma Kentucky
Dr.JulieAngle Dr.WilliamThornburghScienceEducation UniversityofLouisville227WillardHall 1905S.1stStreet OklahomaStateUniversity Louisville,KY40292Stillwater,OK74078
Louisiana Maryland
Ms.ShannonCarlson Dr.CarlWhiteLouisianaStateUniversity-ContinuingEd MorganStateUniversity2234PleasantHall SchoolofEngineering/CAMRABatonRouge,LA70813 5200PerringPkway,Suite200 Baltimore,MD21251
Michigan, Southeastern
Dr.MariaFerreiraCollegeofEducation,Room281WayneStateUniversityDetroit,MI48202
Missouri New England, Northern and
Dr.TomSpudich NewEngland,SouthernMaryvilleUniversity Dr.SubhashMinocha650MaryvilleUniversityDrive UniversityofNewHampshireSt.Louis,MO63141 RudmanHall,46CollegeRd Durham,NH03824
New Jersey Monmouth New Jersey, Northern
Dr.DattaNaik Mr.JeanPatrickAntoineMonmouthJuniorScienceSymposium 98BrettRoadMonmouthUniversity RutgersUniversityWestLongBranch,NJ07764 Piscataway,NJ08854-8058
New York, Long Island New York, Metro
Dr.PanayiotisMeleties Dr.PanayiotisMeletiesCUNYYorkCollege CUNYYorkCollege94-20GuyBrewerBlvd. 94-20GuyBrewerBlvd.JamaicaQueens,NY11451 JamaicaQueens,NY11451
New York, Upstate North Carolina
Dr.DanielL.Wulff AlisaWickliffDept.ofBioSciences CenterforMath,Science&TechEducationUniversityatAlbany CollegeofEducationSuite2221400WashingtonAvenue Charlotte,NC28223-0001Albany,NY12222
North Central Ohio
Ms.LiseWeegman Dr.EmilioDuranMinnesotaAcademyofScience SchoolofTeachingandLearningEDHD8700West36thStreet 128LifeSciencesSuite114W BowlingGreenStateUniversitySt.LouisPark,MN55426 BowlingGreen,OH43403
Oregon DoDS Pacific
Dr.GeraldineRichmond Dr.SylviaGingrichUniversityofOregon StudentActivitiesCoordinatorChemistry,5219 DoDSPacific/DDESS-GuamEugene,OR97403-5219 Unit35007,APOAP96376-5007
Pennsylvania Puerto Rico
Dr.DavidB.Klindienst Dr.JuliodeJesusPennsylvaniaStateUniversity Intellexi,GraduateSchoolChambersBldg ofEnvironmentalSciencesUniversityPark,PA16802 UniversityofTurabo P.O.Box418 Gurabo,PR00778-00418
South Carolina Tennessee
Dr.DonJordan Dr.TheodoreLabotkaCenterforScienceEducation 315Earth&PlanetaryScienceUniversityofSouthCarolina UniversityofTennesseeSumwaltRoom323,1212GreenSt 1412CircleDriveColumbia,SC29208 Knoxville,TN37992-1410
Texas Virginia
Dr.NancyMagnussen Dr.ThomasC.&DoreenDeVoreCollegeofScience DepartmentofChemistryTexasA&MUniversity JamesMadisonUniversity3257TAMU,517BlockerBldg MSC4501CollegeStation,TX77843-3257 Harrisonburg,VA22807
Washington Washington, D.C.
Dr.RayMyers Ms.JoyP.WilliamsSeattlePacificUniversity SchoolofMedicine3307ThirdAve,West 3900ReservoirRoadNWPhysicsDepartment Washington,D.C.20057-1423Seattle,WA98119
West Virginia W. Wisconsin & Wisconsin
Dr.JeanneD.Sullivan Dr.GaryWillhite59CollegeAvenue DeptofEducationalStudiesWestVirginiaWesleyanCollege UniversityofWisconsinBiologyDepartment 300BMorrisHall,1725StateStreetBuckhannon,WV26201 LaCrosse,WI54601
Wyoming-Eastern Colorado
Dr.MarkLyfordLifeSciencesProgramUniversityofWyoming100E.UniversityAvenueDept3165Laramie,WY82071
Alabama
JoshuaC.Abreo................................................ 1KatelynneJ.Herron........................................... 1RupaPalanki..................................................... 2Rohan Palanki. ................................................. 2Lucas D. Riddle................................................ 2
Alaska
AbramHaas....................................................... 3Jake T. Herrmann. ............................................ 3SallyLianeKuhn................................................ 3William B. Mitchell, Jr.. .................................... 4RyanC.Nicholson............................................. 4
Arizona
IvyChang.......................................................... 5Dhruv Iyer. ........................................................ 5DeshnaJoe....................................................... 6Yuanqi Zhang. .................................................. 6
Arkansas
DhrubaDasgupta,Jr.......................................... 7NimitR.Gandhi................................................. 7SanjitKalapatapu.............................................. 8Hanya M. Qureshi. ........................................... 8Shruti Shah. ..................................................... 9
California (Northern & Western Nevada)
Shiloh S. Curtis. ............................................. 10Neil Movva. ..................................................... 10SwethaRevanur...............................................11ValliammaiVinaithirthan...................................11EmilyS.Wang..................................................11
California (Southern)
SaumyaR.Keremane..................................... 12Kevin K. Lee. .................................................. 12DanielShaw..................................................... 13Yousuf M. Soliman. ........................................ 13
Connecticut
DanielG.Giebisch........................................... 14Isabelle S. Goldstein. .................................... 14AndrewMa...................................................... 15AnubhutiMathur.............................................. 15Isha A. Walawalkar. ........................................ 16
DoD Dependent Schools (Europe)
Garrett Davidson. .......................................... 17Leif C. Gruetter............................................... 17AngelaJeanfrancois........................................ 18MichaelH.Leek,III.......................................... 18JessicaMorton................................................ 18
DoD Dependent Schools (Pacific)
JiS.Jeong....................................................... 19Brian Lee. ....................................................... 19Frederick J. Lee. ............................................ 20
Florida
AnaB.Corra.................................................... 21IsabellaV.Daza............................................... 21Owen R. Kelly. ................................................ 22Caitlyn Ralph. ................................................. 22AndreSanchez................................................ 23
Georgia
Sonam A. Brahmbhatt. .................................. 24MarissaL.Hernandez..................................... 24William H. Jin. ................................................ 25JordanA.McCray,Sr....................................... 25MollyG.Niemczyk........................................... 25
Greater Washington, D.C. Area
Megan Chao. .................................................. 26Kristi A. Kan. .................................................. 26CadenW.Petersmeyer.................................... 26
Hawaii
KealyssaM.Castillo-Martin............................. 27CharuJoserose............................................... 27Ariana Kim...................................................... 28Viola Mocz. ..................................................... 28
Participants Page Participants Page
Section IIStudent Participants Attending
The National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium
Note: Presenter’s name appears in boldface.
Illinois
ChaseD.Latour............................................... 29Natalie A. Nickrent. ........................................ 29Conner T. Ruhl. .............................................. 29BrianJ.Suarez................................................ 30AndrewL.Woodruff......................................... 30
Illinois (Chicago)
Tushar Dwivedi. ............................................. 31Grace M. Niewijk. ........................................... 31PranavSivakumar........................................... 32TaliaE.Weiss.................................................. 32
Indiana
Jordan R. Cadle. ............................................ 33TingyueCui..................................................... 33Kamna Gupta. ................................................ 34KevinT.Hunckler............................................. 34KrishanS.Kumar............................................. 35
Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada)
RyanBarney.................................................... 36Anthony Cheng. ............................................. 36Melissa S. Ivie. ............................................... 37DanielW.Liu................................................... 37EmmaJ.Mackey............................................. 37
Iowa
Aparna S. Ajjarapu. ....................................... 38ChristopherGrebner........................................ 38Breanna Kramer. ............................................ 38KarleighSchilling............................................. 39AbbyL.Walling................................................ 39
Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma
Hayden J. Allen. ............................................. 40Disha Dasgupta. ............................................ 40SarahL.Riley.................................................. 41
Kentucky
LekhaP.Devara.............................................. 42SeohyunIm..................................................... 42EllenK.Kendall............................................... 42Szofia E. Komaromy-Hiller. ........................... 43Sanjana J. Rane. ............................................ 43
Louisiana
Cole H. Evensky. ............................................ 44Nicholas A. Larsen. ....................................... 44MorniA.Modi................................................... 45NeilF.Nathan.................................................. 45VenkateshS.Sivaraman................................. 45
Maryland
Ayush Goyal. .................................................. 46IsobelA.Hawes............................................... 46John Mountain. .............................................. 47JerryL.Zhang................................................. 47
Michigan (Southeastern)
Ella M. Freudenburg. ..................................... 48BethelA.Mwenze............................................ 48SamNatla........................................................ 49AnuushK.Vejalla............................................ 49Frank Wang. ................................................... 50
Missouri
DanielM.Hall.................................................. 51Katherine E. Hufker. ...................................... 51JohnL.O’Keefe............................................... 52OliviaLong....................................................... 52Ezra Umen and Yang Liu. .............................. 52SydneyL.Zuraski............................................ 53
New Jersey (Monmouth)
AdedayoR.Gbadamosi.................................. 54Sang Hyun Kim. ............................................. 54DongyeonKim................................................. 55Kunal V. Singh. .............................................. 55TonyZheng...................................................... 55
New Jersey (Northern)
AdityaBalaji..................................................... 56LauraBethFulton............................................ 56Jiyoun J. Ha. .................................................. 57Paige Hammell. .............................................. 57JaesungSon.................................................... 57
New Mexico (Southwest)
SarahR.Dallo................................................. 58KathrynM.Harris............................................. 58SeanP.Palmer................................................ 59MelanieB.Schneider....................................... 59Katherine A. Schneider. ................................ 59Mary C. Spanjers. .......................................... 60SierraVenegas................................................ 60
Participants Page Participants Page
Note: Presenter’s name appears in boldface.
New York (Long Island)
Anthony R. Bisulco. ...................................... 61LeandraMeraglia-GarciaandDaphneChen... 61Matthew M. O’Connell. .................................. 62AnkoorTalwar.................................................. 62NeilM.Thivalapill............................................ 63
New York (Upstate)
MaximS.Diamond.......................................... 64StephanieDing................................................ 64Adam Z. Illowsky, Sr.. .................................... 65Jason S. Rosenberg. ..................................... 65AlexisA.Scott,Jr............................................. 66
New York City (Metro)
WaqarulB.Islam............................................. 67Alexandra L. LaGrassa.................................. 67Erica Lin. ........................................................ 68RasidhaRahman............................................. 68PraveenRammohan........................................ 68
North Carolina
Tian-Shun A. Jiang. ....................................... 69Megan E. Miller............................................... 69PranayOrugunta............................................. 69JosephH.Roberts........................................... 70JoshuaZhou.................................................... 70
North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota)
AlannaM.Bram............................................... 71Carolyn K. Jons. ............................................ 71MatthewT.Lerdahl.......................................... 72Timothy J. Renier. .......................................... 72KevinZheng.................................................... 72
Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont)
Evan T. Brewer. .............................................. 73Deepika S. Kurup. .......................................... 73AndrewD.Sandweiss..................................... 74KeenanG.Wood............................................. 74
Ohio
Bluyé DeMessie. ............................................ 75ShaleenGoel................................................... 75Aditya Jog. ..................................................... 76RagaviLanka................................................... 76
Oregon
Valerie S. Ding................................................ 77Vinay S. Iyengar. ............................................ 77AlexandraUlmerandSarayuCaulfield........... 78
Pennsylvania
Glen S. Gallik. ................................................ 79HoangAnhT.Phan.......................................... 79PriyangaSelvakumar....................................... 79David R. Shipe. .............................................. 80SpencerYacuboski.......................................... 80
Puerto Rico
AngelicArzola.................................................. 81HennessyBas................................................. 81Waldemar Ortiz, III. ........................................ 81KenalyOrtiz..................................................... 82Jancel Taveras. .............................................. 82
South Carolina
KrishnaT.Gorrepati......................................... 83Bushra B. Islam. ............................................ 83Dana Krzyzaniak. ........................................... 84BrettWinters.................................................... 84
Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island)
EastonJ.Ehlers.............................................. 85Katie Hudek. ................................................... 85Andrew F. Luo. ............................................... 85VivekSubramaniam........................................ 86SimiaoYou....................................................... 86
Tennessee
ZheerAhmed................................................... 87AmanyAlshibli................................................. 87Grace J. Baek. ................................................ 88Maria D’Azevedo. ........................................... 88VijayaR.Dasari............................................... 88
Texas
DaraW.Li........................................................ 89Lisa P. Michaels. ............................................ 89Michael N. Trinh. ............................................ 90
Virginia
Audrey L. Francis. ......................................... 91TarunV.Kamath.............................................. 91MichelleM.Marquez....................................... 92Samuel E. Rohrer. .......................................... 92
Participants Page Participants Page
Note: Presenter’s name appears in boldface.
Participants Page
Washington
MaeveW.Harris.............................................. 93Katherine Landoni. ........................................ 93IndiraRayala................................................... 94Meghal Sheth. ................................................ 94SwethaV.Shutthanandan............................... 95CarrieM.Stump.............................................. 95
Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan
KaitlinM.Brueggen......................................... 96Ellie L. Hoopman. .......................................... 96Emily L. Hoopman. ........................................ 97CarrieA.Urbanek............................................ 97CaseyR.Urbanek........................................... 98
Wisconsin
JennaR.Lieungh............................................ 99Andrew K. Saydjari. ....................................... 99Sonali Srivastava. ........................................ 100ClariseE.White............................................. 100
Wyoming, Eastern Colorado
AlexL.HenkleandMasonSundstrom.......... 101So-YunKim.................................................... 101Stephen L. Parish ........................................ 102Ian J. Wilkins. ............................................... 102
Note: Presenter’s name appears in boldface.
Section III
Abstracts of Student Papers
1
Alabama
Development of a Novel Antimicrobial Polymer for Biomedical ApplicationsJoshua C. AbreoJames Clemens High School, Madison, AL, Alabama JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Emanuel Waddell, University of Alabama in Huntsville; Mrs. Robin Hodges, James Clemens High School; Mrs. Carol Bohatch, James Clemens High School
Polymersarefrequentlyusedinavarietyofmedicalapplicationsbecausetheyareversatileandflexible,butoneoftheirdrawbacksisthattheymakethepatientsusceptibletoinfections.Themajorgoalofthisworkwastodevelopanovelantimicrobialpolymer,createdbyattachingcoppertothepolymerpolydimethylsiloxane(PDMS).Oncethepolymeriscreated,irradiationofthepolymerunderanexcimerlampcausestheformationofcarboxylicgroups,andcopperionsareattachedtothesegroupswhenthePDMSisdippedinacopperacetatesolution.ThecopperionswereverifiedtohavebeenattachedtothePDMSusinginfraredspectroscopy(IR).TheIRreadingsofthecopperdippedirradiatedPDMShadreadingsthatwereacombinationofthebandsfoundintheoriginalPDMSandthebandsfoundintheCopperAcetate,showingthatthenewsurfacewascoatedwithcopper.ThismeantthatthePDMSwascoatedwithathinlayerofCopperions,causingittobeaneffectiveantimicrobialagent.BacterialgrowthonthecoppercoatedPDMSwasessentiallynonexistantforbothE.coliandS.epidermidis.Inaddition,theCopperinfusedPDMSisrelativelyinexpensive,costingonlyabout10%moretoproduce.
The Effects of Sedimentation on the Biodiversity of Benthic Macro-InvertebratesKatelynne J. HerronJefferson County International Baccalaureate, Irondale, AL, Alabama JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kelly Breland, Jefferson County International Baccalaureate
Thisstudywasperformedtoobservetheeffectsasourceofsedimentationinstreamsystem,specificallytheTurkeyCreekwatershed,wouldhaveonthebiodiversityofbenthicmacro-invertebrates.TurkeyCreekhasthreespeciesofcriticallyendangeredfishandonethreatenedspeciesofTurtle.TheTurkeyCreekwatershedistheonlyplaceintheworldwheretheVermilionDarterisfound,andoneofthefewknownenvironmentsfortheRushDarterandtheWatercressDarter.Themaindietsofthesefisharebenthicmacro-invertebrates.<br/>Fivetransectswerestudied:onetransectatasourceofsedimentation(BeaverCreek),twotransectsupstreamofthesource(Tapawingoarea),andtwotransectsdownstreamofthesource(TurkeyCreek).Depthofsedimentwasrecordedastocomparesedimentationtobiodiversity.Biodiversityofmacro-invertebratesdeclineddownstreamofthesourceofsedimentation,anddepthofsedimentrosesuggestingthatassedimentationrises,biodiversityofbenthicmacro-invertebratesdeclines.Thedownstreamtransectshadthehighestaveragedepthofsediment,(19.3cm,17.8cm)andhadthelowestbiodiversityratingontheSimpsonsIndex,(0.17,0.13).ThedownstreamtransectsalsoratedFAIRontheStreamQualityScale,bytheEPAtomeasurestreamqualitybydiversityofpollutiontolerantinvertebrates.
2
Thermoelectric Generator Using the Pyroelectric EffectRupa PalankiW.P. Davidson High School, Mobile, AL, Alabama JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Srinivas Palanki, University of South Alabama
Anenergyharvesterisdevelopedviathepyroelectriceffectthatutilizestemperaturefluctuationsduetothesunandthewindonalead-zirconate-titanate(PZT)disktogenerateenergyinthe100microJoulesrange.AlaboratoryapparatusisdesignedinSolidWorksandconstructedtosimulateatmosphericeffects.ALabViewprogramiswrittentoacquirevoltagedata.Itisshownthatthisapparatuscanprovidereproducibleresults.Theeffectofvaryingbulbpower(tosimulatesunnyandcloudydays)andfanspeed(tosimulateagustyandgentlewinds)onthevoltageproducedisstudied.ItisobservedthatincreasingbulbpowerandfanspeedresultsinanincreaseinthepeakvoltageproducedfromthePZTdisk.Thisdeviceproducesalternatingcurrent(AC)supplywhilemostdevicesoperateondirectcurrent(DC)supply.AsimplebridgerectifiercircuitisfabricatedtoconverttheACsupplytoDCsupply.Itisshownthatthisdeviceiscapableofproducingupto125mWofpowerwhenexposedtothesunandthewindfor10minutes.Thisissufficienttopowerwirelesssensornetworksthatareembeddedincivilstructuressuchastallbuildings,bridgesanddams.
Silver Nanoparticles for Skin Cancer Chemoprevention and TherapyRohan PalankiW.P. Davidson High School, Mobile, AL, Alabama JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Ajay P. Singh, Mitchell Cancer Institute
Eachyear,overtwomillionnewcasesofskincancerarediagnosed,whichisgreaterthanthecombinedincidenceofcancersofthebreast,prostate,lungandcolon.Therefore,preventionofskincancerfromtheharmfuleffectsofUVremainsapriorityareaofresearch.Inthisproject,theeffectofsilvernanoparticles(AgNPs)onskinepidermalimmortalized,non-tumorigenickeratinocytes(HaCaT)andepidermoidcarcinomaskincancercells(A431-NS)wastested.Achemicalmethodwassuccessfullyutilizedfortheproductionofsilvernanoparticles.TheeffectofsizeandconcentrationofAgNPswastestedforbothskincancertherapyaswellasskincancerchemopreventionagainstUV-inducedcelldamage.CellviabilityanalysisviacolorimetricassayindicatethatAgNPsinthesizerange10nmto100nmandconcentrationrange1mg/Lto10mg/LarenottoxictonontumerigenicHaCaTcellsbutaretoxictocarcinomaA431-NScells,therebyprovingthetherapeuticeffectofAgNPs.Furthermore,dot-blotassayresultsindicatethatUV-BradiationcausesconsiderableDNAdamagetoHaCaTcellsandthisdamageissignificantlyreducedinthepresenceofAgNPsinthesizerange10-40nm,therebyprovingthechemopreventiveeffectofAgNPs.
High Altitude Battery Charge Using Temperature Differential As Sole SourceLucas D. RiddleHewitt Trussville High School, Trussville, AL, Alabama JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Chris Bond, Hewitt Trussville High School
Manypeople,whileawayfrominstantaccesstoelectricityforanextendedperiodoftime,oftenstillrelyonelectricaldevices.ThesedevicesrangefromaflashlighttoGPS,cellphone,radiocommunication,camera,I-pod,etc.Whilecurrentsolutionsexistforrenewablesourcesofelectricity(mainlysolarpower),Ifoundthatmountainclimbersoranypersoninasub-freezingclimateoftenexperiencepoorweatherconditionsresultinginauselesssolarchargingdevice.Oneremainingresourceavailableinthesecircumstanceswouldbebodyheatproducedbytheindividual,pairedwiththeextremecoldexternalconditions,togethercreatingaheatdifferential.Peltiermodules,traditionallyusedasheatpumpsinsmallbutrealworldapplications,areconstructedverysimilarlytoathermocouple,whichmeasurestemperaturedifferentialbyproducingameasurablevoltage.TheSeebeckeffect,whichallowsavoltagetobedevelopedinathermocouple,allowsPeltiermodulestoberunbackwardsasthermoelectricgenerators.Utilizingtheseprinciples,IhavedesignedandtestedadevicethatutilizesPeltierdevicesincorporatedintoahikinghelmettoharnessthetemperaturedifferentialbetweenwearerandexternalenvironmentinordertochargeanexternalbattery.
3
Alaska
Use of Sodium Nitrite as a Corrosion Inhibitor on Pipeline SteelAbram HaasWest Valley High School, Fairbanks, AK, Alaska JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Gregory Kahoe
InthisprojectItestedasolutionofSodiumNitrite(NaNO2)asacorrosioninhibitorfortheTrans-AlaskaPipelineSystemindeadlegareas,orareasoflowoilflow.Ididthisbytaking20metalsamplesofthepipelineandsoakinghalfoftheminmyinhibitorforvaryingtimeperiods,andthensoakingalloftheminseawaterfora28-dayperiod.Myinitialhypothesiswasthatthemetalsamplesthatwerecoatedinsodiumnitritebeforeseawaterwillcorrodelessthantheonesunprotected.Iusedthemasslossdatacollectedafterthetimeperiod,tofindhowmuchoftheironthesampleslostduetocorrosion,Ifoundthatthesodiumnitritedidnotinhibitthecorrosionatall.Ididastatisticalanalysisofmydataintheformofa2SampleTTest,andfoundthatthemasslossofthemetalsamplesoriginallycoatedininhibitorversustheonesnotprotected,hadnostatisticaldifference.Myfailuretosupportmyinitialhypothesisismostlikelyduetoanerrorinapplyingtheinhibitortothemetalsamples,orpossiblythewaythatImeasuredcorrosion.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Primarily Statistical Approach to Chatbot DesignJake T. HerrmannWest Valley, Fairbanks, AK, Alaska JSHS
“Chatbots”arecomputerprogramsdesignedtoengageinconversation,andarebecomingincreasinglycommoninfieldssuchasentertainment,education,business,andlawenforcement.Mostchatbotseitherusestatisticstochooseappropriatereplies,orarepre-programmedtorecognizelanguagepatterns.Someresearchsuggeststhatstatisticsaloneareinsufficientasanapproachtochatbotdesign.Inordertotesttheeffectivenessofalearningchatbotthattakesastatisticalapproachtoconversation,Iwroteaprogramandtesteditagainst19humans.Usingits418-KB(180-page)memoryfile,mychatbotonlyachievedasuccessrateofabout26%.However,thechatbotbehavedmoreconvincinglywhenitfoundobviousmatcheswithauser’sinputinitsmemoryfile,soIhypothesizethatitssuccessratewillincreasedramaticallyifIaddmoreinformationtoitsmemory.Mychatbot’sprimaryweaknessisthatithasnoshort-termmemorywithwhichtocontextualizeconversations.Inthefuture,Iplantoconductseveralmoretrialstoclarifymyconclusions,andIplantoconduct“blind”trialsinwhichtheusersarenotawarethatthechatbotisnothuman.Iwillfocusfutureresearchontestingmyhypothesisthatsuccessrateincreaseswithmemorysize.
Cyanoacrylate (CA) vs. Iodine Fuming of Latent Fingerprints: A Comparative StudySally Liane KuhnWest Valley High School, Fairbanks, AKTeacher: Mr. Gregory Kahoe, West Valley High School, Mentor: Mr. Gregory Kahoe, West Valley High School
Thepurposeofthiscomparativestudywastoevaluatebothaphysicalandchemicalmethodoflatentfingerprintdevelopment.Ifingerprintedstandardglasslab-wareanddevelopedtheprintsthroughthetechniqueoffuming.IndifferenttrialsIusedairtightcontainersandhotplatestofumecyanoacrylate(CA)andiodinecrystals.Iusedascaleof0-5inordertoquantativlycomparetheresults.CAprovedtobethesuperiorsubstancetofumewithn=3andx=4.67.TheCAprintswerenotonlytheclearestbutwerenolongersusceptibletoenvironmentalfactorssuchaswaterandheat.Iodinewastheinferiorsubstancesincetheprintsfadedsoquicklytherewasnowaytoproperlyrecordthem,eventhroughpictures.Theiodineratingsweren=3withx=1.5.Aftercontrastingallfactorssuchascost,setup,timeandresults,IdeterminedthatCAwasthebestchoiceforfuminglatentfingerprintsonnon-poroussurfaces.InthefutureIwouldliketouseadyeinconjunctionwiththeCAtobetterdeveloplatentprintsonsurfacesofvaryingcolor.
4
Effects of Kerosene Co-contamination on Sulfolane BiodegradationWilliam B. Mitchell, Jr.West Valley High School, Fairbanks, AK, Alaska JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Cyndie Beale, West Valley High School; Chris Kasanke, Institute of Arctic Biology
Sulfolaneisanindustrialsolventusedtoseparatearomatichydrocarbonsfromcrudeoil.Sulfolaneandkerosenearebothenvironmentalpollutants.Thebiodegradationofsulfolaneinthepresenceofkerosenewasinvestigated.Thehypothesiswasthatkerosenewouldinhibitthebiodegradationofsulfolane.Sixtestgroupsofthreetofivereplicateseachcontainedcombinationsofsulfolane,kerosene,andsoilmicrobes.Groupsandtheirreplicateswereincubatedat4°Cforthedurationoftheexperiment.Samplestakenatdays0,9,and15wereanalyzedusinggaschromatography.Analysisofthetreatmentgroupsindicatedthatsoilmicrobeswereabletobiodegradesulfolane.Inaddition,thetestgroupcontainingmicrobesandsulfolanehadstatisticallysignificantgreatersulfolanebiodegradationonday9(p=0.020)andday15(p=0.038)comparedtothegroupwithmicrobes,sulfolane,andkerosene.Theseresultsconfirmedtheoriginalhypothesisthatkeroseneinhibitssulfolanebiodegradation.Thisisasignificantfindingbecausekerosene-likehydrocarbons,suchasthosefoundinjetfuel,arecommonco-contaminants.Thisindicatesthatsulfolanebiodegradationisinfluencedbysurroundingmaterials,apossiblefieldforfuturestudy.
Microfluidic Droplet-in-air Production Prototyping in Dry-film Photoresist Developed MicrochannelsRyan C. NicholsonWest Valley High School, Fairbanks, AK, Alaska JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Cheng-fu Chen, University of Alaska Fairbanks; Gregory Kahoe, West Valley High School; Cyndie Beale, West Valley High School
Microdialysis,aninvasivesamplingtechnique,iswidelyusedinthedeterminationofchemicalconstituentsofextracellularfluids,butisunabletobeextensivelyminiaturizedduetoascalingflowresistance.Iexploredthepossibilitiesofamicrofluidicdroplet-in-airproductionprocessthatwouldleadtotheeliminationofflowresistance.Mymentor,Dr.Cheng-fuChen(UAF),developedmicrochannelsutilizingaprototypingprocessthatusesadry-filmphotoresistasthestructuralmaterial,whichallowsmicrochannelcreationthroughUVlightexposureandbondingtopolydimethylsiloxane(PDMS).Fortesting,Ipumpedairandwaterthroughthechannelsandmodulatedtheairflowrate.Resultsindicatedthatdropletswerepossible,buttheairflowrateheavilydeterminedtheirsize,speed,andratesofcreation.Lowerairflowratesproduceddropletsthatweresixtimesslowerthanonesfromhigherflowrates,andthehigherflowsalsoproduceddropletsmorerapidly.Dropletsofsmallersizeandhigherspeedareessentialforuseinamicrodialysistechnique,withuniformitybeingofutmostimportanceinordertopreservespatialandtemporalresolutions.Thisstudyprovidesafoundationfromwhichfurthertestingforpromoteddropletcreationratesanduniformity,ortheeffectsoftemperatureondroplets,maybeexplored.
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Arizona
Investigation of the Electrical Properties of Metal/Pyrite (FeS2) Junctions- Development Towards the Synthesis of Pyrite Solar CellsIvy ChangHamilton High School, Chandler, AZ, Arizona JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Debbie Nipar, Hamilton High School; Prof. Nathan Newman, Arizona State Univer-sity
ThenontoxicsemiconductorpyriteFeS<sub>2</sub>appealstousasagoodcandidateforsolarcellsbecauseitcollectsmostofthesolarlightspectrumandiscomposedofinexpensivematerials.Astudyconducted(Wadiaetal,2009)showedthatthesubstitutionofsiliconwithpyriteasasolarcellmaterialwilltheoreticallydecreasetheaveragecostby100times.Tomeasurepyrite’spotentialasanalternatematerial,theelectricalpropertiesofmetal/pyritejunctionscharacterizethecontactandpyritematerialsparametersimportanttophotovoltaicresearch.Onlyrectifyingcontactswillbeabletobeimplementedinphotovoltaicapplication.Anumberofmetals(Al,Au,Cr,Fe,Ni)weredepositedonanaturalpyritesubstrateandthecurrent-voltagecharacteristicsofthemetal/pyritecontactsweremeasuredwithvarianceintemperature.Alldiodessuccessfullyshowedadecreaseincurrentwithtemperature.Goldandnickelexhibitedlow-resistance,non-rectifyingbehavior,makingthemexcellentcandidatesasOhmiccontactsinthefabricationofpyritesolarcells.Aluminum,chromiumandironformedrectifying,Schottkybarriers.Futurestudiesconsistofdepositingthesethreerectifying,semi-transparentmetals(~5nm)toenabletheentranceoflighttoquantifytheefficiencyofthephotovoltaicprocessesasaworkablephotovoltaiccell.
I2C: Devices for the DisabledDhruv IyerHamilton High School, Chandler, AZ, Arizona JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Bala Iyer, Hamilton High School; Brian Clark
Peoplewithseveremotordisabilitiescanoftenfeelsociallyisolated.Thepurposeofthisprojectwastobuildauserinterfaceforquadriplegicstointeractwithothersinavirtualsettingbyplayingcomputergames.Designcriteriaincludedrequirementsforspeed,accuracy,functionality,userexperience,andcost.Severalprototypeswerebuiltandtested:Mouse:MEMSGyroscopebasedheadtrackerArm-actuatedaccelerometerTongue-actuatedjoystickKeyboard:VoiceinputMEMSGyroscopebasedHead-trackerKeyboardtestingwasperformedusingaMinecraftobstaclecourse.Mouseemulationwastestedbyrequiringthesubjecttoclickanorderedpointonarandomgrid.Theprototypedesignsweretestedbothindividuallyandtogetherinkeyboard-mousecombinations.Theresultsshowedthatthehead-tracking/tongue-actuatedcombinationwasthebest,followedbyHead-tracking/Arm-actuated,Voice/Head-tracking,andVoice/Arm-actuated.FiveadditionalprototypeswerebuiltusingtheKinectforXbox360andKinectforWindowssensors.WiththeKinectXboxsensor,lackof“near-mode”operationwasasignificantlimitation.ThiswasaddressedwiththeuseoftheKinectWindowssensor,forwhichKeyboardandmouseemulationworkedwellseparatelybutgettingbothkeyboardandmouseemulationatthesametimeisstillworkinprogress
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Parabolic Solar Water Heater For The Navajo NationDeshna JoeNavajo Preparatory School, Farmington, NM, Arizona JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Yolanda Flores, Navajo Preparatory School; Daniel Winarski, International Businesss Machines
Thepurposeofthissciencefairprojectistodesignaparabolamirrorwithcoppertubingatthefocus,anduseasolar-poweredpump,thatcanefficientlyheatwatersolelyfromsolarenergy.Likewise,togenerateasolarwaterheaterthatworkwithsolararraystotestinruralhomesoffthegrid.Thetargetofthisstudywasthesehomesinparticularbecauselivingonthereservationhasshownthatthisisanecessityformanypeoplewithoutmuchmoney.Thissciencefairprojectusesamirrorwithaparaboliccross-sectiontofocussunlightuponacopperpipe.Separately,solarphotovoltaiccellspowerapumptocirculatewaterthroughthecopperpipe.Theresultisatotallysolar-poweredwaterheater,whichcouldbeusedontheNavajoNationforhomeswhichareremoteand“offthegrid.”ThequestionofefficiencyisaddressedbydividingtheheatingofthewaterasmeasuredinWatts(Joules/second)bytheWattsreceivedfromthesun.Theprojectshowedanefficiencyof88%,whichprovedthataparabolicsolarwaterheaterwithcoppertubingatthefocus,andasolar-poweredpump,couldefficientlyheatwatersolelyfromsolarenergy.
3D Surface Fabrication Using Conformal GeometryYuanqi ZhangSaint Gregory College Preparatory School, Tucson, AZ, Arizona JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Xianfeng David Gu, State University of New York at Stony Brook
Thedeveloping3Dprintingtechnologyhasrevolutionizedthemanufacturingindustry.Althoughtheexisting3Dprintingmethodisusedinavarietyoffieldstoproducecompletemodelsinasingleprocess,itrequiresexpensivehardwareandsuccessivelayersofmaterials.Thispaperproposesanovelapproachforfabricating3Dshapesbasedonsurfacefoliationinconformalgeometry.AllorientedmetricsurfacesareRiemannsurfaces.TheholomorphicdifferentialsonaRiemannsurfaceinducehorizontalandverticaltrajectories.Thehorizontal(vertical)trajectoriesgiveafoliationofthesurfacesingularatzeros.Thesurfaceisdecomposedtotwofamiliesoforthogonalleaves,andcanbereconstructedbyweavingthetwofamiliesofleaves.Comparingtoconventional3Dprintingtechnologies,thismethodhasadvantages:1.General:themethodhandlessurfaceswithdifferenttopologies;2.Rigorous:themethodhasconcretefoundation;3.Automatic:thealgorithmisautomatic;4.Economical:themethodonlyrequirespaperandscissors.Themethodhaspotentialforfabricating3Dshapesinreallife.Keywords:3Dprinting;conformalgeometry;foliation;trajectory;holomorphicdifferential;fabrication
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Arkansas
The Effects of the Work Function and Alignment On Organic Photovoltaic DevicesDhruba Dasgupta, Jr.Little Rock Central High School, Little Rock, AR, Arkansas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Beth Maris, Little Rock Central High School
Organicphotovoltaics(OPVs)areefficient,renewablesourcesofenergythatprovideaneconomicalternativetorelativelyexpensiveinorganicPVs.OPVsstillfaceweatheringproblems,therefore,researchovernoblemetalsandinverteddeviceshavesurfaced.Silver,anoblemetal,couldbeswappedoutforaluminum;however,theirworkfunctiondifferencecouldleadtoanefficiencychange.AlsobyinvertingOPVswithanoblemetalasabottomelectrode,devicescouldimprovetheirairstability.Twoexperimentswereconducted:onecomparingefficienciesofnormallyorienteddeviceswithaluminumorsilvercathodes,andcomparingefficienciesofinverteddevicesusingaluminumorsilveranodes.Fornormallyorienteddevices,itwashypothesizedifthecathode’sworkfunctionwasclosertothePCBM’sLUMO,thedevice’sefficiencieswouldbegreater.Forinverteddevices,itwashypothesizedtheclosertheanode’sworkfunctionistotheP3HT’sHOMO,thegreatertheefficiency.ThealuminumOPVshadagreateraverageefficiencyat1.83%PCE,thanthesilverdevicesat.263%PCE.TheinvertedOPVswithsilverhadanaverageefficiencyat0.06%whencomparedtothealuminumdevicesat0.05%.Therefore,normallyorientedOPVshavegreaterefficiencieswithaluminumratherthansilver,whileinverteddevicesneedmoreresearch.
Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes/Silicon Based Solar CellsNimit R. GandhiLittle Rock Central High School, Little Rock, AR, Arkansas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Melissa Donham, Little Rock Central High School
AbstractThepurposeofthisresearchwastoachievephotovoltaicconversionfromhigh-densityp-njunctionsformedbetweensingle-walledcarbonnanotubes(SWNTs)andn-typesilicon(n-Si).Itwashypothesizedthattheuseofanitricacidtreatmentwouldimprovethepowerconversionefficiencyofthedevices,duetotheformationofnewfunctionalgroupsontheCNTs.Thiswastestedbyformingsilicondioxidethroughdryoxidationanddepositingtitaniumandgoldviavarioustechniques,uponwhichhydrofluoricacidandnitricacid-hydrochloricacidsolutionswereusedforetching,respectively.UponformingCNTfilmsofvariousvolumes,theywereliftedontothesiliconsubstrate.Current-voltagemeasurementsindicatedthatunderdarkconditions,thedevicesresembledp-ndiodes,indicatingthathighdensityp-njunctionsdidformthere.Device-1250(1250µLofCNTsolution)achievedthehighestpowerconversionefficiencybeforeandafterthenitricacidtreatmentduetoabalancebetweenconductionandtransparency.TheuseofthenitricacidtreatmentincreasedthepowerconversionefficiencyofDevice-1250bynearly83%.Thus,thehypothesiswassupportedashighdensityp-njunctions,decreaseinseriesresistance,andincreaseinshuntresistanceoccurredasaresultofthenitricacidtreatment.
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Peak Wall Stress in Abdominal Aortic AneurysmSanjit KalapatapuPulaski Academy, Little Rock, AR, Arkansas JSHS
Thepurposeofthisstudywastoexaminethecorrelationofpeakwallstressinabdominalaorticaneurysmwiththemaximalaorticdiameter,extentofintraluminalthrombus,andaorticwallcalcium.Thehypothesisofthisexperimentpredictedthatallthreeofthesefactorswouldcorrelatewiththepeakwallstressinanabdominalaorticaneurysm.ComputerizedTomographyscans(CTscans)wereusedtocalculatethemaximalaorticdiameter,percentofintraluminalaorticthrombus,andpercentofaorticwallcalcium.PeakwallstresswascalculatedusingFiniteElementAnalysissoftwaretoconstructa3-DmodelofabdominalaorticaneurysmfromCTscans.Thenstatisticalanalysiswasperformedtoassessthecorrelationbetweenthesefactors.Thisstudypartiallysupportedourhypothesis,asitshowedthattherewasadirectcorrelationbetweenmaximalaorticdiameterandpeakwallstress,aweakerpositivecorrelationbetweenthrombusandpeakwallstress,andnocorrelationbetweencalciumandpeakwallstress.Thisstudywillhelpdoctorsprioritizetheearlytreatmentofpatientswithadnominalaorticaneurysmandlowerrupturerates.
Using Nanotechnology to Enhance Osteoblast Proliferation and Adhesion: Comparison of Different Implantable Biologically Inert Spinal Instrumentation MaterialsHanya M. QureshiPulaski Academy, Little Rock, AR, Arkansas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Annice Steadman, Pulaski Academy; Dr. Ganesh Kannarpady, Ph.D., Center for Inte-grative Nanotechnology Sciences at the University of Arkansas Little Rock
Nanotechnologyismanipulationofmaterialsatatomic,molecularorsupramolecularlevels.ThisstudyexploressuchmanipulationofmaterialsusedinspinalfusionsuchasPEEK(Polyetheretherketone),CobaltChrome(CoCr),Titanium(Ti),andTitaniumAlloybycoatingwithSingle-WalledCarbonNanotubes(SWCNT)andTitaniumDioxide(TiO2)nanotubestostudyosteoblastproliferationandadhesion.BasedonmaterialpropertiesthehypothesiswasthatSWCNTwouldadherebettertoPEEKgiventheircarbonbasedstructure,andTiO2nanotubeswouldadherebettertoTisubstratesgiventheirtitaniumbasedstructure.Secondly,nanotubecoatingmayenhanceosteoblastproliferationandadhesion.Theexperimentwasrunintriplicateusinganestablishedmouseosteoblast(MC3T3-E1)cellline.TheresultsshowedthatosteoblastproliferationwasimpededontheSWCNT-coatedCoCrsubstrates(P=0.008),yetenhancedproliferationwasseenontheSWCNT-coatedTisubstrates(P=0.02).Incomparison,TiO2nanotube-coatedTiAlloysubstratesimpededosteoblastproliferation(P=0.011),whereasTiO2nanotube-coatedCoCrsubstratesenhancedosteoblastproliferation(P=0.005).PEEKsubstrateswereincompatiblewiththeTiO2treatment.Finally,cellmorphologydiffereddependingonthesubstrateused.Inconclusion,givenitshightensileandshearstrength,CoCristhebestsubstratewhencoatedwithTiO2nanotubestoenhanceosteoblastproliferationandultimately,spinalfusionresults.
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Effect of Combined Inhibition of DNA Methylation and Histone Acetylation on Viability of Multiple Myeloma Cell LinesShruti ShahLittle Rock Central High School, Little Rock, AR, Arkansas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Beth Maris, Little Rock Central High School; Mrs. Mary Parson, Little Rock Central High School; Dr. Christoph Heuck, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Ascarcinogenesisoccursandabnormalcellsbegintometastasizesuchasinmultiplemyeloma(MM),theycandeveloparesistancetochemotherapeuticdrugs.Therefore,toprolongthepatient’slife,oncologistsmustalterthetreatmentplan.Inmanypublications,theprocessofsynergismprovedtobeoptimalincancerssimilartoMM.Therefore,synergyofHDACcomplexesandDNAmethyltransferaseinhibitors,mechanismsthataffectgeneexpressionandthereforecellviability,couldpotentiallybeusedtotreatMM.CombinationsofDecitabine(DNAmethyltransferaseinhibitor)andVorinostat(HDACcomplex)andDecitabine(DNAmethyltransferaseinhibitor)andValnoctemide(HDACcomplex)werecarriedouttoinvestigatesynergyandinhibitionofcellviabilityinMMcelllinesH929andJJN3.TestcombinationsofDecitabineandValnoctemideproducedantagonisticeffectsincelllineH929,whereasinthecelllineJJN3,theeffectwasmainlyadditive.However,withDecitabineandVorinostat,incelllineH929,synergismwasshownathighconcentrationsofVorinostatbutatlowconcentrationstherewasantagonism.ThedataforthecombinationofDecitabineandVorinostatinJJN3showedsynergismformostoftheconcentrationstested.Withthesepromisingresults,synergyofDecitabineandVorinostatcouldofferanoveltherapeuticapproachforMMuponfurtherinvestigation.
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California (Northern & Western Nevada)
Enabling Situational Awareness: A Hat-Based Hands-Free Haptic Navigational Aid for the Visually ImpairedShiloh S. CurtisLaughing Thunder Academy, Sunnyvale, CA, California (Northern & Western Nevada) JSHS
AccordingtotheAmericanFoundationfortheBlind,thereareover21.2millionvisuallyimpairedadultsintheU.S.However,almostallcommerciallyavailableaidsforthispopulation,suchasthewhitecane,mustbeconstantlyhand-held,deprivingusersofthefunctionalityofonehand.Guidedogscancost$60,000andhavesignificantcarerequirements.Commerciallyavailableaidshavelittleabilitytodetectfaceandtorsolevelobstaclessuchastreebranches.Toanswerthisneed,Idesignedandconstructedahands-freeassistivehat,theHapticNavigationalAidfortheVisually-Impaired(H-NAV),whichusesaLaserDistanceSensor(LDS)todetectnearbyobstaclesand12vibratingmotorsinsidethehatbandtoalerttheusertotheobstacles’presence.Themotorsalsoindicatetheapproximatedistancetotheobstacleusingthedurationofpulsedvibrations.TheH-NAVwasdesignedtofacilitatesituationalawarenessandenabletheusertoavoidfaceandtorsolevelobstacles.Theprototypewastestedbyassessingusers’abilitytoperformcommonnavigationaltaskswhileblindfoldedandwearingtheH-NAV,wheresuccessfulcompletionrequireddetectingandavoidingobstacleswithoutstrayingoffcourse.Almostalltaskstestedhadasuccessrateover80%,sotheH-NAVfunctionedasintended.
A Novel Use of Infrared Light in Eye Tracking SystemsNeil MovvaThe Harker School, San Jose, CA, California (Northern & Western Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Smriti Koodanjeri, The Harker School
Eyetrackingisarevolutionaryformofinput,allowinguserstocontrolcomputerssimplybyfocusingontargetelements.However,currentsolutionsrelyoninefficientsoftwaremethods,limitingoperability.Weproposeasolutioninintroducinginfrared(IR)lighting,ahardwareinnovationthatexpandsusabilityandenablesbreakthroughsoftwareefficiency.WedemonstrateconsistentisolationofthepupiluniquetoIR;littlelightescapesthedarkpupil,whileotherfacialelementsscatterIRandappeargray.Thisgreatlysimplifiessoftwaredesignandreducessusceptibilitytovisible-spectruminterference,suchasauser’siriscolor(darkirisesarenormallyindistinguishablefromthepupil).Furthermore,usingalocalIRsourceenablesconsistentoperationeveninpoorlighting.WestrobeourstrategicallyplacedIRemittersinsyncwithvideoframecapture,creatinganeasilyidentifiablepatterncenteredonthepupiltoassistintracking.Oursystemsuccessfullytracks91%ofinputframes,andisusablefortypingonanon-screenkeyboard.Finally,theadditionalhardware(IRLEDsandIRfilter,$5)carriedaninsignificantcostcomparedtothecamera($40).Insummation,usingIRlightinggreatlysimplifieseyetracking,andfurtherdevelopmentwillresultinsystemspotentiallyfarmorerobustthanconventional(visible-spectrumbased)setups.
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Multi-Dimensional Genomic Data Analysis to Assess Correlation Across a Disease and Its ComorbiditiesSwetha RevanurEvergreen Valley High School, San Jose, CA, California (Northern & Western Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Barjinder Sabherwal, Evergreen Valley High School
HidradenitisSuppurativa(HS)isapoorlyunderstoodchronicskindiseasemarkedbypainfulcysts.Despiteaprevalenceofabout1%,nopotenttreatmentorcureexists.AmechanismwasdevelopedtoanalyzeHSwithrespecttoitscomorbidities(Crohn’sDisease,DownSyndrome,RheumatoidArthritis[RA],SquamousCellCarcinoma[SCC],andHypothyroidism)usingmulti-dimensionalgenomicdata.Gene,pathways,andmicroRNAprofileswerethedimensionsconsidered.Aquantitativemodelwasdefinedtocomputeanenrichedcorrelationindex;thisindexwasvalidatedusinggeneexpressionlevels.Theindexprovidesacalculationforthedistancebetweenadiseaseanditscomorbidities.ThisinvestigationrevealsmicroRNAbiomarkersthatcouldplayacausalroleinHS,andalsoprovidesevidencethatexplainsthepredominanceofHSamongthefemalepopulation.Moreover,pathwayanalysisidentifiedAlzheimer’sDiseaseasacomorbidityofHS.Thiscomprehensiveworkflowcanbeemployedtogainsimilarinsightsintoanydisease,tocommenceclinicalexperimentation,andtopavethepathtodrugrepositioning.
Active Magnetic Field Cancellation SystemValliammai VinaithirthanMonte Vista High School, Danville, CA, California (Northern & Western Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Wulf Tobias Hofbauer, Centre for Research and Applied Learning in Science
Fluctuationsoftheambientmagneticfieldarecommoninurbanandindustrialenvironments,principallycausedbythemagneticfieldassociatedwithelectriccurrentsinlinewiringandelectricalequipment,suchasmotorsandtransformers.WhilegenerallyweakcomparedtoEarth’snaturalmagneticfield,therapidfluctuationsofsuchstrayfields,typicallyduetothefrequencyoflocalpowerdistributionsystemsanditsmechanics,canhaveadevastatingeffectonsensitiveexperiments.TheActiveMagneticFieldCancellationSystemisadesignandimplementationofanactive,closed-loopsystemdesignedtocancelsuchmagneticfieldfluctuations.Theprincipalfunctionalgroupsinthisactivesystemaremagneticfieldsensors,magneticfieldactuators,andanelectronicclosed-loopfeedbacksystem.Inareal-worldapplicationscenario,thedesign,basedonhighschoolphysicsanddecidedlylow-cost,achieved>20dBattenuationofmagneticstrayfieldsatpowerlinefrequencies,vastlyenhancingtheusableresolutionofacommercialscanningelectronmicroscope.
Illuminating Disease Pathways: Developing Bright Fluorescent Proteins to Improve FRET BiosensingEmily S. WangHenry M. Gunn High School, Palo Alto, CA, California (Northern & Western Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Jun Chu, Stanford University
Thediscoveryanddevelopmentoffluorescentproteins,recognizedbythe2008NobelPrizeinChemistry,enabledarevolutioninbiologicalmicroscopyandsensing.Biosensorsemployingfluorescenceresonanceenergytransfer(FRET)betweenfluorescentproteinsarepowerfultoolstonon-invasivelyreportbiochemicaleventswithinlivingcells.ThedevelopmentofnewFRETsensorsremainsdifficult,however,oftenduetolowFRETdynamicrange.Throughrandomandsite-directedmutagenesis,Idesignedandconstructedlibrariesofgreenandredfluorescentproteinmutants,whichwerescreenedforphotostability,quantumyield,andperformanceinaFRET-basedcalciumsensor.IhaveengineeredanewgreenfluorescentproteinClover3,whichisthebrightestmonomericfluorescentproteintodate.Clover3confersincreasedFRETdynamicrangeontobiosensorsandshowsimprovedphotostabilityandquantumyield.Moreover,IdevelopedanewredfluorescentproteinmRuby3,whichisthebrightestredfluorescentproteintodate.Withsuperioropticalcharacteristics,Clover3andmRuby3areexpectedtobenefitdiversebiomedicalapplications,includingtheimagingofneuralstructures,visualizationofcancermetastases,andmonitoringofsignalingpathwaystoelucidatediseasemechanisms.
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California (Southern)
Gene silencing in Bactericera cockerelli, vector of tomato LiberibacterSaumya R. KeremaneMartin Luther King High School, Riverside, CA, California (Southern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Richard Lee, USDA ARS; Ms. Jennings, Martin Luther King High School
RNAinterference(RNAi)canbeusedtosilencegenesinasequencespecificmanner.Thismethodologycanbeusedtotargetcriticalgenesandcontrolplantpestsinaneco-friendlymanner.IntroductionofspecificdoublestrandedRNA(dsRNA)intocellsinitiatestheRNAiprocessanddegradesspecificmRNAsresultingingenesilencing.Manyeconomicallyimportantplantdiseasesarespreadbyinsectvectors.Psyllidsspreaddiseaseslikecitrusgreeningandtomatopsyllidyellows,associatedwithbacteria,CandidatusLiberibacterspp.Inthisstudy,Bactericeracockerelli,thevectoroftomatopsyllidyellowswasusedtoinvestigatethepossibilitiesofusingRNAiasamethodofdiseasemanagement.Agene,awd(abnormalwingdisc)isrequiredforproperdevelopmentofpsyllids.Inthisstudy,thesequenceofawdfromBactericerawasdetermined,dsRNAforawdwassynthesizedandappliedtopsyllidnymphs.Thetreatedpsyllidsshowedahighmortalityrate(lowerspopulationlevel)andabnormalwingdevelopment(affectsmobilityandtheabilityofpsyllidstospreadthepathogen),charactersusefulindiseasemitigation.Geneexpressionanalysisindicatedlowerlevelofexpressionofawdgeneinpsyllidsshowingabnormalwings.Debilitatingthepsyllidswillreducethespreadofdiseasesandreducetheirseverity.
Strongly Coupled Electromechanical Modeling of the Heart in Moving Domains Using the Phase-Field MethodKevin K. LeeUniversity High, Irvine, CA, California (Southern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Shannon Bunch, University High; John Lowengrub, University of California, Irvine
Computationalmodelsofthehearthaveprovenessentialtothestudyofcardiacarrhythmias,whicharepoorlyunderstoodyettheleadingcauseofdeathintheindustrializedworld.Existingmodelsprovideanunobstructedviewoftheheart’selectricalbehavioronboththesurfaceandinterior,buttheyhavenotbeenabletoefficientlyincorporatethebeatingoftheheartduetodifficultiesinhandlingthemovingdomainofthegoverningpartialdifferentialequationsystem.Here,Idevelopanovelmethodforstronglycouplingmechanicalcontractionfrombeatingwithelectricalpropagationusingthephase-fieldmethod.Irepresentthegeometryoftheheartwithadiffuse-domainapproximationandmodelthesoft-tissuemechanicsthroughDarcy’sLaw.IcouplemusclecontractionwiththepowerstrokeoftheactionpotentialandevolvetheshapethroughaCahn-Hilliardequation.Idemonstratethemodel’sconvergenceandthatitcapturesthedifferencesinelectricalpropagationduetoshape,evidenceofstrongcoupling.Thetheorydevelopedinthisworkefficientlyfacilitatesmorerealisticsimulationsoftheheart,thusgivingdrugdevelopersamorecompletetoolindesigningtherapiesforheartconditions,yieldingcriticalinsightonthemechanismsoffatalconditions,andenablingdramaticimprovementsintheirtreatmentandprevention.
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Multi-agent Monte Carlo EquilibriumDaniel ShawUniversity High School, Irvine, CA, California (Southern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. James Li, Avid Academy; Shannon Bunch, University High School
Multi-Agentsystemsuseseveralinteractingagentsinanenvironmenttosimulateaprocess.Inparticular,processesthatcombinebothMulti-AgentsystemsandMonteCarlosimulations(MAMC)areexceptionallyusefulincalculatingtheresultofcomplexprocedures.However,amajordrawbackisthatMAMC,despiteitsaccuracy,iscomputationallyexpensive.Inmyproject,IintroduceanequilibriumstateandguidetheMAMCframeworktowardsthatstate.Usingthisapproach,Iamabletofactoradditionalofflineknowledgeintotheprocessthroughamaximumlikelihoodestimator.TheapproachalsousestheCrossEntropyMethod,whichsignificantlyminimizesthecomputationalcost.Unlikeotherparadigms,ourmodelcanusetheposteriordistributionofthepreviousMonteCarlomethodtogiveamoreaccurateresult.OurequilibriummethodgaveasubstantialimprovementinthequalityofMAMCresultswhentestedinartificialintelligenceGo.Myapproachis5timesfasterthanpreviousmodels.
Personalized Medical Treatments Using Novel Reinforcement Learning AlgorithmsYousuf M. SolimanCanyon Crest Academy, San Diego, CA, California (Southern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Wendy Slijk, Canyon Crest Academy
Duetotheneedforaneffectivepersonalizedmedicineengine,Iaimtofindanoptimalpersonalizedtreatmentpolicywhichisanon-deterministicfunctionofthepatientspecificcovariatedatathatmaximizestheexpectedsurvivaltimeorclinicaloutcome.Idevelopedanalgorithmicframeworktosolvemultistagedecisionproblemswithavaryingnumberofstagesthataresubjecttocensoringinwhichthe“rewards”areexpectedsurvivaltimes.Inspecific,IdevelopedanovelQ-learningalgorithmthatdynamicallyadjustsfortheseparameters.Tocombattheproblemofcensoreddata,IfirstbeganbydevelopedaunifiedapproachforSVMstomaintainaconstantbeliefstateaboutthepatient.Furthermore,Ifoundfiniteupperboundsonthegeneralizederrorofthetreatmentpathsconstructedbythisalgorithm.IhavealsoshownthatwhentheoptimalQ-functionisanelementoftheapproximationspace,theanticipatedsurvivaltimesforthetreatmentregimenconstructedbythealgorithmwillconvergetotheoptimaltreatmentpath.Idemonstratedtheperformanceoftheproposedalgorithmicframeworkthroughtheanalysisofchronicdepressiondataandahypotheticalcancertrial.ThecensoredQ-learningalgorithmIdevelopednotonlyoperatesinnon-optimalenvironments,butitismoreeffectivethanthestateoftheartclinicaldecisionsupportsystems.
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Connecticut
Designing a Circuit Board to Wirelessly Power a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD)Daniel G. GiebischAmity Regional High School, Woodbridge, CT, Connecticut JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Deborah Day, Amity Regional High School
Aleftventricularassistdevice(LVAD),aheartpumpthatmaintainsthecardiovascularsystemincasesofheartfailure,requiresenergyfromaninconvenientexternalbatterypackmodule.Unfortunately,thewireconnectingtheheartpumptothismoduleispronetohighrisksofinfection.Thesolutiontothisissueiswirelessenergytransfer,inwhichtheheartpumpreceivesenergywithoutawire.ThemajorrequisitetoawirelessLVADisaminiaturizedcircuitboardthatisimplantedalongsidetheheartpump.Thisstudyaimedtodesignsuchacircuitboard.Theprojectbeganwithabasicschematicthatledtotheselectionofspecificcomponents.Thesecomponentswerechosenforspaceandpowerefficiency.Then,AltiumDesigner,athreedimensionalmodelingprogram,wasusedtoproducetheprintedcircuitboardmodel.Theboardwassuccessfullyordered,soldered,andtestedforreliability.Thecircuittransfers15voltsofinputvoltagetothemotorfoundintheHeartmateII,themostcommonlyusedLVAD.Oncemanufacturedonalargescalebasis,thisnewcircuitrywillrealizeawirelessLVADthatcouldreplacehearttransplantsastheultimatetreatmentforsevereheartfailure.
Spectral and spatial analysis of Fermi Large Area Telescope observations to investigate Weakly Interacting Massive Particle dark matterIsabelle S. GoldsteinRidgefield High School, Ridgefield, CT, Connecticut JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Louis Strigari, Indiana University; Michael Yagid, Ridgefield High School
TheWeaklyInteractingMassiveParticle(WIMP)theoryfordarkmatterpredictstheproductionofgammaradiationfromWIMPannihilationanddecay.ToexaminethepossibilityofWIMPdarkmatter,gammaraysourcesfromM31arepartitionedfromtheFermiGamma-raySpaceTelescopefromtheLATinstrumentwith5yearsofcleanandultracleancut-datainthe1-300GeVrange.Background,halo,andpointsourcedistributionsarethenusedinaspectralandspatialanalysis.Thespectrumiswelldescribedbyapowerlaw,butthepolaraveragedradialdensityisagoodfitwithalineofsightintegralofthelinearandsquaredNavarro-Frenk-White(NFW)densityprofilewithanR2=0.9992.TheNFWfitalsoexhibitsasignificantlylargercontributioncoefficientfromdecayprocessesthanannihilation.ThecorrelationbetweentheoryandpredictionssuggeststhateitherWIMPsarethesourceoftheradiation,astrophysicalprocessesareinfluencedbydarkmatterthatfollowsthisdensityfalloff,orastrophysicalprocessesfollowthisprofilerandomly.Thesefindingsraisefundamentalquestionsontheoriginofgalactichalogammarays,andwarrantscontinuedresearchinthefield.
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Temperature-Induced Concurrent Removal and Recovery of Wastewater Ammonia-NitrogenAndrew MaGreenwich High School, Greenwich, CT, Connecticut JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Andrew Bramante, Greenwich High School
Ammonia-nitrogen(NH4+andNH3)hasavarietyofimportantapplications.Whendischargedthroughwastewatereffluent,however,ammonia-nitrogencausesmanyenvironmentalproblems.Theobjectivesofthisresearchare:(1)designinganovelprocessandapparatusforwastewaterammonia-nitrogenremovalandrecoveryand(2)developinganoriginalmathematicalmodeltopredictremoval/recoveryresultsforallinput/controlledparameters.Inthenewly-designeddual-chamberapparatus,increasedtemperaturedrivesthefollowingnetreactions:(#1)NH4+(aq)->NH3(aq)+H+(aq),(#2)NH3(aq)->NH3(g);
#2isacceleratedbydepressurization.Together,thesereactionsconvertaqueouswastewaterammonia-nitrogentogaseousNH3,whichisreusable.Bothmathematicalmodelingandexperimentsusingsyntheticwastewatersolutionswithvaryingparametersdemonstratedeffectiveremovalandrecovery;virtuallyanychemicalconversionpercentagecanbeachieved.Comparedtoexistingremovalandrecoverytechniques,thisnewprocesshasmanyadvantages:itproducesunbonded,uncontaminatedammonia,doesnotrequirechemicalabsorptionforrecovery,doesnotdependonenvironmental/biologicalfactors,andutilizesasimplerandconcurrentmechanism.Furthermore,theprocessandapparatusengineeredinthisresearchcansimultaneouslyrecoverallvolatilecontaminants,includingVOCfuels.Overall,thisinnovationprovidesthedualenvironmentalbenefitsofeconomicallyincentivizedwastewaterpurificationandaviablealternativetoenergy-intensiveindustrialchemicalsynthesisprocesses.
The Synthesis and Characterization of EGCG-PLGA Conjugates and Mixtures for Applications in Tissue EngineeringAnubhuti MathurGlastonbury High School, Glastonbury, CT, Connecticut JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Diane Pintavalle, Glastonbury High School; Matthew Harmon, University of Con-necticut Health Center
Intissueengineering,developingmaterialswithdesiredphysicalpropertiesthatincorporatebiomoleculestoenhancebiologicalresponseisnecessary.Epigallocatechingallate,orEGCG,hasbeenusedinmedicalapplicationssuchasincancertherapeuticdrugs.ThegoalofthisprojectistoexploreEGCG’spotentialasabiomoleculeforenhancingthefunctionalityofstructurescalledscaffoldsfortissueregeneration.EGCGwasencapsulatedintoscaffoldscomposedofawellestablishedpolymercalledpoly(lactic-co-glycolicacid),orPLGA,ofthreetypes:microparticles,electrospunmatrices,andthinfilms.Analyticaltechniques,includingloadingefficiencyanalysis,FourierTransformInfraredSpectroscopy,andScanningElectronMicroscopyimaging,confirmedthepresenceofEGCGinthePLGAscaffolds.EGCGandPLGAwerealsochemicallyconjugated.ThechemicalconjugationwassupportedusingDifferentialScaningCalorimetry,throughwhichtheglasstransitiontemperatureoftheconjugatesandPLGAwereseentobedifferent.CartilagecellstudieswereconductedwithelectrospunmatricesencapsulatedwithEGCGfiberpropertiesthatincreasedthesurfaceareaofthematrixandcreatedamorefavorableenvironmentforcellstogrowon.CartilagecellsexhibitedgreaterconfluencyonEGCG-PLGAelectrospunthanonelectrospunmatricesofonlyPLGA.FuturestudiesincludeassessingcartilagecellperformanceofelectrospunmatricesofEGCG-PLGAchemicalconjugates.
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Studying The Role Of Neutrophils In Preventing The Dissemination Of Oral Listeria Monocytogenes Infection In The Intestinal MucosaIsha A. WalawalkarGlastonbury High School, Glastonbury, CT, Connecticut JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Pablo Romagnoli, University of Connecticut Health Center; Ms. Diane Pintavalle, Glastonbury High School
Listeriamonocytogenes(Lm)isabacteriumthatcauseslisteriosis,afoodborneinfectionwithahighmortalityrate.IncontrasttopreviousmurinemodelsofinfectioninwhichLmhasbeenadministeredsystemically(i.e.intravenouslyorintraperitoneally),ourmorerelevantmodeloforalLminfectionhasshownthattheintestinalmucosaisactivelyinvolvedinbacterialcontainment.Inthisstudy,wetestedthehypothesisthatneutrophils,apopulationofwhitebloodcells,playasignificantroleinpreventingthedisseminationofsecondaryoralLminfectionintotheintestinallaminapropriaandconsequently,intothebloodstream.HereweshowedthatbacterialcountswithinthesmallintestinalduodenumfollowingoralLmrecallarehigherwhenneutrophilsaredepleted.Inaddition,usingconfocalmicroscopy,weobservedcellularaggregatesatthebasesofthesmallintestinalvilli1daypostrecall(d.p.r.)containinggamma-delta(γδ)Tcellsthathavebeenshowntoparticipateintherecruitmentofneutrophilstothesiteofanimmuneresponse.Inconclusion,theresultsofthisstudysuggestthatneutrophilsplayakeyroleinpreventingthepropagationofsecondaryoralLminfectionwithintheintestinalmucosa.
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DoD Dependent Schools (Europe)
Can Mathematics Predict Popular Music?Garrett DavidsonBahrain School, Juffair, DoD Dependent Schools (Europe) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Brian Zimmer
Theresearchwasaquantificationofmanyattributesofsongsandsubsequentcomparisonbetweenpopularandunpopularsongs,namely:dothenumbersexhibitanidentifiablepattern?ScoreAHit,acompanyfoundeduponasimilargoal,usedmathematicsandmachinelearningtocomputeanalgorithmforpredictingwhetherasongwouldbecomepopular(i.e.makeittothetop10)followingitsrelease.Theirresearchpaperoutlinedtheirmethods,andtheiralgorithmprovidedabaselineforcomparison.Thisalgorithmclaimedapproximately60%accuracy,thoughtheirdatawerelimitedtopurelyacousticalattributes.Therefore,songs’lyricsandthepreviouspopularityoftheirartists,whicharealsoinfluentialfactors,werenotconsidered.Thispaperquantifiesthesefactorsamongbothpopularandunpopularsongstoidentifypatterns.Bytakingintoaccountfactorssuchastherepetitivenessofthelyrics,theuniquenessofthelanguageusedinthem,thepopularityoftheartistatthetimeofrelease,itwasfoundthatevenmoreaccuratepredictionsarepossiblethanthoseofScoreAHit.Definitivepatternswereidentifiedthatexposedattributesveryobviouslydifferentiatingsongswhicharepopularfromtheirunpopularrivals.Thesepatternscouldpotentiallybeusedtopredictthepopularityofasyetunreleasedsongs.
Lateral Line and Barbel Efficiency of Fish during Percussive and Electrical StimulationLeif C. GruetterRota Middle/High School, FPO, AE, DoD Dependent Schools (Europe) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kathleen Tierney, Rota Middle/High School
Thisexperimentisacontinuationofresearchtestingtheabilityofanimalstopredictearthquakes.FishandsubterraneanAnimaliaweretestedfortheirabilitytosensepercussiveshocksandelectricalimpulses,precursorstoimpendingearthquakes.ThisresearchdiscoveredthatsubterraneanAnimaliaweremoresensitivetoelectricalimpulseswhilethefishweremoresensitivetopercussiveshocks.Thecurrentresearchtestedreactionsoffishtopercussiveshocksandelectricalcurrentstojudgewhetherbarbelsorlaterallinesoffishweremoresensitivetothestimuli.Theaddedelectricalcurrentduringpercussiveshockresultedinreactionselongatedbyanaverageoftwoseconds.Percussiveshocksweresimulatedbydroppingathree-poundweightontothetablesupportingthefishtank.Theelectricalstimulationwasintroducedbyrunningacurrentthroughthetank.Thelaterallinewasmoreabletodetecttremorsthanthebarbels.Whenthebarbelsdiddetecttremorsthereactionsproducedweremoreaggressive.TheabilityoftheHoplocatfishtodetectstimulisurpassedthatoftheotherfish.TheanatomyoftheHoplocatfishissimilartothatoftheNamazucatfishwhichaccordingJapaneselegendisthesourceofearthquakes.Thebehaviorofthecatfishtestedcanpredictearthquakes.
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How Effective is an Individuals Birthdate to their PersonalityAngela JeanfrancoisWiesbaden High School, APO, AE, DoD Dependent Schools (Europe) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Craig, Wiesbaden High Shcool
Theresearcherperformedanexperimenttosearchforanyrelationsbetweenaperson’sbirthdateandhisorherpersonality.Inparticular,theresearcherlookedattheastrologicalsignoftheindividual.Heralternativehypothesisstatedthatifthereisadifferencebetweenthetraitsofpeoplebornunderaspecificsignfromtheidealtraitsforthatsign,thenthatdifferencewillbelessthanthatofpeoplenotbornunderthatsign.Toinvestigatethis,theresearcherconstructedasurveycontainingfortysixquestions;eachquestionpertainedtoaspecificcharacteristictrait.Ninety-fiveparticipants,ofagesfourteenandolder,wereincludedinthisexperiment.Aftertheinformationwasgatheredandanalyzed,theresearcherconcludedthattherewasnocorrelationbetweenaperson’sastrologicalsignandtheirhumanbehavior.SincemostofthedataproducedhighT-testvalues(averaging0.26),theresearcherwasledtorejectheralternativehypothesis,andacceptthenullhypothesisIfthereisadifferencebetweenthetraitsofpeoplebornunderaspecificsignfromtheidealtraitsforthatsign,thenthatdifferencewillbenolessthanthatofpeoplenotbornunderthatsignoritsidealtraits.
Observing The Effect of Diet on Heredity in Regards to Behavior, Fertility, and Cognitive Memory Using the Medium of Poecilia ReticulataMichael H. Leek, IIIMenwith Hill HS, Harrogate, DoD Dependent Schools (Europe) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Michelle Harrington, Menwith Hill HS; Mrs. Michelle Harrington
DiethasbeenknowntoaffecttheEpigenomeinsignificantwayssuchasdifferentiatingqueenandworkerbees.Twodifferentdietsweretested,oneprocessedtheothernatural.Theresearcherdefinedanaturaldietasadietwhichissimilartothatwhichanorganismwouldfindinitsnaturalhabitat.TheUSDAdefinesaprocessedfoodasafoodthathasbeencombinedwithanothersubstance.TheeffectofdietwasmeasuredusingPoeciliaReticulata(guppies).Theywereusedassubjectsbecauseoftheirshortgestationperiodandshortlifespan.Achangeinbehaviorormemoryisconsideredasignofsignificantepigeneticchange(UniversityofUtah).Fertilityisconsideredoneofthemostimportantfactorsregardingwhetheraspecieswillthriveorfail.Fertilitywasmeasuredbycountingoffspringproducedperbirth.Memorywastestedusingamazemadeoutofplastichamstertubing.Driedwormswereusedasanincentiveforthefish.Skypewasusedonalaptoptoviewthefishremotelyasthefishappearedanxiouswhilsthumanswereintheroom.Thedatashowssignsofanemergingpattern,howevermoredatawouldbeneededtodeterminethespecificsofthepattern.
Is Life on Mars Possible? An Experiment on the Effect of Plant Growth when Placed under Living Conditions Similiar to MarsJessica MortonRamstein High School, Ramstein, Germany, AE, DoD Dependent Schools (Europe) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Margaret Hess, Ramstein High School
Inthelast50years,Marshascomeintothespotlightoftheotherplanetsofoursolarsystem.Theresearcher’shypothesiswasthatifthegrowingconditionsofapintobeanplantwerechangedtosimulateMartiangrowingconditions,thenthepintobeanplant’smorphologywouldchangefromthatgrownunderEarthgrowingconditions.Theexperimentwasconductedincontrolledterrariums;whichcontrolledthetemperatures,carbondioxidelevels,soil,andamountoflightreceived.Forthisexperiment,theindependentvariablewasthegrowingconditionsofapintobeanplantandthedependentvariablewasthemorphologyofthepintobeanplants.Thehypothesisproposedbytheresearcherwasdisproven,astheplantsmorphologiesintheEarthterrariumandtheMarsterrariumhadundistinguishabledifferences.TheaveragegrowthoftheEarthterrariumplantswas21.39cm;whereastheaveragegrowthfortheMarsterrariumplantswere19.42cm.Ap-valueof.069andasignificancelevelof10%wehavemoderatelystrongevidenceagainsttheideathatthereisnodifferenceinplantgrowthbetweenthetwoenvironments.
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DoD Dependent Schools (Pacific)
“Effectiveness of Nelumbo nucifera in Preventing Obesity in Sprague Dawley Rats”Ji S. JeongSeoul American High School, Seoul, DoD Dependent Schools (Pacific) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Scott Bittner; Dr. Schlenker; Korea Animal Medical Science Institute
Intheearly1960s,theaverageAmericanadultmaleweighed168pounds.Today,heweighsnearly180pounds.ThepurposeofthisexperimentwastotestwhethertheconsumptionofNelumbonuciferapowderwoulddecreaseobesitylevelsinnineSpragueDawleyrats.TheeffectivenessofN.nuciferapowderwasdeterminedbymeasuringthelevelsofcarbohydrates,triglycerides,high-densitylipoprotein,andlow-densitylipoproteininthenineratspriortoandsubsequenttoexperimentation.Thenineratsweredividedintothreegroupsandthefirstgroupwasfedanormaldiet,thesecondadietsupplementedwith45%highfatdiet,andthethirdahighfatdietsupplementedwithN.nuciferapowder.Theratswerefedthespecializeddietsforfourweeksandbloodtestswereconductedthefirstandfourthweektocomparethelevelsofcarbohydrates,triglycerides,HDL,andLDLpriortoandsubsequenttoexperimentation.Theresultsreflectedadecreasingtrendinthelevelsofcarbohydrates,triglycerides,andLDLintheratsthatwerefedthedietsupplementedwithN.nuciferapowder.ThisexperimentmayprovideanewbasisforfindingahealthysolutionforthegrowingobesityratesintheUnitedStatesofAmerica.
The Effects of Utilizing Taxiphyllum barbieri on the Nitrification Rate of EffluentsBrian LeeSeoul American High School, APO, AE, DoD Dependent Schools (Pacific) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Scott Bittner, Seoul American High School
ThisresearchexaminesthenitrificationpotentialofTaxiphyllumbarbieriinthetreatmentofwastewater.Previousstudiesshowmossesnotonlyconsumepollutantsintheformofnutrients,butarealsodurableandlow-maintenanceplantsthatcouldpossiblyaidinoptimizingwastewatertreatmentinaquaculture.Fortheexperiment,asupplyofpollutedwaterwascreatedbyplacingagroupofCarassiusauratusintoaneighteengallontankofwaterinordertoraiseammonia,nitrite,andnitratelevelstoconcentrationsof1ppm,.5ppm,and15ppm,respectively.Inaddition,carbondioxideinjectionsalongwithphosphorusandchelatedironwereaddedintothewastewaterinordertofurtherimitatewastewaterconditions.TheeffectivenessoftheTaxiphyllumbarbieriwastestedbyplacingitinsideathree-stagedpowerfilterthatranonaportionofthepollutedwastewater.Therateofnitrificationinammonia,nitrite,andnitratelevelsusingthetreatmentfiltrationsystemwascomparedtothenitrificationrateusingthecontrolfiltrationsystem,whichexcludedTaxiphyllumbarbieri.RepeatedtrialsandacomparisonofregressionslopesbetweentreatmentandcontrolfiltrationsystemsverifiedthatTaxiphyllumbarbieriwasabletoincreasetherateofnitrification.However,atwoproportionttestusingα=0.05ofthedifferencesbetweentherateofnitrificationbetweenthecontrolandtreatmentgroupsrevealsPvaluesthatarestatisticallyinsignificant.Theseresultsledtothefailureofrejectingthenullhypothesis,whichstatesthattheratesofnitrificationbetweenthecontrolandtreatmentfiltrationsystemsarethesame.
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Generalizing Polynomial Growth Functions of Generating Sets for the Standard Integer LatticeFrederick J. LeeSeoul American High School, APO, AE, DoD Dependent Schools (Pacific) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Moon Duchin, Tufts University; Mr. Scott Bittner, Seoul American High School
Althoughthegrowthfunctionsofgeneratingsetsareusefulforthemodernapproachtodeterminingthecomputationaltimeandcomplexityofcomputeralgorithms,apolynomialtodescribeallgrowthfunctionsofgeneratingsetsinZ2hasyettobefound.WhiletheEhrhartpolynomialaccuratelydescribesthegrowthfunctionsofgeneratingsetsthatcontainalllatticepointswithinaconvexhull,ageneratingsetSmaybemissingpointsinitsconvexhullsothattheEhrhartpolynomialdoesnotmatchthegrowthfunction.WeshowthatwhencertainfamiliesofgeneratingsetscanbedescribedbyexplicitpolynomialsequaltotheEhrhartpolynomial,aspecificsubsetCofScalledthecornersubsetisfilled.Thispaperalsocoversanovelmethodofcheckingwhetherlatticeconfigurationsarelineartransformationsofeachotherbycomparingtheirrespectivegrowthfunctionsandobservedtrendsinfamiliesofgeneratingsets.
21
Florida
Keeping Track of Biological Control: Attracting a Natural Enemy of Fruit FliesAna B. CorraWest Boca Raton High School, Boca Raton, FL, Florida JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kane More
Thepurposeofthisresearchwastofindpossibleattractantsandoviposition(egg-laying)stimulantsforthefruitflyparasitoidUtetesanastrephaeinordertoattractthemtolocationsandallowthemtonaturallycontrolthefruitflypestpopulation.ItwaspredictedthatUtetesanastrephaewouldrespondtosolutionsofpara-ethylacetophenone(alarvalodor)andlimonene(fruitcomponent),aswellastotheodorofwholeCitrussinensis(orange).Itwasalsopredictedthatthecompleteorangevolatilemightbemoreattractivethanlimonene,andthatfemaleswouldbemoreattractedtoPEA.AY-tubeolfactometertunnelbioassaywasdevelopedtodeterminetheresponseofUtetesanastrephaetothesesolutions.Theolfactometerwascheckedeveryhalfhourfromtheperiodof0900to1600hours.Apositiveresponsewasrecordedwhentherewasaparasitoidinoneofthearms.TherewereeightreplicateswithbothmaleandfemaleparasitoidswithCitrussinensisL(orange),apara-ethylacetophenoneconcentration(25ng/µl),andalimoneneconcentration(25µl/ml).Theresultsshowedthatbothmaleandfemaleparasitoidsmovedtowardthetreatmentvolatilessignificantlymoreoftenthantheydidtothecleanaircontrol.However,therewerenosignificantdifferencesintheresponsesbetweensexesnorweretheredifferencesamongtherelativeattractiveness(F=2.2,p=0.08).Theoverallhypothesiswassupportedbecausethevolatilesattractedmoreparasitoidsthanthecontrol.Evenso,thesecondpredictionaboutadifferenceintherelativeattractivenessbetweentheorangeandlimonenewasnotsupported.
Effects of Isaria fumosorosea on Yellowmargined Leaf Beetle When Applied to Host PlantsIsabella V. DazaHomeschool program under the Saint Lucie School Board, Port Saint Lucie, FL, Florida JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Pasco Avery, University of Florida, Indian River Research and Education Center; Angie Nino, University of Florida, Indian River Research and Education Center; Dr. Cave, University of Florida, Indian River Research and Education Center
Thepurposeofthisstudyistoobserveifthefungi,Isariafumosorosea(Wize),willhavetheeffectsofarepellentwhenspecificallyusedagainsttheMicrothecaorchrolomaStål(YellowmarginedLeafbeetle)whenappliedtotwodifferenthostplants.AchoicepreferencetestwasconductedtodeterminepreferenceofYellowmarginedLeafbeetleforcruciferplantsbokchoy(BrassicarapaL.var.BabyPakchoi)andturnips(BrassicaraparapaL.var.Seventop)treatedwithIsariafumosorosea(Wize)orplantstreatedwithdistilledwateronly.TheHypothesisconcludedisthatthefunguswillhaveeffectsofarepellent.Inthestudytheresearcherusedsixcagesandtwotypesofcruciferplants(bokchoy,andturnips);halfofthecagescontainbokchoyandtheotherhalfturnips.Studywassetupasarandomizedcompleteblockdesign.Theresearcherrantwotrialsthatwereoneweeklongeach.Theexperimentwasobservedatfourandsevendayspostrelease.LeafdamagewasrecordedthroughtheImageJsoftware.Thedataobtainedafterevaluationswereanalyzedusingone-waysanova.TreatmentswerecomparedusingTurkey-KramerHSDtests.Thetestsrejectedthehypothesis,however,therewasbeetlemortalityfromingestionofthefungus.
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Comparison of Terrain Rendering Using Dynamic Versus Static Mesh Generation And ManagementOwen R. KellySpruce Creek High School, Port Orange, FL, Florida JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Anne Cooney, Spruce Creek High School
Thisstudywasconductedtocomparetwodifferentwaysofmanagingandgeneratinggraphicalpolygons.Thequadtreelevel-of-detailmethodinvolvesdynamicallychangingtheamountofpolygonsbasedonneed,andtheothermethod,thestaticmesh,isasimplebrute-forcestylepolygonrenderingwheretheamountofpolygonsremainsconstant.Thequadtreeorpolygonreductionmethodusesthepositionofthevirtualcameraandtheviewfrustum(viewingcone)todetermineifareasofameshrequiremoredetail.Thissystemismanagedusingaquadtree,whichallowsfortheexaminationofspecificareasofthemesh.Ifaparticularareaisdeterminedtorequiremoredetail,thequadrepresentingthatareaissplitintofoursmallerchildquads,eachwithasmanyverticesastheparentquad.Thestaticmeshmethodissimplyameshthatiscompletelycreatedatstart-upandishomogenouslydetailed.Inordertoeffectivelycomparetheperformanceofthesedynamicandstatictechniques,certainbenchmarkssuchasframe-rate,memoryconsumption,andstart-uptimeweretestedandevaluated.Resultsshowedthatalthoughtheuseofadynamiclevel-of-detailgenerationandmanagementsystemcausedslightstuttersinframe-rate,benefitssuchasverylowandefficientmemoryusageandmesh-sizeagnosticismgreatlyoutweighedtheslightbenefitsofusingastaticmesh.Furthermore,onecanconcludethatwithstillunknowntechnologicalinnovations,itiswastefultousepreciousmemoryandcomputationalpoweronextraneouspolygons,whenthatpowercouldeasilybeusedtosupportothergraphicseffects.
Exploring the Future of Education: Development of an Instructional Web-Based Application and Its Effect on Student Cognition and Performance (Year 3)Caitlyn RalphLake Howell High School, Winter Park, FL, Florida JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Vanessa Moosavifazel, Crooms Academy of Information Technology; Dr. Jennifer Vogel-Walcutt, Cognitive Performance Group
Associetyisreplacingtraditionalpracticeswithtechnologicaltechniques,researchmustbedonetoensurethesechangesarenotnegativelyaffectingeducation.Theaimwastodeterminewhetherconvertingapaper-basedprintout(traditionalmethod)intoaweb-basedapplication(technologicalmethod)wouldalterstudentlearning.Totestthis,130studentscompletedanactivitywiththetraditionalorthetechnologicalmethod.Thestudentsansweredquestionsthatassessedaccuracy(performance)andagermanecognitiveloadsurvey(Cheon&Grant,2012)withattachedmentaleffortstatement(Paas,1992).Toquantifytheeffectofthisinstructionalstrategyonlearning,PaasandvanMerriënboer’s(1993)trainingefficiencyformulawasemployed.Afterconductingt-tests,theresultsfailtorejectthenullhypothesiswithcaution.Itwasfoundthatthestudents’germanecognitiveload,mentaleffort,andtrainingefficiencyhadnosignificantdifferencebetweenthemethods.However,performancehadasignificantdifferencesupportingtraditional.Theresultssuggestthatadvantageous,pedagogicaltechnologymaygraduallybeincorporatedwithinatraditionalclassroomframework,creatingablendedlearningenvironment.Studentsandteachersshouldbeeffectivelytrainedinthesenewinstrumentstoraisetheirperformance.Overall,researchneedstoguidetheefficaciousintroductionofinstructionaltechnologyintoeducation.
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Novel Iron-Catalyzed Hetero Diels-Alder Reaction directed towards Natural Product SynthesisAndre SanchezManatee High School, Bradenton, FL, Florida JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Larry Gaudioso, Manatee High School; Dr. Scott Schaus, Boston University; Keith Barbato, Boston University
Thepurposeofthisresearchwastoinvestigatetheuseofaninsitugeneratedortho-quinonemethideintermediateasadienepartnerinaniron-catalyzedheteroDiels-Alderreactiondirectedtowardsnaturalproductsynthesis.Thegoaloftheinvestigationwastoestablishapracticalandcost-effectivesyntheticroutetoaccessthehexahydro-6H-benzo[c]chromenecoreandtosynthesizemarinemeroterpene(+)-conicol.Theresearchwasconductedinthreeindividualphases.Theoptimizationphasewasaccomplishedthroughaseriesofreactions,manipulatingparametersincludingstoichiometricratios,catalystconcentration,buffers,andduration(1).Thereactionsweremonitoredbysilica-gelthinlayerchromatography(TLC)andtheproductswereisolatedusingflashcolumnchromatography.TheDiels-Alderadductswerevalidatedwith1Hnuclearmagneticresonance(NMR)spectroscopy.Onceoptimalreactionconditionsweredetermined,aseriesofelectron-richdienophilesweresubstitutedintotheparentreaction(2).Optimalconditionsoftheparentreactionwerethenextendedtothesynthesisof(+)-conicol(3).Thereactionmethodologydirectedtowardsthesynthesisof(+)-conicolrevealedapracticalandcost-effectivepathway.TLCand1HNMRassessmentsrevealedamixtureof(+)-conicolandanimpurity.Futurestudieswillneedtobecompletedinordertooptimizethereactionandextenditspotential.
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Georgia
Inducing Chondrocytic Phenotype Phase IISonam A. BrahmbhattRockdale Magnet School for Science and Technology, Conyers, GA, Georgia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Richard Steet, Complex Carbohydrates Research Center
Manyindividualsacquireosteoarthritisduetoprogressive,inevitablecartilagedegradation.Currenttreatmentsincludejointreplacements,whichleavepatientslessmobile.Cartilageculturingmethodsarebeingresearched.ThepurposeofPhaseIIofthisstudywastodeterminecombinedeffectsofgrowth-factorsandculturestructureonchondrogenicdifferentiationofbone-progenitorcellsoveratwo-weektimeperiod.Itwaspredictedthatcellsgrownintreatedmediain3DculturewouldproducethemostGAGs.Premature-bonecellswereculturedinconicalmicrofugetubesandwellplateswithregularDMEMmediaandmediatreatedwithgrowth-factorsTGF-1ß,dexamethasone,andascorbicacid.GAGassayswereconductedonday0,day6andday13.Theresultsofthepelletcultureexperimentwerestatisticallysignificant(p<0.001).Themonolayerexperimentyieldeddatawithhighvariabilityandnostatisticalsignificance(p=0.488).Thepresenceofgrowth-factorshadastatisticallysignificantimpactonGAGproductionbycellsculturedinpelletformonly.ANOVAresultscomparingculturestructuresdidnotmeettherequired99%confidencelevel,buttrendsshowthatpelletculturepromotedGAGproductionincellsgrownintreatedmedia.Itwasconcludedthatthecombinationofpelletcultureandtreatedmediaisfavorableforinducingchondrocyticphenotypeinbonemarrowprogenitorcells;furtherexperimentationisneededtosupporttheactionofculturestructureonGAGproduction.Notingthepositiveeffectsofcombininggrowth-factorswithpelletculturecanbeputtoapplicableuseindevelopingamethodforgrowingcartilagetissueinvitroforjointreplacementandosteoarthritisprevention.
A Walk in the Life of a Sibling of a Person with Down SyndromeMarissa L. HernandezRockdale Magnet School for Science and Technology, Conyers, GA, Georgia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Baskett
ThepurposeofthisprojectwastocomparethetypicalsiblingrelationshipwiththesiblingrelationshipofpeoplewithDownSyndrome.Thehypothesiswasthatthetwosiblingrelationshipswouldbedifferentintheirunderlyingthemes.Theprocedureinvolvedcomparingthemesofresponsesbetween100siblingsofpeoplewithDownSyndromeand70typicalsiblings,basedontheirsurveyanswers.Differencesbetweenthetwogroups’responseswerethenanalyzed.Themesbetweenbirthorderwerealsoexamined.Thetwosiblingrelationshipswereinfactdifferent.Thetypicalsiblingsseemedmoreself-concernedintheirresponsesandrelationshipswhilethesiblingsofpeoplewithDownSyndromeweremoreconcernedaboutthelifeandperceptionoftheirsibling.ThisindicatesthatsiblingsofpeoplewithDownSyndromedoexperienceadifferentsiblingrelationshipthanthatoftheaverageperson.ThiscouldbeusedtohelptheDownSyndromecommunity’ssiblingstorealizethattheyaredifferent,butitisokay.ItmayalsohelpthemrealizethatmostsiblingsdealingwithabrotherorsisterwithDownSyndromedoexperienceverysimilarfeelings,whichincreasestheirsenseofcommunity.
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Novel pertussis Antibiotic Targets of Protein InteractionsWilliam H. JinGwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology, Lawrenceville, GA, Georgia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Emily Weinert, Emory University; Dr. Susan Kramer, GSMST
Biofilmsshowincreasedantibioticresistancethusnecessitatingnoveltherapeutics.ThepurposeofthisprojectwastoidentifykeytargetsofBpeGReg,aproteinshowntocauseB.pertussisbiofilms,thatwouldfurtherthedevelopmentofthosetherapeutics.Previously,onlytheH225residueofBpeGReghadbeenresearched;everythingelseremainedunknown.ByutilizingUV-spectroscopyinPhaseIofresearch,thisresearchelucidatedtheeffectsofmutationtokeyresidues_Y43FandS68A_onligandbindingandsignaltransmission.TheY43Fmutationresultedinauto-oxidationandlossofoxygenbinding,andtheS68Amutantweakenedoxygenbindingaffinityseventy-times.ThissupportsourdevelopedmodelwhereTyr43isahydrogen-bonddonorwhileSer68holdstheTyr(tyrosine).ThroughPhaseII’sHPLCactivity,interactionpull-downs,andnativegels,themiddledomainwasfoundtointeractwiththefull-lengthprotein.Thisinteractionhasgreatpotentialforcontrollingoligomerizationstates.GiventhatBpeGRegneedstobeinadimerformtobeactive,peptidessimulatingtheinteractingsurfaceofthemiddledomaincouldbeusedtopreventc-di-GMPformationandthusinhibitbiofilmformation.ThisresearchestablishesvitaltargetsoffutureB.pertussistreatmentthroughtheabilitytomodulateoligomerizationstatesandtargethemepocketoxygen-binding.
Incorporating Prebiotics into Broad-Spectrum Antibiotic UsageJordan A. McCray, Sr.Rockdale Magnet School for Science and Technology, Conyers, GA, Georgia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Baskett, Rockdale Magnet School for Science and Technology; Ms. Marshall, Rockdale Magnet School for Science and Technology
Thehumangutmicrobiomeprovidesbenefitsforthehumanbodysuchasinducinginnateimmunityandincreaseddigestionofcarbohydrates.Broad-spectrumantibioticsposeathreattothehumangutmicrobiomeastheytargetawiderangeofbacteria,whichcanincludethehelpfulbacteriainthegut.Thisprojectattemptedtofindanalternativemethodoftreatmentthatincorporatedprebioticsbytestingtheeffectsofvariousherbalmedicinesonthegrowthoftwomodelbacteria.Anabsorbancetestwithaneutralcontrol,apositivecontrol,and6herbalmedicineswasconducted.ThebacteriausedwerethebeneficialmodelLactobacillusacidophilusandthepathogenicmodelE.coli.Twotrialswerecompletedandveryinterestingdatawasshown.InbothLactobacillusacidophilusandE.coli,Chicorywastiedforthebestresultwithoneothertreatment.IttiedwithSt.John’sWortforhavingthehighestincreaseofgrowthonLactobacillusacidophilusanditwastiedwiththenegativecontrolDoxycyclineforhavingthehighestdecreaseofgrowthonE.coli.ThissuggeststhatChicorymaybeanalternativetostraightantibioticsandneedstobestudiedfurther.
In The Mind’s Eye: Studying the Gaze Events of Dyslexic AdultsMolly G. NiemczykRockdale Magnet School, Conyers, GA, Georgia JSHS
Dyslexiatestsaregenerallyexpensive,time-consuming,andtedious.Thisexperimentattemptedtousevideoasadiagnostictoolfordyslexia,asthiswouldbemoreappealing,lessexpensive,andmoreaccuratethanawrittentestthat’sresultsareultimatelybasedontest-takingskills,ratherthatquantitativenumericaldata.Itwasexpectedthat,ifbothdyslexicsandthosewithoutdyslexiawatchedthesamevideo,dyslexicswoulddisplaydifferenteyemovementsthanthosewithoutdyslexia.Theaveragegazeeventdurationoftheeyesof20participants(10withprimarydyslexia,10without)wasanalyzedbyaT120whiletheywatcheda5minutevideodisplayingrandomlymovingobjects.AnANOVAtestwasperformed,andthedatashowedaverysignificantdifferencebetweendyslexicandnondyslexiceyemovement(F=52976.1;df=1;p<.05).Dyslexicgazedurationswereshortermoreofthetimethannondyslexicgazedurations.Inaddition,theoverallgazeofdyslexicparticipantswaspreferentialtothetoprightcornerofthescreen;nondyslexicsfocusedmoreonthemiddle.Basedonapreliminarybellcurve,primarydyslexiacanbediagnosed95%ofthetimewithintwostandarddeviationsof53,827ms.Thisinformationcouldleadtotheutilizationofauniversaltestfordyslexia.
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Greater Washington, D.C. Area
An Experimental Study of New and Existing Algorithms for Minimizing Busy Time on Multiple Parallel MachinesMegan ChaoMontgomery Blair High School, Silver Spring, MD, Greater Washington, D.C. Area JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Samir Khuller, University of Maryland College Park
Weconductanexperimentalevaluationoftheperformanceofseveralapproximationalgorithmsforthebusytimeschedulingprobleminsituationswithmultipleparallelprocessingmachines.Thisproblemisofpracticalimportanceasitisrelatedtotheproblemsofminimizingtheswitchingcostsofopticalnetworksandreducingenergycostsincloudcomputing.Thebusytimeproblemassignsjobstomachineswhichcanprocessaninput-specifiedgnumberofjobsatonce.Ithastheobjectiveofminimizingthetotalbusytimeallthemachinesneededtoprocessallthejobs.SincethisproblemisknowntobeNP-hardevenwheng=2,itisunlikelythatonecanconstructapolynomial-timealgorithmwhichalwaysproducestheoptimum.Asaresult,thispaperfocusesonfindingapproximatesolutionsusingcomputationallytractablealgorithmswhichruninpolynomialtime.Wemaketwocontributionstothisbusytimeschedulingproblem.First,weproposeanewapproximationalgorithm,whichwecallGreedyParallelPursuit.Secondly,weconductanexperimentalstudycomparingGreedyParallelPursuittoexistingapproximationalgorithmsforthisproblem.Ourexperimentalresultsshowthat,relativetothealternativealgorithmsweconsider,GreedyParallelPursuitperformswellnotonlyonaveragebutalsointermsofoverallreliability.
The Effects of LED Light Exposure on Strawberry Quality in a Simulated Retail SettingKristi A. KanCentennial High School, Ellicott City, MD, Greater Washington, D.C. Area JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Yaguang Luo, US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service; Ellen Turner, US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service; Michelle Bagley, Centennial High School
Light-emittingdiodes(LEDs)aregainingpopularitybecauseoftheirhighenergyefficiency,butitisnotknownifLEDlightexposureaffectsstrawberryquality.ThisstudyinvestigatestheeffectsofLEDlightexposureonstrawberryquality.StrawberrieswereexposedtoeithercontinuousLED,fluorescent,ornolightat1°Cfortendaysandwereassessedfortissueelectrolyteleakage,color,firmness,andsensoryattributes(aroma,off-odor,overallvisualquality,andpurchaseintent)ondays0,2,4,7,and9.Whencomparedtostrawberriesfromthefluorescentornolighttreatment,strawberriesexposedtoLEDlighthadthehighestlevelsofelectrolyteleakageandscoredthehighestforoff-odoronday9.TheLEDstrawberriesalsohadthelowestpurchaseintent,visualquality,andaromascores,andtheyhadthelowestchromavaluesandweretheleastfirmonthelastevaluationday.TheseresultssuggestthatLEDlightexposureacceleratesspoilageandreducesmarketability,leadingtoincreasedfoodandfinanciallossforgrocers.
Fungi with previously uncharacterized enzymatic activity can digest polyurethane in soluble and insoluble formCaden W. PetersmeyerThe Potomac School, McLean, VA, Greater Washington, D.C. Area JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Isabelle Cohen, The Potomac School
Thediscoveryofmicroorganismsthatcanefficientlydegradepolyesterpolyurethane(PUR)hasbecomeapivotalgoalinpromotingbioremediationasanapplicablesolutiontoplasticwaste.ThisreportrevealsmembersoftheGlomerellaandCladosporiumgenerathatdisplaypreviouslyuncharacterizedenzymaticactivityforPURdegradation.Thedegradationwasmeasuredusingahaloassay,inwhichaclearringappearsaroundthefungalgrowthasthefungusdegradestheplastic.FungiwerealsotestedinaliquidmediumandeffectivelydegradedinsolublePURunderminimalconditions.Thisisaparticularpointofinterestduetothehighproportionofinsolubleplasticwastepresentintheenvironment.Takentogether,theisolationofthesefungihasthepotentialtoadvancethedevelopmentofthesustainabledisposalofplastics.
27
Hawaii
Effect of Microbially Fermented Morinda Citrifolia on Ovarian CancerKealyssa M. Castillo-MartinKamehameha Schools, Honolulu, HI, Hawaii JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Gail Ishimoto, Kamehameha Schools
Morindacitrifolia(noni)isafolkmedicineinmanycultures.OnetraditionalHawaiianpreparationisfermentation.Thisstudyexploredtheeffectoftraditionallypreparednonionovariancancerinvaryingconcentrationsandbacterialdiversityofnonithroughoutfermentation.SKOV-3cellsweretreatedwithfreshandfermentednoni,andgrowthwasmeasuredoverthreedays.Itwasfoundthatwhenfermentednoniisconcentratedbyevaporation,thecytotoxiccompoundalsobecomesmoreconcentrated,indicatingthatitisnotvolatile;however,thecytotoxiccompoundoffreshnoniisvolatile.Thestudyalsoexaminedthebacterialdiversityofnoniatdifferentstagesoffermentation.BacterialDNAwasisolatedfromfermentedsamplesofnoniandthe16SgenewasamplifiedusingPCR.Cyanobacteria(aerobicrespirators)wereidentifiedinfreshnonisamples.SequencesrelatedtoAeromonas,Enterobacteriaceae,Novosphingobium,Klebsiella,andAcinetobacter(anaerobicbacteriathatutilizefermentation)werefoundinfermentednonisamples.Inconclusion,thecytotoxiccompoundoffermentednoniismostlikelyaproductofthebacteriadrivingfermentation.Itispossiblethesebacteriaarefermentingpreexistingcompoundsofnonitocreatethecytotoxiceffect.Andbasedonsmallsamplesize,bacterialdiversityincreaseswithtimespentinfermentation.
The Role of Homalanthus nutans (G. Forst.) Guill., A Samoan Medicinal Plant, As an Insect Growth RegulatorCharu JoseroseTafuna High School, Pago Pago, Hawaii JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr.J.Jyothibhavan, Tafuna High School
TheextractfromthebarkofSamoanmedicinalplant‘mamala’(Homalanthusnutans),isusedtotreathepatitisinSamoanIslands.Itsactivecomponentisprostratin,anon-tumorpromotingphorbolesterandproteinkinaseC(PKC)activator,whichhasbeenshowntoflushtheHIV-AIDSlatentviralreservoirsinhumans.Thedevelopmentofinsectsisregulatedbyinsectgrowthhormones,suchasthejuvenilehormone,whichactsbyactivationofPKC-dependentsignaling.GiventheroleofprostratininPKCactivationanditsabundanceinmamala,ourresearchexplorestheputativerolesofthemamalabarkextractinregulatingthedevelopmentofthemosquitoAedespolynesiensis,themainvectorofthedenguevirusinthePacific.TheAe.polynesiensislarvaeweretreatedwithdifferentconcentrationsofmamalabarkextractandcomparedwithtwocommercialJuvenilehormoneanalogs(JHAs),Nyguard®andGentrol®.BothJHA’sandmamalabarkextract,inhibitedthesuccessfuladultemergence,inducedmortalityinlarvae,andpupaeinvaryingconcentrationsandtimeperiodscomparedtountreatedcontrol.WedeterminethatthemamalabarkextractisahighlypotentregulatorofAe.polynesiensisgrowthandassumethatthedevelopmentalabnormalitiesarecausedbytheprostratinpresentinthemamalaextract,needstobeconfirmed.
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Microwire Biosensor: A Novel Detection of Escherichia coliAriana KimSt. Andrew's Priory, Honolulu, HI, Hawaii JSHS
MicrowireBiosensor:ANovelDetectionofEscherichiacoliArianaKimSt.Andrew’sPriory,Honolulu,HawaiiDr.SoojinJun,UniversityofHawai’iatManoaOutbreaksoffoodborneillnesslinkedtopathogenicbacteriasuchasEscherichiacolihaveattractedincreasingpublicattention.Traditionalculture-basedmethodsforpathogensidentificationaretime-consumingandlabor-intensive,raisingtheneedforfastandsensitivedetectiontechniques.Anovel,rapiddetectionmethodforE.coliperformedbyafunctionalizedmicrowiresensorwasdevelopedandevaluated.Agold-tungstenmicrowireimmobilizedwithanti-E.coli-antibodieswasusedtocaptureE.colibacterialcells.Cellsuspensionwithdielectrophoreticforcegeneratedbyanalternatingcurrentwithanelectricfieldwasused.Immobilizationofantibodiesusingconventionalmethodsisnon-compatiblewiththeDEPdrivenelectricfield,challengingthesurfacefunctionalization.Therefore,thisstudywasaimedtodevelopamicrowiresensorbasedonDEPandantigen-antibodyreactionforpathogendetectionandevaluatethesensor’sperformancetodetectEscherichiacoliK-12fromaliquidsample.Themicrowirewasmanipulatedbyanautomatedxyzstageandthesensingprocessincludedantibodiesimmobilization,bacteriadetectionandcellsquantification.FieldEmissionScanningElectronMicroscopefiguresandfluorescenceintensitiesofbacteriaonthewirevalidatedthesensingmechanism.Thedevelopedsensordemonstratedhighsensitivityandspecificitywithfastdetectionrate,whichshowsastrongpotentialfortheapplicationinfoodindustry.
Helicotoroidal Topology of Leptons, Quarks, and HadronsViola MoczMililani High School, Mililani, HI, Hawaii JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Nel Venzon, Mililani High School; Andre S. Bachmann, University of Hawaii at Hilo
Theinternalstructureofelementaryparticlesisnotyetfullyunderstood.Iformulateasemi-classicalwave-particlemodeltodescribesomefundamentalpropertiesofleptons,quarks,andhadronswithintheframeworkofmathematicalknots.Inthemodel,theparticleisconfinedinperiodicboundaryconditionsandthematerialwavepropagatesonclosedtoroidalpathscorrespondingtothestreamlinesofenergyflowoverthetoroidalsurface.Thewavemayalsobeviewedasaseriesofhelicaltubularsurfaces,thetrajectoryofwhichisthetorusoftheproposedmodel.Theparticle-wavetopologydependsonthenumberofradialoscillationsthroughthetorus-holeandazimuthalrevolutionsaroundthetorus.Eachpathisspecifiedbyatorusknotwhichisalsoassociatedwiththemass,spin,pathangularmomentum,andquiveringmotionnamedtheZitterbewegungoftheparticle.Thecomputedpathangularmomentumsuggeststhatleptonsmaybedescribedbydouble-loopedunknots,pseudoscalarmesonsbycircularloops,vectormesonsbyfigure-eightunknots,andbaryonsbyoverhandtrefoilknots.Quarksarenotsufficientinthemselvestocompleteaclosedloop,butwhencombinedtheycanformtheclosedloopsofhadrons.Theresultswarrantfurtherinvestigationoftheinternaltopologicalstructureofelementarymatter.
29
Illinois
MERG1a K+ Channel Decreases NF-kB Activity in Skeletal MuscleChase D. LatourCarbondale Community High School, Carbondale, IL, Illinois JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Stacey Massie, Carbondale Community High School; Stacey Massie, Carbondale Community High School
ERG1encodesaK+channel.ThePondlaboratoryhasshownthattheERG1channelparticipatesintheonsetofskeletalmuscleatrophybyincreasingubiquitinproteasomeproteolysis(UPP)activityandthatERG1up-regulationinducesexpressionofMuRF1,aUPPligase.WeknowthatMurf1expressionislinkedtoactivationofNF-kBtranscriptionfactorfamilymembersbyupstreamIKK-Bactivation.Wehypothesized,therefore,thatERG1expressionmayinduceNF-kBactivity.Thus,weectopicallyco-expressedmouseERG1(MERG1)andanNF-kBactivityluciferasereporterinleftgastrocnemiusmusclesofmicewhileco-expressingtheNF-kBreporterandacontrolemptyplasmidintherightgastrocnemiusmuscles(n=40).Wekilled5micedailyandharvestedallgastrocnemiusmusclesfor7days.ThedatashowthatMERG1expressiondecreasesNF-kBactivity.NF-kBactivitydecreased40.6%afterthefirstdayanddroppedby65%onday3afterwhichtheactivityincreased.ThisissurprisingbecauseNF-kBfactorsareknowntoinduceexpressionofatrophy-relatedgenes.Weconcludethat,becauseMERG1aexpressioncausesasignificantdecreaseinNF-kBtranscriptionfactoractivity,theMERG1aK+doesnotmodulateexpressionoftheMuRF1E3ligasethroughNF-kBtranscriptionfactors.
Cloning Ezh1: First Steps Toward an Analysis of Ezh1 FunctionNatalie A. NickrentCarbondale Community High School, Carbondale, IL, Illinois JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Stacy Massie
Ezh1,aproteininvolvedintheregulationofskeletalmuscledifferentiation,wasclonedintoavectorandanalyzed.Asamemberofthepolycombrepressivecomplex2(PRC2),Ezh1hasbeenshowntobeanearlycatalystinrecruitingthecomplextocells.Cancercells,however,exhibitanoverexpressionofPRC2,soanexcessoftheproteininacellcanultimatelyleadtocomplicationsanduncontrollableproliferation.AfterligatingandtransformingtheE.colicellswiththedesiredvectorandinsert,theplasmidswereextracted.Westerngelelectrophoresislaterprovedthattheproteinwassuccessfullyexpressedinthecell,whichenablesfurtherexperimentationontheproteintobeperformed.
A New General Method of Relational Heuristics Utilizing Agent-Based Collective IntelligenceConner T. RuhlThe Governor French Academy, Belleville, IL, Illinois JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Christine Stewart, The Governor French Academy
Amethodofidentifyingandutilizingrelationshipswithindatawascreated.Thissystemwasimplementedusingacollectionofagentsthathaveindividualizedgoalsandarecapableofself-determination.Theseagentsareassignedtofulfillvariousrequirementsofanalgorithm.Eachagentpossessestraitsthatmodifythequeriestheyperformontheirinitialbreadth-firstsearchforsolutionspertainingthealgorithm’sgoals.Theseattributesaresubjecttomodification,andrangefromthedepththeagentwillsearch,toitswillingnesstoselectsolutionsthathavealreadybeenexploredbyotheragents.Theresultsofeachofthesequeriesarethenaggregatedandexaminedbythealgorithmusingascoringsystemthattakesagentattributesintoconsideration.Alloftheseaspectsresultinasystemthatprovideshighlyunique,yetstructuredsolutionstoabroadrangeofproblems.Thesystemisapplicableinanyscenariowhereavarietyofdistinct,heuristicanswersarefavored.Examplesoftheseapplicationsincluderecommendationsystems,curriculumdevelopmentforindividualsorschools,orevenmedicaldiagnoses.Theagentmanagementalgorithmishighlycustomizable,allowingthesystemtobeadaptedforawiderangeofpurposeswithvaryingcomplexityandsize.
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CycloAlkyl Flurophores: A Synthesis and AnalysisBrian J. SuarezCarbondale Community High School, Carbondale, IL, Illinois JSHS
SixfluorescencebasedprobesfortheopticaldetectionofpHweresynthesized,purified,andtested.TomakethesefluorescentprobesIusedrhodamine6GandrhodamineB.Theprobescontainacycloalkyl-aminemolecule,whichreactstodifferentpHlevels.TheprobesprovideasensitivemeasurementofpHbyundergoingacolorimetricandfluorescentchangeasanaqueousenvironmentchangesfrombasictoacidic.AthighpH,themethylaminogroupinteractswiththefluorophorebyformingacolorless,non-fluorescent,spiro-cyclicstructure.AsthepHislowered,nearthepKaofthemethylaminogroup,thespiro-amineisprotonatedandtheringopensresultinginabrightlycolored,highlyfluorescentspecies.Thisseriesofrhodaminederivativesdifferbythetypeofalkylsubstitutiononthemethylaminonitrogenatom.SpecificallythecyclicalkylsystemswerecomparedandcharacterizedtheeffectthosesystemshaveonthepKaofthespiro-amineringopeningprocess.ItwasfoundthattheseriesofcyclicaminespHresponsecorrelatedwellwiththeBaeyerstraintheoryonhowringstructureaffectsthebasicityofaminesbyshowingthatanincreaseinthesizeoftheringstructuredirectlyincreasesthebascicity.
Radio Static Random Number GenerationAndrew L. WoodruffMacomb Highschool, Macomb, IL; Michael Dofing, Macomb Highschool, Macomb, IL, Illinois JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Thomas Johnson, Macomb Highschool
Mostmoderncomputersrelyonsoftwarebasedpseudo-randomnumbergenerators,whicharegenerallyacceptedtobelesssecurethanthosebasedonphysicalphenomena.Inthisproposedsolution,anarduinounowasusedtocontrolandgatherstereodatafromaradioreceiver,inordertogatherandanalysetheresultingdata.Thistestwasmeantasaproofofconceptforusingradiostatictogeneraterandomnumbers,notasacryptographicallysecurerandomnumbergenerator.Thearduinocombinedbothsignalsandindirectlyconvertedthedataintobinaryinformationandperformedameanvaluetestononekilobitofdata.Ifthemeanvaluewascloseenoughto.5,thefrequencywasusedtofurthergenerate8032-bithexadecimalintegersandprintthemtotheserialconsole.Thisprocesswasrepeateduntilover2MBweregeneratedforuseinseveralmorerigorousstatisticalanalyses.TheinformationgatheredfromthesetestswasthencomparedagainstthetestrandomnumbersgeneratedbasedonatmosphericdataanddatafromFortran’srandfunction.Fromthesetestsitcanbeconcludedthatwhilegeneratingpseudo-randomnumbersfromradiostaticisviable,thesoftwareusedscreenfrequenciesandfilterthedatarequirefurtherrefinement.
31
Illinois (Chicago)
Lithium-Induced Neuroprotection is Associated with Epigenetic Modification of Specific BDNF Gene Promoter and Altered Expression of Apoptotic-Regulatory ProteinsTushar DwivediNeuqua Valley High School, Naperville, IL, Illinois (Chicago) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Hui Zhang, University of Illinois at Chicago
Lithium-InducedNeuroprotectionisAssociatedwithEpigeneticModificationofSpecificBDNFGenePromoterandAlteredExpressionofApoptotic-RegulatoryProteins
TusharDwivedi,NeuquaValleyHighSchool,Naperville,IllinoisMentor:Dr.HuiZhang,UniversityofIllinoisatChicagoBipolardisorder(BD),oneofthemostdebilitatingmentaldisorders,isassociatedwithincreasedmorbidityandmortality.LithiumisthefirstlineoftreatmentoptionforBDandisoftenusedformaintenancetherapy.Recently,theneuroprotectiveactionoflithiumhasgainedtremendousattention,giventhatBDisassociatedwithimbalanceincellularsignalingthatleadstoneurotoxicityandconsequentstructuralandfunctionalabnormalitiesofthebrain.However,theprecisemolecularmechanismbywhichlithiumexertsitsneuroprotectiveactionisnotclearlyunderstood.Thepresentstudyaimstoinvestigatesuchmechanisms.Inrathippocampalneurons,lithiumnotonlyincreaseddendriticlengthandnumber,butalsoneuronalviabilityagainstglutamate-inducedcytotoxicity.WhilelithiumincreasedtheexpressionofBDNF,ageneinvolvedinneuronalsurvivalandplasticity,aswellasgenesassociatedwithneuroprotectionsuchasBcl2andBcl-XL,itdecreasedtheexpressionofpro-apoptoticgenesBax,Bad,andcaspases3.Interestingly,lithiumactivatedtranscriptionofspecificexonIVtoinduceBDNFgeneexpression.ThiswasaccompaniedbyhypomethylationofBDNFexonIVpromoter,suggestingthatepigeneticmodificationsplayakeyroleininducingBDNFexpressionbylithium.Thisstudydelineatesnovelmechanismbywhichlithiummediatesitseffectsinprotectingneurons.
Creation of Novel Absorbent Antimicrobial Bandages and Ointment from the Slime of the Pacific Hagfish, Eptatretus stoutii, for Use on Burns and WoundsGrace M. NiewijkOak Park and River Forest High School, Oak Park, IL, Illinois (Chicago) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Allison Hennings, R.N., B.S.N., M.A.T., Oak Park and River Forest High School; Doug-las Fudge, Ph.D., University of Guelph
Currentburntreatmentsaredeficientwithrespecttoantimicrobialeffectsandabsorptionofexudate.Threenewmaterialsweredevelopedfromhagfishslimecomponents.Allweretestedforabsorbencyandantimicrobialactivityinordertodeterminethesuitabilityforproductionofabandageorointment.Theexperimentalhypothesisproposedthatextractedslimecomponentswouldbeexceptionallyabsorbentduetotheabilityofhagfishslimetocaptureliquids,andthatthelysozymalantimicrobialpropertieswouldbepreservedinprocessedslime.Absorbencywastestedbysaturating1x1cmsamplesofdifferentbandagesandmeasuringpercentchangeinmassandvolumeabsorbed.Absorbencywastestedwithwater,tomimicplasmafoundinwoundexudate,andwithblood.Slime-basedbandagesweresignificantly(p≤0.000279)moreabsorbentthantheirrespectivecontrols.Itwasalsodetermined,throughbacterialproximitytestsandwoundreplicatesting,thattherewassignificantbactericidalandbacteriostaticactivityagainstMicrococcusluteus.Itwasconcluded,basedontheabsorbencyandantimicrobialproperties,thatslime-derivedmaterialsareidealbiomaterialstobeusedtomakethewoundenvironmentlesshospitabletobacterialinfection.Futureresearchbasedonthisstudyshouldrefineslime-derivedmaterials,developmethodsofmassproduction,andinvestigateactivityagainstotherbacteria.Keywords:biomaterialbandage,Eptatretusstoutii,slime,Micrococcusluteus,absorbency
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Morphological Identification of Wide-Separation Gravitationally Lensed QuasarsPranav SivakumarBarrington High School, Barrington, IL, Illinois (Chicago) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Teacher: James A Hawrysko, Barrington High School; Mentor: Sivakumar Muthuswamy, Motorola Solutions, Inc.
AnovelmethodwasdevelopedtoidentifygravitationallylensedquasarsfromtheSloanDigitalSkySurvey(SDSS).Understandinggravitationallensinghelpsdecipherthepropertiesofdarkmatteranddarkenergy.ItishypothesizedthatifmultipleobjectsinanSDSSimagemeetbothphotometricandspectralcriteria,thentheseobjectsarelensedquasarcandidates.ThefirstphaseofthisprojectuseddatafromtheSDSSDataRelease9.Inthefollow-upstudy,anewidentificationalgorithmwasimplementedusingtheSDSSDataRelease10,whichincludeddataforover300,000quasars.ThedatawasretrievedandprocessedusingStructuredQueryLanguage(SQL)queries.Usingthisinformation,thealgorithmcomparedquasarstotheirneighborstodetermineiftheneighborswereimagesofthesamequasar.Theresultswerevalidatedagainstacontrolgroupoflensedquasarsfromtheliterature.Statisticalanalyseswereperformedtoensureconsistencyofvalidationcriteriaacrossthedataset.Acomparisonoftheproject'sresultswithpublishedlistsoflensedquasarsshowedthatthehypothesiswaswellsupported.Inadditiontoidentifyingamajorityofthequasarsinthecontrolgroup,thealgorithmalsoidentifiedadditionalhigh-probabilitylenscandidatesnotreportedintheliterature.
Environment and Variability of High Redshift X-Ray Bright Optically Normal GalaxiesTalia E. WeissEvanston Township High School, Evanston, IL, Illinois (Chicago) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Daryl Haggard, Northwestern University
Thisstudyexaminesasampleof48X-RayBrightOpticallyNormalGalaxies(XBONGs)toinvestigatetwoexplanationsfortheirabnormalcharacteristics:variabilityofActiveGalacticNuclei(AGN)andX-rayemissionsproducedbyextendedhotgashaloswithingalacticclustersandfossilgroups.XBONGcharacteristicsaremostcommonlyattributedtoaccretingsupermassiveblackholesthathaveradiativelyinefficientflowsoraredilutedbystarlightfromtheirhostgalaxies.UsingasampleofsourcesidentifiedasXBONGsbyTrumpetal.(2009),thisstudyexaminestheviabilityofmultipleexplanationsforXBONGs’X-raybrightnessandlackofopticalemissionlines.UnlikepreviousstudiesthatassumedthatXBONGsareAGNandattributedtheiruniquepropertiestolow-luminosityaccretiondiskphenomena,thisstudyfocusesonthelikelihoodthatXBONGcharacteristicsarecausedbychangesinAGNluminosityovertime(variability),aswellasthepossibilitythatXBONGsaregalaxieswithinactivegalacticcenterssurroundedbyhalosofhotgas.UsingdatafromtheChandraX-RayTelescope,Ideterminedthat18%ofmysampleshowedevidenceofvariability,andapproximately22%showedsignsofextension.TheseresultsindicatethatAGNvariabilityandextendedhotgasemissionsareviableexplanationsforXBONGs.
33
Indiana
“Utilizing the Isolated Components, Variation in Mammals, and Treatment Processes of Milk for Grain Yield Enhancement”Jordan R. CadlePaoli Junior/Senior High School, Paoli, IN, Indiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Laurie Jo Andry, Paoli High School; Kerry Wyatt, Paoli FFA
Thisprojectexploresanorganicallyfriendlyandgloballyaccessibleproductofmilktoincreasegrainyields.Thesupremeconceptsbehindtheideatousemilkaretoapplycarbohydrateenergyandcreateacanvaswithfattoincreasethegreenhouseeffect.Byapplyingsugar,fat,andproteintowheatinaLatinsquaredesign,thefatandsugarsshowedanincreaseoverthecontrolatthe90%confidenceinterval.Inanotherpart,camelmilkwasfoundtoexpressthehighestyieldsinwheatcomparedtogoat,sheep,andcow.Also,sour,pasteurized,andfreshmilksweretestedonwheatbutonlythefreshmilksawayieldincrease.Forthemilkbeingappliedtothewheat,yieldsvariedfromnochangeupto15.5%foraplantaverageyieldwithasugarapplication.A33%increaseincornyieldswasfoundbutlikelytoohighforcontinualexpectedresults.Basedontheseresults,farmerscanapplymilktograinsandseeayieldincreasebutthevalueoftheirmilkandlabormustbetakenintoconsiderationforeconomicalprofitability.
Factors that Influence Energies of Simple HydrocarbonsTingyue CuiTerre Haute South Vigo High School, Terre Haute, IN, Indiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Prof. Eric Glendening; Mrs. Melanie Huber
Thecomputationalchemistryresearchpresentedherefocusesonevaluatingthefactorsthataremostconsequentialtohydrocarbons’relativestabilities.Theenergyparametersforeachmodelwerefittedtobestrepresenttheatomizationenthalpies(AE)oftheC1-C6alkanes,calculatedbytheGaussianelectronicstructureprogram.Incontrasttooldermodelsthatgenerallylacktheoreticalsupport,thevicinalinteractionsmodel(VIM)proposedhereisjustifiedbynaturalbondorbital(NBO)analysisconfirmingthatvicinal,antiperiplanarbond-bondandbond-antibondinteractionsaremostconsequential.Asafairlysimpleadditivityschemebasedonbondenthalpiesandvicinal,antiperiplanarbondpairinteractions,theVIMmodelwascomparedtothelocalizedbondmodel(LBM)andgeminalinteractionsmodel(GIM).ParameterfittingsyieldedchisquaredvaluesfortheLBM,GIM,andVIMof15.26,12.04,7.68respectively.Asanticipated,theLBMfailedtoaccountfordifferingAEsasitwasonlyatwo-parameterfit.TheGIM,althoughexhibitinganimprovementovertheLBM,failedtodescribetheAEsofalkaneconformers.TheproposedVIM,ontheotherhand,generateduniqueAEsforeachC1-C6alkanes.Althoughpreliminary,theresultsofthisstudystronglysupporttheVIMasanewmodelforunderstandingthedifferingalkanestabilities.
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Elimination Of Positional Discontinuity In Regenerating LimbsKamna GuptaCarmel High School, Carmel, IN, Indiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. David L. Stocum, IUPUI; Anita Gupta, Carmel High School
ThesalamanderAmbystomamexicanum(axolotl)regeneratesamputatedlimbsbyreprogramminglimbcellstoformanundifferentiatedblastemathatgrowsandredifferentiatesintothemissinglimbparts.Thebaseoftheblastemacarriesapositionalidentityofitsoriginontheproximodistal(PD),anteroposterior(AP)anddorsoventral(DV)axesandfillsinallthedistalmissingpositionalidentitiesduringregeneration.ReversaloftheAPorDVaxesoftheblastemawithrespecttothelimbstumpcreatesdiscontinuitiesinpositionalidentityoneithersideofthelimbthatstimulateregenerationofsupernumerarylimbsfromthePDlevelofamputation.IhypothesizedthatthePDpositionalidentitiesofthereversedblastemaandlimbstumpmustnotbediscontinuousinorderforsuchsupernumerariestoform.Totestthishypothesis,Igrafteddistalzeugopodialblastemastomid-stylopodiallimbstumpswhilesimultaneouslyreversingtheirAPorDVaxis,thusmakingbothPDandAPorDVdiscontinuities.Theresultwasthatsupernumerariescouldnotformfromthemid-stylopodiallevel.Instead,thePDdiscontinuityfirsthadtobeeliminatedbyintercalationtotheleveloforiginofthegraftedblastema,whereuponsupernumerarydigitswerenowabletoform.ThisresultindicatesthateveryPDpositionalidentityhascorrespondingAPandDVidentitiesthatmustbe'matched'inorderforsupernumeraryformationtooccur.Thenecessityformatchinghelpsustounderstandthecellularinteractionsnecessaryforlimbregeneration.InthenextphaseofresearchIwouldliketore-conductthisexperimentbygraftingproximalblastema.
Identification of the Oxygen Sensing Mechanism in Hypoxic Vasodilation of Porcine Coronary ArteriesKevin T. HuncklerMarian High School, Mishawaka, IN, Indiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Ken Andrzejewski, Marian High School; Dr. Douglas Sisk, Marian High School; Dr. Kenneth Olson, Indiana University School of Medicine
Oxygendependencyisauniversalcharacteristicofalmostalllivinganimals.Tomaintainadequateoxygenflowthroughouttheirbodies,adecreaseorincreaseinoxygenmustfirstbedetected.Throughoutthebody,thereareoxygensensingmechanismsthatregulatebloodflowsothatanadequateamountisdelivered.Thesemechanismsallowvasodilationinhypoxic(lowoxygen)conditionsinreturnforincreasedbloodflow.However,thescientificcommunityhasnotconclusivelydecidedonadefinitesensingmechanism.Itishypothesizedthatthemetabolismofendogenouslyproducedhydrogensulfide(H2S)isinvolvedastheoxygensensingmechanismofporcinecoronaryarteries.Thiswastestedusingamyographtomeasurevasodilationofpigcoronaryarteriesinresponsetotheadditionofthedrugtempolandothervariousconditions.H2Swasfoundtoeffectivelydilatecoronaryarteriesineverysituation.TheresponsestotempolshowedthecriticaloxidizingaffectsitandenzymeslikeithaveonH2S.Furtherknowledgeofthesemechanismscouldleadtotheadvancementofmanytreatmentsforlowoxygenconditionswithinthebody.Cardiovasculardisease,sleepapnea,andcancercellsareonlyafewofthemanyconditionsthatcoulddirectlybeaffectedbyfurtheradvancementsinthisfield.
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Mapping the Discrete Lambert and finding its traceKrishan S. KumarSouth Vigo High School, Terre Haute, IN, Indiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Joshua Holden, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Mrs. Melanie Huber, South Vigo High School
Givenanumberx,weconsiderthedynamicsystemxgoestoxgxmod(pn),alsoknownastheDiscreteLambertequation.Inthisequation,allvariablesareknownotherthanx.TheDiscreteLambert(x)issodifficulttosolveforbecausethevariablep,whichisaprimenumber,maybehundredsofdigitslong,meaningthatevenwithacomputeritmighttakemanyyearstosolve.Tovisualizeaspecificcycle,anaccompanyingmapandmatrixmaybeillustrated.Themapshowswhichinputsgotowhichoutputs.Thegoalwastoextractanalgorithmtoallowanysuchmaptobedrawnwithaccuracywithouthavingtoplugineverynumberxintothegeneratorguntilapatternisdistinguished.Whenthemapisactuallydrawnout,certainnumbers,x,willformcontainedsets.Bynoticingapatterninthearrangementofnumbersinthesesetsandusingthepropertiesoflogs,proofsweredecipheredandanalgorithmwasdistinguished.TheDiscreteLambertproblemandsimilarexponentiationsareusedtoverifytheauthenticityoflegaldocuments,financialtransactions,andotherimportantcommunicationsandareavitalcomponentoftoday’ssociety.
36
Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada)
Efficacy of Five Methods of Purifying Water and Their Possible Uses in Third-world CountriesRyan BarneyWasatch Jr. High, Salt Lake City, UT, Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kim Stucki, Wasatch Jr. High; Jordan Farr, Jordan Applied Technology Center
Everyyear,3.4millionpeople--mostlychildren--dieworldwideduetowaterborneillness.Thoughtherearemanyfacetsofthisproblem,Idecidedtostudywhichmethodsaremosteffectiveatpurifyinginfectedwater.Totestthis,Iusedagravityfilter,aUVpurifier,Iodinetablets,bleach,andboilingtotreatwaterinfectedwithEscherichiacoli,Serratialiquefaciens,andBacillusmegaterium.Mybacterialtestingshowedthatboilingwasthemosteffectivemethod,followedbythefilterandbleach.TheUVlampandIodinewerelesseffective.IthenusedaCost-effectivenessAnalysis(CEA)toanalyzetheoverallvalueofeachmethodcomparedtoitscost,indexedagainstaverageincomeinGhana.MyCEAshowedthatboilingwasstillbest,closelyfollowedbybleach.ThesewerealsotheonlymethodsthatmetalloftheUnitedNations’costandavailabilityguidelinesforwaterpurification.Boiling,however,hasrisksandcostsstemmingfromthefactthatthecookingfiresusedtoboilthewaterproducemuchsmokethatcancauseprematuredeathovertime.Firewoodisalsoneeded,addingtimeandeffort.Duetothis,Iconcludedthatbleachisthebestchoiceforwaterpurificationinthird-worldcountries.
Analysis of Montane Rainforest Dwellings using Computer VisionAnthony ChengHillcrest High School, Midvale, UT, Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Philip Dennison, University of Utah; Tolga Tasdizen, University of Utah
ThispaperdescribestheuseofComputerVisionalgorithmstoanalyzesatelliteimageryofdwellinglocationsinarainforestsetting.ResearchersarecurrentlytryingtodeterminetheimpactofpopulationmovementsontheenvironmentinareassuchastheGishwatiRainforestofRwanda.Themovementofpopulationscanbetrackedbylookingatthelocationofdwellings.Consideringthatthecurrentmethodofanalyzingthelocationofdwellingsisbyhand,thispaperdescribestheapproachesdevelopedinregardstothisproblemusingthemethodsofComputerVision,specificallyConnectedComponentslabeling.Theprototypeinitiallyusedasimplebinarythresholdandcontourdetectortodetecttheobjects,whilethefinalcodeusedHSVthresholdingandseveralotheralgorithmswithexperimentallydeterminedparametervalues.Combinationsofmanyalgorithmsweretestedforoptimalresults.Thecode,writteninJava,usedmethodsfromtheopen-sourceOpenCV(OpenComputerVision)library.ThesourceimageswerefromGoogleEarth.Thedesignwaslargelysuccessful;theprogramwasabletodetectnearlyallwhite-roofedhouses,afirststeptowardsafullyautomatedprogram.Thiscodecanpotentiallybeappliedtomanyothersettings,suchastraffic,vegetation,andwildfireanalysisinthegeographicfield.
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Networking Nuances: Creating Hardware and Software Solutions Using UDP/IP DatagramsMelissa S. IvieCopper Hills High School, West Jordan, UT, Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mary Meyer, Copper Hills High School; Brian Ivie, University of Utah; Dalton Horscroft, Entheos Academy
Theprimarypurposeofthisresearchandengineeringprojectwastodevelopasystemofproductstobeusedtoeasilyconnectdevicestoanethernetnetwork,includingfunctionsforhandlingtheTCP/IPprotocolsforInternetconnectivity.Thisprojecthastakenplaceoverthelast2-1/2years.IbeganbydevelopinganethernetshieldforusewiththeArduinomicrocontrollerplatformusingtheMicrochipENC28J60IC.IdevelopedaPCBlayoutandhadthedesignprofessionallyetched.IthendevelopedasimilarshieldforusewiththeTexasInstrumentsLaunchpadusingtheEnergiaplatformtoconvertArduinocodeforusewiththeLaunchpadhardware.Ialsodevelopedtestapplications,includingimplementingaRGBLEDthathadthebrightnessofthered,greenandblueelementscontrolledbypulsewidthmodulation,sothattheamountofred,greenorbluelightcouldbeadjustedfromaniPodTouchusingthestandardOpenSoundControl(OSC)protocoltosendUDP/IPdatagrampacketstothemicrocontrollerthroughtheethernetmodule.Iamcurrentlyimplementingmyworkinthedevelopmentofseveraldevicestomonitorenvironmentalconditionsoveranetwork,includingdevicestomonitortemperature,soilmoisture,humidity,airpollution,noisepollutionandotherenvironmentalfactors.
Recovering the Effective Thermal Conductivity of SIMBA Sea Ice with a Composite Material ModelDaniel W. LiuWest High School, Salt Lake City, UT, Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Todd Kassner, West High School; Kenneth Golden, University of Utah; Jingyi Zhu, Uni-versity of Utah
Thisstudyaimstofindacompositematerialmodelthatbestdescribestheheattransferwithinthemediumofseaicebysolvinganinverseproblem.Seaicetemperaturedatafromthe“SeaIceMassBalanceintheAntarctic”(SIMBA)projectaredividedintotwosetsandusedformodeltraining/validation.Thisstudyproposesseverallayereddiffusivitymodels.Foreachproposedmodel,anestimatedtemperatureprofileisrecoveredfromtheseaiceheatequationandiscomparedwiththetrainingdatatocalculatearootmeansquarederror(RMSE).TheNelder-MeadmethodisusedtofindtheoptimalmodelbyminimizingtheRMSE.TheoptimalmodelisverifiedbycalculatingitsvalidationRMSEusingthevalidationdata.Itisfoundthatafive-layermodelisthemosteffective.Theextremediffusivityvaluediscoveredinthebottomlayerofthemodelindicatesthattheremightbeconvectivepropertiesintheice.Toaccountforthis,theseaiceheatequationismodifiedtoincludeabrinemovementvelocityitemandthefive-layermodelisrefined.
Speed of Phytochrome Activation in Lactuca Sativa (Lettuce) SeedsEmma J. MackeyWasatch Jr. High School, Salt Lake City, UT, Intermountain (Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Stucki, Wasatch Jr. High School; Prof. Leslie Sieburth, University of Utah
Germinationistheprocessofaseedgivingrisetoafree-livingplant.MyquestionwashowlongmustaLactucaSativa(lettuce)seedimbibeinwaterbeforephytochromescandetectlightsothattheseedcanbecomemetabolicallyactive.Ihypothesizedthataseedwouldonlyneedtoimbibeinwaterforfiveminutesbeforephytochromesareactivated.Itestedtheseedsbyapplyingredorfar-redlightafterthespecificimbibitionperiod.Bothredandfar-redlightoccurinnature.Phytochromesdetectthesequalitiesoflightstoknowwhethertheoutsideconditionsarefavorableenoughtosurvive.Far-redlightstopsgerminationbecauseinnaturefar-redlightindicatesthattheseedisintheshadeandhasasmallchanceofsurvival.Myhypothesiswaspartiallycorrect.Ifoundthatthephytochromesbecameactivebetweenfiveandtenminutes.Thisisabiologicaladvantageforplantsbecausewhenconditionsarefavorableaseedneedstobeabletogerminateasquicklyaspossible.
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Iowa
Isolation Of Escherichia Coli O157 Proteins That Interact With The Bovine Recto-anal Junction Squamous Epithelial (rse) CellsAparna S. AjjarapuAmes High School, Ames, IA, Iowa JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Indira Kudva, National Animal Disease Center; Uma Vithala, Ames High School
TheenterohemorrhagicstrainEscherichiacoliO157:H7ranksfourthamongtheagentscausinggastrointestinalillnessesinNorthAmerica.Cattlearethemainreservoirsforthishumanpathogenwiththerecto-analjunction(RAJ)servingastheprimarycolonizationsite.TheobjectiveofthisstudyistoexaminethemechanismbywhichE.coliO157adherestothesquamousepithelial(RSE)cellsatthebovinerecto-analjunction.AnadaptedprotocolwasdevelopedtoisolatetheE.coliO157bacterialproteinsthatinteractwiththeRSEcellmembraneproteins.AftercheckingtheRSEcellsforgoodmorphology,theRSEcellsurfaceproteinswereextractedandlabeledusingtheThermoScientificPiercecellsurfaceproteinisolationkit.TheE.coliO157proteinswereharvestedandinteractedwiththeRSEcellsurfaceproteinsinabiotincellproteincolumn.TheinteractingbacterialproteinswereelutedandthenquantitatedusingNanoDrop.Theseproteinsarecurrentlysentforbottom-upproteomicsanalysis.Afollowupexperiment,anadherence-inhibitionassay,wasconductedandtheresultsclearlyshowedthattheinteractingbacterialproteinsisolatedinthisexperimentplayaroleinE.coliO157adherencetotheRSEcellsattheRAJ.
The Effects of Cheese Sludge on Field CornChristopher GrebnerBeckman Catholic High School, Dyersville, IA, Iowa JSHS
Thewastewaterfromthecheesemakingprocessisfilledwithmanyvitalnutrientsthatcanbeusedtohelpgrowcropsbutisoftentimeslefttopolluteriversandlakes.Myinitialideawastodeterminewhetherornotthatthewasteleftoverfromcheese,alsoknownassludge,wouldaffectthegrowthofcorninapositiveway.Frompriorknowledgeandresearch,sludgewasknowntocontainNitrogen,Phosphorus,andPotassiumthatisneededbycornandmostothercropstogrow.Asaresult,sludgewasaddedtosoiltofertilizecorn.Afterapreliminaryinvestigation,acorrelationbetweentheamountofsludgeandgrowthofthecornarose.Uponfurtherexamination,anincreasedamountofgrowthwasnoticedinthefertilizedcorn.
Silver Nitrate’s Effect on Natural vs. Induced Antibiotic Resistance in Escherichia coliBreanna KramerCentral Lee High School, Donnellson, IA, Iowa JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Alicia Schiller, Central Lee High School
UsingtheKirbyBauerProtocol,myrecentfindingsshowsilverionscanoverrideantibioticresistanceinE.coli.ControltrialswereculturedE.colionMueller-Hintonagarwiththeadditionoftwoampicillinmagazines.After24hoursincubation,diameterswerecomparedtostandardizedcharts.Irepeatedthisprotocolwiththeadditionof30ulsilvernitrateontopofthemagazines.Resultingdiameterswerecomparedtopreviousexperiments.Thissamemethodwasusedwithinducedplasmidresistance,andnaturalresistancedevelopedthroughgradientampicillinagar.Diametersincreasedalmosttwo-foldinalltrials,suggestingsilverionsaffectcellsdifferentlythancommonantibiotics.Naturalandinducedplasmidresistancebothbeganwith10-11mmresistantdiameters;however,aftersilverexposurenaturalresistanceincreased12mm,whileinducedplasmidincreased9mm.IproposethesedifferencesareduetoplasmidinsertionthatpreparesE.coliforrelativelymoreextremeantimicrobialconditionsenablinglesspermeablemembranesduetomorphologicalchangesinproteins;moreprotectedenzymes;andDNAmorecapabletohandleantimicrobialproperties.Controlsincreased14mm,asDNAwasn’tmodifiedagainstantibacterialproperties.SilverionsdemonstrateabilitiestodestroyE.coliantibioticresistance.Perhapsit’stimetorediscoversilver’sremarkableapplicationstothemedicalcommunity’spatientswithantibioticresistance.
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The Effects of Urbanization on Water Quality of Streams in Linn County, IowaKarleigh SchillingPrairie High School, Cedar Rapids, IA, Iowa JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Keith Schilling, University of Iowa; Lori Danker, Prairie High School
UrbanizationisincreasinginmanyareasaroundtheUnitedStates,anditcanhaveseriouseffectsonwaterquality.Thepurposeofthisstudywastotesttheamountoftotaldissolvedsolids(TDS)invariousstreamswithinLinnCountytodeterminewhetherornoturbanizationinCedarRapidsisincreasingTDSlevels.Threemethodswereusedtotestthis:1)comparingtwodifferentpopulationsofurbanandruralstreams,2)testingonestreamasitflowsfromthecountryintothecity,and3)testingalargerrivertoseeiftheeffectwasstillobserved.Watersampleswerecollectedusingaspecificconductancemeter,sincespecificconductanceisproportionaltototaldissolvedsolidsanditiseasytomeasure.Studyresultsindicatedthaturbanizationcanaffectwaterquality.Allthreemethodsshowedadefiniteincreaseintotaldissolvedsolidsasthestreamflowedthroughacity.Thegreatesteffectwasobservedwhentwopopulationsweretested,andlesseffectwasevidentintheCedarRiver.Furthertestingisneededtoconfirmthecauseofthis,butroadsalts,fertilizers,andwastewatermaybecontributingfactors.
Waste No More: A Study of the Net Energy Gain of Cellulosic Ethanol from Recycled MatterAbby L. WallingIowa City West High School, Iowa City, IA, Iowa JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Carolyn Walling, Iowa City West High School
Theneedforalternativefuelsourcesisbecomingincreasinglyevidentduetotheclimatechangingeffectsofgasoline.Onepopularalternative,corn,maynotbebetterduetotheenergyrequiredproducingit.However,inthisexperiment,grass,newspaper,andpapertowelswerefermentedintoethanol.Theenergycontentofthesolidbyproductswasthentestedtodetermineifthebiomasscouldbeburnedtodistilltheethanolcreated.Thus,thenetenergygainofthecellulosicethanolwasfound.Afterfermentingthesamples,papertowelscreatedthehighestyieldofethanol(0.084%),comparedtograss(0.021%)andnewspaper(0.024%).Byusingacalorimeter,itwasalsodeterminedthatpapertowelshavethemostchemicalpotentialenergywith20,258kJperkg.Lastly,thenetenergygainofthecellulosicethanolwascalculatedbyaddingtheenergyintheethanoltotheleftoverenergyinthebyproduct(afterpartofthebiomasshypotheticallydistilledtheethanol).Papertowelshavethegreatestenergygainwith435.437kJperkgofcellulosefermented.Overall,papertowelscanbefermentedandthebyproductsburnedfordistillationtoresultinover400%moreenergythanneededtocreatetheethanol.
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Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma
A Novel Idea: the Development of a Photobioelectric Cell Utilizing an Agar Gel - Electrolyte MatrixHayden J. AllenCascia Hall Preparatory School, Tulsa, OK, Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Sally Fenska, Cascia Hall Preparatory School
Aninsurgenceofconcernfortheclimatehasacceleratedtherateatwhichresearchanddevelopmentoccursaroundtheworld.Thepurposeofthisprojectistodesignafuelcell,usingbiologicalprocessesthatwillcreateausableformofelectricitythatwillretaintheenergythatithascreated.Anelectrolyteagarwascreatedusing1.5%agaranda5MNaClsolution.Achloroplastextractwascreatedusingspinach,and0.5Msucrosesolution.Anenergyratetestwasconductedover15secondsimmediatelyfollowingtheintroductionofthechloroplaststothecell.Datawascollectedunderthreedifferentlightingconditions,individually,twoinseries,andthreeinseries.Thedatasuggeststhatthecreatedcellisbehavingmuchlikeanalkalinebattery,inthefactthatasmorecellsareaddedinseries,thevoltageincreases(GraphI,II,III).Undertestedconditions,thethreeLWCshadapeakaverageoutputof507mVunderdirectlighting.Anothertestwasruntodeterminehowlongthefuelcellwouldholdthecreatedchargeintheabsenceoflight.Thevoltagecontinuedtoincreasesteadilyinexcessof5hoursbeforepeakingandheldthischargefor24hours.
3PO and P301L Mutations of Tau Protein Cause Synaptic Aberrations in Cholinergic and GABAergic Neurons: A 2nd year study of Alzheimer’s disease pathology using C. elegans wormsDisha DasguptaOlathe North High School, Olathe, KS, Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Brian Ackley, University of Kansas (KU)
Thisprojectinvestigatedwhetherthe3PO/P301Lmutationsofthetauproteincauseaberrationsinthesynapticvesiclesofcholinergic/GABAergicneurons.CholinergicandGABAergicneuronscontainneurotransmittersthatareassociatedwithmemoryandcognition,functionswhichareimpairedinAlzheimer’spatients.The3PO/P301Ltaumutationsarealsoknowntocausememorydisorders.Hypothesis:Ifthegenesthatcodeforthe3PO/P301LmutationsoftauareexpressedinC.elegansworms,thenthecholinergic/GABAergicsynapticvesicleswilldisplayaberrations.MicroscopicC.eleganswormswereusedforthisstudy.Twostrainsofcontrolwormswithoutanytau,twostrainsofC.eleganswith3POtau,andtwostrainsofC.eleganswithP301Ltau,allwithcholinergic(lhIs13)orGABAergic(juIs1)cell-specificGreenFluorescentProtein(GFP)markers,wereselected.GFPMicroscopywasusedtoscreenthewormsinwhichwith3PO/P301Ltaugeneswereexpressed.Confocalmicroscopywasusedtoobtaindetailedimagesofsynapticvesiclesofthoseworms.ImageJsoftwarewasusedtomeasurethearea,perimeter,andcircularityofthesynapticvesicles.Imageanalysisfrom2890synapticvesiclessupportedthehypothesis-that3PO/P301Lmutationsoftauchangethearea,perimeter,andcircularityofthesynapticvesiclesofcholinergic/GABAergicneurons.
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A Fluid Idea A comparison of fluidized sand filters verses drip sand filters in the removal of dirt, bacteria, heavy metals, phosphates, and nitrates.Sarah L. RileyGrove High School, Grove, OK, Kansas-Nebraska-Oklahoma JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Keli Steen, Grove High School
Thepurposeofthisprojectistodeterminewhetherfluidizedsandfiltersaremoreefficientthandripsandfilters.Icreatedtwofluidizedsandfiltersandonedripsandfilter.Ithencomparedtheclarity,bacteria,phosphates,nitrates,andleadlevelsbeforeandaftereveryprocedure.Bycreatingfluidizedsandfiltersitishypothesizedthatitcancleanwaterquickerandmoreefficientlythandripsandfilters.Theresultsweretakenfromspectrophotometerreadings,petridishes,andcolorimeterreadings.Thedripsandfilterwasusedasthecontroltocomparethetwodifferentstylesoffluidizedsandfilters.Itestedclarityfirstwithjustdirtinthewater,thenbacteria(bothbeforeandafter),andthenlead,nitrates,andphosphatesalltogether.Theresultsvariedinmytesting.Overallthesecondfluidizedsandfiltercameupontopconfirmingmyhypothesis.Theonlyproblemwasthatitdidn’ttakeoutanynitrates.
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Kentucky
Chemokine Expression in 3-LL vs. p-3LL Lung Cancer CellsLekha P. DevaraduPont Manual High School, Louisville, KY, Kentucky JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Glenn Zwanzig, duPont Manual High School; Robert Baar, duPont Manual High School; Dr. Rajesh Sharma, University of Louisville
LungCanceristheleadingcauseofcancerousdeathintheUnitedStates.Kentuckyinturnhasthehighestlungcancerincidenceinthecountry.90%oflungcancerrelateddeathsoccurduetometastasisofthetumortoothervitalorgansinthehumanbody.Chemokines,whichareasub-groupofcytokineproteins,haverecentlybeenfoundtoplayanimportantroleincancertranslocationthroughtheprocessofchemotaxis.Thisprojectexploresthedifferencesinvariouschemokineexpressionsbetween3-LLandp-3LLcancercellsfrombothculturesandtumorsamplesfrommurinemodels.Thesetwocelllinesarethesame,thoughthep-3LLisapassagedversion.Toobtainresults,RTPCRswereconducted.Theresultsarereportedandfoldchangeintheexpressionofchemokineswasusedasamethodofcomparison.ExperimentationshowedtrendsindifferencesbetweentheexpressionoftheCCL-2,CCL-3,CCL-4,CCL-5,CCL-7,CCL-8,CCL-17,andCCL-19chemokines.Resultsfromthisprojectcouldbeusedtotargetspecificchemokinesand/orchemokinereceptorstoreducetumorburdenandpreventlungcancermetastasis.
Magnetic Nanoparticles for Targeted HyperthermiaSeohyun ImduPont Manual High School, Louisville, KY, Kentucky JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Robert Baar, duPont Manual High School; Mr. Glenn Zwanzig, duPont Manual High School; Dr. Kyung A. Kang, Chemical Engineering Department, University of Louisville
Traditionalcancertreatmentmethods,e.g.,chemotherapy,radiationtherapy,immunotherapyhaveunhealthyside-effects(nausea,vomiting,hairloss,etc.)andareinvasive,therefore,beingunhealthyforpatients.Low-heathyperthermia,asaferalternativecancertreatment,heatsthecanceroustumortoatemperaturebetween40-45°C.Ironoxide(Fe3O4)nanoparticles(IONPs)havelowtoxicityandareusedinhyperthermiatoheattumors.AhyperthermiccancertreatmentmethodwasdesignedusingIONPswithanalternatingelectromagneticgenerator(AEM)fortumor-specificheating.Ahyperthermiastudywasconducted,observingtheheatingperformanceofIONPs(10nm,20nm,30nm,40nm)ofconcentrations(0.01%,0.03%,0.05%,0.08%,0.10%w/v%).EachsolutionofIONPandwaterwasplacedinaglassvialandheatedinthesolenoidprobeoftheAEMfor5min.at287KHzwithinsulation.Waterwasusedasthebaselinetoobservehowmuchtheglassvialheatedbyitselfandtoensureconsistencyoftheheatingperformanceofallsamples.AlineartrendwasobservedinthetemperatureincreaseofIONPs;asconcentrationincreased,temperatureincreased.IONPs20nmheatedthebestforallconcentrations.Thisminimallyinvasiveandsafehyperthermiccancertreatmentmethodhasgreatpotentialinadministeringsuccessfulcancertreatment.
Bioethanol Production from Encapsulated Active Dry YeastEllen K. KendallNotre Dame Academy, Park Hills, KY, Kentucky JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Sr. Mary Ethel Parrott, Notre Dame Academy
Calciumalginatebeadswerecreatedtoimmobilizeactivedryyeastcommonlyusedinyeastdoughinagrowthmedium.Afterinitialpipet-dripping,adevicewasdesignedtomakebeadsofuniformsizeautomaticallywithanoldfashionedIVdripandtubing.Asodiumalginateandyeastsolutiondrippedintoa0.05Mcalciumchloridesolution,formingbeadswithyeastencapsulatedinside.Thesebeadswerecombinedwitha15%glucosesolutioninaclosedcontainerwithanethanolsensortodetecttheproductionofethanol,abiofuel.Thebeadswereremoved,dried,andtestedagaintoseeiftheycouldsuccessfullyproduceethanolgoingthroughthefermentationprocessmultipletimes.Thebeadscontinuallyproducedethanolbutatreducedratesastheywerereusedsixtimes,showingthatthisresearchispromisingforfuturecontrolled,systematicproductionofthisimportantbiofuel.
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The Effect of Concentration Gradient, Membrane Surface Area, and Temperature on Peak Osmotic Power in a Pressure Retarded Osmosis SystemSzofia E. Komaromy-HillerNotre Dame Academy, Park Hills, KY, Kentucky JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Sister Mary Ethel Parrott, Notre Dame Academy
Pressureretardedosmosis(PRO)providesrenewableenergywithnogreenhousegasemissions.Theefficiencyofanosmoticpowerplantisdependentuponthesemipermeablemembraneandtheosmoticpressuregradient.Thepurposeofthisexperimentwastostudytheeffectofsaltconcentrationgradient,membranesurfacearea,andtemperatureontheosmoticpressuregradientusingasimpleosmosissystem.Athree-levelfullfactorialdesignwithresponsesurfaceanalysiswasusedtooptimizetheindependentvariables.AU-shapedosmosisapparatuswasutilizedwithtapwaterasthefeedsolutionandasalinesolutionasthedrawsolution.Therateofwaterriseinthedrawsolutionwasmeasuredtodeterminewaterflux.ANOVAcalculationsandresponsesurfaceanalysesshowedthatallthreeindependentvariableswerestatisticallysignificantandthatnointeractiontermsbetweenthevariableswerestatisticallysignificant.Anincreaseofthethreeindependentvariablesleadstoincreasedwaterflux.Theeffectofthevariablesneedstobetakenintoconsiderationwhenbuildingosmoticplantsascoldertemperaturesathigherlatitudesandlowsaltconcentrationgradientswilldecreasetheefficiencyofanosmoticplant.Highmembranesurfaceareaandassociatedcostalsoneedtobecarefullybalanced.
Effects of the Environmental Pollutant Acrylic Aldehyde on Renal FibrosisSanjana J. RaneduPont Manual High School, Louisville, KY, Kentucky JSHS
Cigarettesmokehasbeenshowntopromoterenalfibrosisbutthedirecteffectsofacrolein(acrylicaldehyde),aconstituentofcigarettesmokehadnotbeendetermined.Heatshockprotein27(Hsp27)isknowntoregulaterenalfibrosisandNuclearFactorErythroidderivedProtein-2(NF-E2)isanovelHsp27bindingprotein.Therefore,Ihypothesizedthatacroleinwillinducerenalfibrosisbyalteringpro-fibroticCTGFexpressionandHK-11cellapoptosisinaNF-E2dependentmanner.HK-11cellswereexposedtovaryingconcentrationsofacrolein(10µM,25µM,50µM)for24hoursandcelllysateswereimmunoblottedwithanti-CTGF,anti-NF-E2,andanti-cleaved-caspase-3antisera.ExposureofHK-11cellstoacroleinsignificantlyinducedCTGFexpressioninadosedependentmannerwithaconcurrentdecreaseinNF-E2expression.IncreasedNF-E2expressionwasdetectedinacroleintreatedHK-11supernatants.Acroleinalsoinducedcaspase-3cleavageandnuclearcondensationindicativeofapoptosis.IncreasingacroleinconcentrationdecreasedHK-11cellviabilityasdocumentedbyMTTreduction.Over-expressionofNF-E2inhibitedCTGFexpressionandpreventedHK-11apoptosisbyinhibitingcaspase-3cleavage.Thus,mystudiesidentifiedNF-E2asnovelregulatorofacrolein-inducedCTGFexpressionandHK-11apoptosis.Therefore,inducersofNF-E2expressionmayserveatherapeuticroleintreatingrenalfibrosis.
44
Louisiana
The Effect of HPV16 on Host Cell Interactions with the Stromal MicroenvironmentCole H. EvenskyCaddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport, LA, Louisiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kris Clements, Caddo Parish Magnet High School
Interactionsbetweentumorsandthesurroundingstromalmicroenvironmentarenowknowntobeimportantincancerprogression,thoughlittleisknownaboutthemandtheyhaveneverbeenstudiedsystematicallyinhumanpapillomavirus-infectedcells.HPVissimilartocancerinthatitformslesionsandevadesimmunedetection.Stromalcells,likehostcells,canmediatelevelsofsignalingproteinsthatcarryoutfunctionsimportanttoviralsurvival.Toobservetheseinteractions,experimentswereconductedtomeasurechangesinsignalingproteinsinnon-infectedandinfectedkeratinocytes,withandwithoutfibroblasts,whichsimulatedastromalmicroenvironment.Thebroadapproachprovidesanswersandknowledgeabouttheseimportantinteractionsforfuturework.InterestingpatternsestablishasubstantialknowledgebaseabouthowstromalcellsinfluenceproductionofsignalingproteinsinHPVimportantforthingslikegrowth,immuneevasion,andangiogenesis.ProteinlevelsledtoobservationoftheNF-kBpathway,amajorimmuneregulator.kB,itsprimaryinhibitor,wasusedinqPCRtostudyhowpathwayactivityrelatedtolevelsofsignalingproteins.WherekBincreased,pro-inflammatorydownstreamtargetsofNF-kBwereinhibited.Inthefuture,theinhibitionoftheNF-kBpathway,implicatedbythisresearch,willbeinvestigatedinrelationtothepathogenesisofHPV16.
Exit Velocity of a Sphere Falling in Narrow TubesNicholas A. LarsenCaddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport, LA, Louisiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Julian Simeonov, Naval Research Laboratory
Understandingthehydrodynamicforcesoccurringduringparticle-particlecollisionsinviscousfluidsfurthersknowledgeinareassuchasindustrialfluidizedbedsandbedloadsedimenttransportation.Afluidizedbedreactorcanconvertsolidfuelssuchasbiomassorcoalintogasorotherliquidfuels,providingabetterenvironmentforprocessessuchascombustion,andresultinginlesspollutionandwaste.Modelingthehydrodynamicsofbedloadsedimenttransporthasapplicationsindredgingshippingchannels,buildingharbors,andpredictingerosion.Theparticle-ladenflowsofcommercialandgeophysicalsignificancearegenerallyturbulent.ADirectNumericalSimulationcollisionmodelcanaccountforthehydrodynamicforcesinaturbulentparticle-ladenflow,butitisveryexpensive,exceedingthecapacityofsuper-computers.Onemethodtoreducethecomputationalcostistousetheoreticalequationsfortheforcesoccurringwhenthegapbetweentwocollidingparticlesisverysmall.Todeterminethebestlaboratorysetupforexperimentstovalidatethesetheoreticalequations,amethodforcontrollingparticletrajectoriesandminimizingparticlerotationwastested.Water,afluidwithlowviscosity,wasfoundtobeunsuitableforcollisionexperiments.Itisrecommendedthatafluidwithahigherviscosity,suchasglycerol,beusedforfutureparticlecollisionexperiments.
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Factors Influencing Canine Mammary NeoplasiaMorni A. ModiCaddo Magnet High School, Shreveport, LA, Louisiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kris Clements, Caddo Magnet High School
Thepurposeofthisretrospectivestudywastodeterminespecifichostfactorsinfluencingtheprognosisofcaninemammarytumors.Thisresearchisbeingconductedascurrentliteratureisinconclusiveregardingtheassociationbetweenspayingandmammarytumorsindogs.Itwashypothesizedthatintactfemaleswouldhaveincreasedriskofdevelopingmalignantmammarytumorcomparedtospayedfemales.Dataon709dogswithmammarytumorsfrom18differentsiteswerecollectedandanalyzed.Informationpertainingto:breed,dateofbirth,ageatthetimeofdiagnosis,weight,ovarianhysterectomystatus(spaystatus),surgerydate,lengthofstayinclinic,tumortype(benign/malignant),histopathologyresults,andsurvivalstatuswerecollectedonthedogs.Astatisticalanalysiswasperformedtoassessthesignificanceofovarianhysterectomiesonthedevelopmentoftumortype,mortalityandsurvivalrates.Thefindingssuggestthatnobreedismorepronetoacertainhistopathologicalsubtypeoftumor.Spayingfemaledogshasaprotectiveeffectfrombothmalignancyoftumorandmortality.Significantlyloweredmortalityrateswereobservedamongspayeddogsregardlessoftypetumor,malignantorbenign.Resultsalsosuggestthatspayingdogscanleadtoabetterpostsurgicalsurvival.
A Prospective Study of Logarithmic Spirals and HurricanesNeil F. NathanCaddo Magnet High School, Shreveport, LA, Louisiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kris Clements, Caddo Magnet High School
Thepurposeofthisprojectistodetermineifthepitchanglesoflogarithmicspiralsinhurricanescanbeusedtopredicthurricaneintensityprospectivelyandtodetermineiftheexternalpitchanglesaremoreaccuratethantheinternalpitchangles.Thehypothesisisthatthisispossibleusingthepitchanglescaledevisedinapreviousretrospectivestudythatshowedasignificantnegativecorrelation.Logarithmicspiralsweretracedinallhurricanesfromthe2012Atlantichurricaneseason.Pitchanglesweredrawnoneachhurricaneusingboththeexternalandinternallogarithmicspirals.Twopredictionsofultimatehurricaneintensityweremadeforeachhurricaneusingthepitchanglescale.Datawastabulatedandcomparedtoactualhurricaneintensity.StatisticalanalysiswasperformedusingSpearmanRankCorrelationAnalysisandWilcoxonSignedRankTest.Bothofthesetestsyieldedhighlysignificantresults.Thepvaluewas<.01whichisextremelysignificant.Itisconcludedthathurricaneintensitycanbepredictedbyusingthepitchanglescale.Externallogarithmicspiralsprovetobemoreaccuratethantheinternalspirals.Thismethodisveryreliableandsimpleandcanleadtosignificantsavingsintermsoflifeandpropertybyimprovinghurricanepreparedness.
SNAP: A Novel Algorithm for Fast Global Sequence Alignment and Database SearchVenkatesh S. SivaramanCaddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport, LA, Louisiana JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kris Clements, Caddo Parish Magnet High School; Dr. Marjan Trutschl, Louisiana State University at Shreveport
Therehasbeenanexplosionintheamountofgeneticdata(DNAandproteinsequences)availabletobiologistsinthepasttwodecades.Here,anewsequencealignmentalgorithmispresentedthatcomparesgeneticsequencesfasterthanexistingalgorithmswhilemaintainingaccuracy.Thenewalgorithm,calledSegmentedNumericalAlignmentPreprocessing(SNAP),dividesaminoacidsequencesintosmallsegments,thenconvertsthesegmentsintonumbersusinganovelapproximationmethod.Thisapproachsimplifiesthealignmentprocess,allowingmuchfasteranalysisatalower“resolution”thanothermethods.SNAPwastestedalongsidefourotheralgorithms:Needleman-Wunsch(thegoldstandardforaccuracy),simulatedannealing,ageneticmachinelearningalgorithm,andBLAST.Fortwotestdatasets,onecontaining189sequencesandtheotherwith6,724sequences,tenquerysequenceswereprocessedbyeachalgorithmtofindthehighest-scoringalignmentsinthedataset.Intermsofaccuracy,SNAPwassuperiortosimulatedannealingandthegeneticalgorithmandcomparabletoBLAST.Italsoperformedonaverage70timesfasterthanBLAST.Basedonthesefindings,itisproposedthatSNAPisaviablealternativetoBLASTforsearchingtoday’svastsequencedatabases.
46
Maryland
Implementing a Novel Approach for Inferring Haplotypes from Genotype Data while Modeling their Evolution in PopulationsAyush GoyalPoolesville High School, Poolesville, MD, Maryland JSHS
Theabilitytoaccuratelyandefficientlyinferhaplotypes,stringsofsingle-nucleotide-polymorphisms,givengenotypedataopensdoorsforamultitudeofcuresforgeneticallyinheriteddisease.Knowledgeoftheexacthaplotypesoftheindividualsinadiseasecarryingpopulationgiveslighttothespecificmutationsthathavecausedthediseasestooriginate.Distinguishingthesemutationswouldallowscientiststoanalyzetheirbiologicalmechanismsandmoreefficientlyandeffectivelyresolvetreatmentsandcures.However,haplotypeinferencehasbeenacontinuingeffortinoptimizingefficiencyandaccuracy.PreviousalgorithmssuchastheExpectationMaximizationalgorithmandClark’salgorithmhaveusedpurelymathematicalapproachestothecombattheinferenceissue,findinggreatefficiencybutfalteringintermsofaccuracy.ThisresearchproposesanewmethodofinferencewhichintroducesageneticcalculationofcoalescencewithaGibbs-Samplerstatisticalandcombinatoricbasistoimprovetheoverallprocess.Thecoalescencecalculationisessentiallyaprocessineachiterationofthealgorithmthatcheckswhetherornotagivenhaplotypecanexistbyreconstructingtheevolutionarytreeofalloftheknownhaplotypes.Aftertestingthealgorithmthroughmodeledhaplotypedataandstatisticaltests,thenewapproachprovedtobepromisinginitsabilitytoexciserareandnonexistenthaplotypes.Itwasabletonarrowdowntheamountofextraneoushaplotypesinferredineachtest.Thesepropertiesrevealedthatthisnewdirectioniseffectiveinmakingtheinferencemoreaccurate,butitmustcontinuetobeexploredandexpandedupon.
Microglial shape postnatal reward circuits through phagocytosis of presynaptic terminalsIsobel A. HawesScience and Mathematics Academy at Aberdeen High School, Aberdeen, MD, Maryland JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Lindsay De Biase, National Institute on Drug Abuse; Antonello Bonci, National Institute on Drug Abuse
MicrogliaareglialcellsthatwerelongthoughttofunctionmainlyinclearingcellulardebrisfromtheCNS.Duringdevelopment,excesssynapsesareremovedthroughaprocesscalledpruning,butmechanismsunderlyingthisprocessarepoorlydefined.Recentstudiesindicatethatmicrogliainthehippocampus(Paolicelli,2011)andvisualsystem(Schafer,2012)contributetosynapticpruningthroughphagocytosisofsynapses.Iinvestigatedwhethermicrogliaparticipateinpruninginthedevelopingrewardcircuitry,whichregulatesgoal-directedbehaviors.Incontrasttothevisualsystem,microgliainthenucleusaccumbens(NAc)phagocytoseVGlut2+terminalsthroughadolescence.Intheventraltegmentalarea(VTA),pruningtakesplaceoverashorterperiodoftimethantheNAc,butatamuchlatertimepointthanthevisualsystem.Pruningofinhibitorypresynapticinputstakesplaceinadifferentwaythanexcitatoryinputs.IntheNAc,VGATpruningtakespeaksatP22.Thesedatasuggestauniquetimecourseacrossbrainregionsandpopulationsofterminals,whichisanovelfinding.WhenmicrogliaareablatedinmiceatP22,theyshowastrongtrendtowardsanxiety-likebehaviorsanddysfunctionaladdictivebehaviors.Together,thesefindingsprovidethefirstevidenceofmicroglialinvolvementinmaturationoftherewardcircuitry.
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Creating a Synthetic Mitochondrial Genome: Validation of a Lithium Acetate Transformation Technique to Integrate Foreign DNA into Yeast MitochondriaJohn MountainBaltimore Polytechnic Institute, Baltimore, MD, Maryland JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Pamela Meluh, Johns Hopkins Medical Institute; David Nelson, Baltimore Polytechnic Ingenuity Project; Jef Boeke, Johns Hopkins Medical Institute
Thegenomeofanorganism,allofitsDNA,isthedirectorofthecell’ssynthesis.BymodifyingthespecificnitrogenousbasesequencesintheDNA,cellpartscanberedesigned,eliminated,orcreated,allowingforcellandorganismspecializationforsocietalfunctions.AsignificantproblemthatscientistsdealwithinvolvinggenesequenceresearchisthedifficultyofgettingexternalDNAintocellstotestthefunctionalityoftheDNA.ThisprojectfocusesonachemicaltransformationprocedurethatcouldenterforeignDNAintothemitochondriaofyeastcells.AselectablemarkerARG8mwasligatedtoacarrierplasmid.Theparentalstrainofyeast,JMY001-C,lackstheARG8genethatisnecessarytobreakdowncarbonsources.ThechemicaltransformationswerecompletedtoinserttheARG8mmarkerintotheARG8-deficientcells.Thesetransformantswereplatedonplatesthatlackedarginine,sothatARG8deficientcellswoulddieandARG8positivecellswouldgrow.EachplategrewhundredsofARG8positivecells,supportingthatthechemicaltransformationtechniquewassuccessfulandeffectiveininsertingexternalDNAintotheyeastcells.
Control of the Massively Parallel Reliability SystemJerry L. ZhangPoolesville High School, Poolesville, MD, Maryland JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Zakarie Chbili, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Thegatedielectricreliabilityisakeyparameterintheviabilityofmetal-oxide-semiconductorfieldeffecttransistors(MOSFETs).Thecurrentmethodsfortestinggatedielectricsareexpensiveandrequirealargespace.Thisprojectsinvolvesworkingontheimplementationofanewsystemthatwouldallowforthereliabilitytestingofalargenumberofgatestackssimultaneouslyinaparallelfashion.Inadditiontothelargesavingsincostandspace,thesystemwouldallowforcustomizationintestsettingsanddataprocessing.
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Michigan (Southeastern)
Reflection Functions as Approximants of Chebyshev PolynomialsElla M. FreudenburgKalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center, Kalamazoo, MI, Michigan (Southeastern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Gene Freudenburg, Western Michigan University
ThisprojectexploredtheconnectionbetweenreflectionfunctionsandChebyshevpolynomials.Reflectionfunctionsdescribethelawofreflectionfromphysics,andtheirdefinitionwasasignificantprojectoutcome.Anotherimportantresultwastheproofthat,likeChebyshevpolynomials,thesefunctionscommuteundercomposition.Otherproperties,suchasevenandoddpropertiesandparametrization,paralleledChebyshevpolynomialsaswell;essentially,itwasdeterminedthatreflectionfunctionsare“straight-lineversions”oftheseimportantpolynomials.Inaddition,followingtheworkofCherraultandMora,theprojectshowedthattheplanecurvesdefinedbyreflectionfunctionsareextremelyefficientdensifyingcurves.ByusingMaple16softwareandaphysicalmodel,theresearcherwasabletovisualizeandgaininsightsintoreflectionfunctions.Forexample,inthree-dimensionalspace,thecurvestheyparametrizearepiecewiselinearknots,andtheknottypeisthesameasthatdefinedbythecorrespondingChebyshevpolynomials.Reflectionfunctionshavemanyphysicalandpotentialapplications,mostnotablyincomputerscience.
The Effect of Seed Quality on the Foraging Behavior and Communication in the Black- Capped Chickadee Population.Bethel A. MwenzeKalamazoo Area Math and Science Center, Kalamazoo, MI, Michigan (Southeastern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. John Goudie, Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center; Dr. Sharon Gill, Depart-ment of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University
The“chick-a-dee”callofmanyParidaespeciestheseincludethechickadeesisstructurallycomplexandfunctionsinsocialcohesivenessandinteractions.Literaturesuggeststhatvocalizationsrelatetoawidevarietyofcontexts.TheBlack-cappedchickadeebirdspeciesvocalizescomplexcallswhentheydiscoverfoodsources.Thesecallsfunctiontocontact,recruitandoralertflockmembersaboutanewlyfoundfoodsource.ThisstudytestedtheeffectoffoodsourcequalityontheforagingcallsandhowthataffectedtheforagingbehavioroftheBlack-cappedChickadeepopulation.Byobservingtheinitialcallsmadeandobservingtheforagingbehaviorexhibited.Regardingthecommunicationofthechickadeepopulationthisobservationalfieldstudyfoundthetseetcontactcalltobethemostproducedcalldespitechangeinseedquality.Theforagingbehaviorofthechickadeesdidnotchangeastheseedqualityvariedwhichmakesthisstudycontrastthestudiesinliterature.Sincethisisapreliminarystudy,theresultsarenotconclusive.
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The Knocking Down of Histone Acetyltransferase MOF is Insufficient to Suppress CGG Repeat-Induced Toxicity in the Fly Model of FXTASSam NatlaOkemos High School, Okemos, MI, Michigan (Southeastern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Fang He, University of Michigan; Peter Todd, University of Michigan; Andrew Moore, Okemos High School
InfragileX-associatedtremor/ataxiasyndrome(FXTAS),moderateCGGrepeatexpansioninthe5’UTRofFMR1leadstoneurodegenerationinhumans.TheisolatedCGGexpansioniscapableofelicitingtoxicityinDrosophila.FXTASiscausedbyelevatedCGGrepeat-containingFMR1transcription.Studiesshowthatelevatedhistoneacetylationbyhistoneacetyltransferases(HATs)isresponsibleforincreasedFMR1mRNAlevels.AcetylationofhistoneproteinsopenschromatinstructureandmakesgenesmoreaccessibletoRNApolymeraseIItostarttranscription.OverexpressionofexpandedCGGrepeatsissuppressedbyhighlevelofhistonedeacetylases(HDACs),showninDrosophila,indicatingthatsimilarhighlevelsofacetylationappearinDrosophila.WeutilizedtheflymodelofFXTAStoexploreanHATpotentiallyresponsibleforCGGrepeattoxicity.WefoundthatadecreaseofoneDrosophilaHAT,MOF,byRNAknockdown(RNAi)wasinsufficienttoreduceCGGrepeattoxicity.UsingqRT-PCR,weconfirmedthedecreaseofMOFgeneexpressioninRNAilinesandnoticedsuchadecreasewasnotabletodecreaseCGGrepeat-containingRNAexpression.Moreover,decreasedMOFexpressioncouldnotsuppressCGGrepeattoxicity.Thus,weareledtobelievethatotherHATsmayberesponsiblefortheincreasedacetylationandexpressionpresentinFXTAS.
The Toxin in Rice- Arsenic in Our Food: Developing a Novel Testing Method and Analyzing Arsenic Levels in RiceAnuush K. VejallaDetroit Country Day Upper School, Beverly Hills, MI, Michigan (Southeastern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr.Hanlan, Detroit Country Day Upper School; John Dougherty, Detroit Country Day Upper School
Theaimoftheprojectistounderstandthecontentofarsenicinriceandtofurnishrecommendationsbasedonstatisticalandexperimentalresultstobothgovernmentsandusersallovertheworld.Arsenicisadeadlytoxinthatleadstocancer,heartproblems,anddeath.Sincethereisnotanypublishedmethodtoquantifythelevelsofinorganicarsenicinrice,anoveltestingmethodwasdevelopedthroughexperimentalandtheoreticalmeans.Theformationofthericegraindependsonthesoil,fertilizer,water,pesticide,andthelocationofcultivation,whichallneedtobeconsideredtounderstandarseniclevelsinrice.Thustoverifyonehypothesis,thatricegrowndomesticallywouldcontainhigherlevelsofarsenicthanricegrowninforeigncountries,ricefromdifferentpartsoftheworldwastested.Anotherhypothesis,thatbrownricewouldhavehigherlevelsofarsenicthanwhiterice,wasverifiedbytestingbrown,black,andwhiterice.ThericehadfourtoninetimestheEPAlimitonarsenicinwater,10ppb.Theresultsshowthatbrownricehashigherlevelsofarsenicthanwhiterice,butthecorrelationbetweenwherethericeisgrownandthelevelofarsenicvaries.
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Functional Network Connectivity and Evoked Responses to Gaze Cueing: Possible Biomarkers to AutismFrank WangTroy High School, Troy, MI, Michigan (Southeastern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mentor - Susan Bowyer, Henry Ford Hospital
Autismisacomplexneurodevelopmentaldisorderthataffectssocialinteractionandcommunication,oftenimpairingindividualsforalifetime.Inthestudy,IusedMagnetoencephalography(MEG),anon-invasivebrainimagingtechnique,toidentifypossiblebiomarkers.Intherestingstatetest,patientslookedatanimagewhilebrainactivitywasrecorded.Intheevokedstatetest,responsestovisualeyegazecueswererecorded.Fortherestingstate,patientswithautismhadanabnormalconcentrationofactivityinthefrontallobewhilecontrolshadactivityconcentratedintheoccipitallobe.Controlsalsohadsignificantlyhighercoherencelevels.Ahighcoherenceindicatesthatthebrainiswellconnectedandcommunicatingwithmanyotherareasofthebrain.Inpatientswithautism,thefrontallobewasunusuallyactive.Thisareaistypicallyusedinhigher-levelcognition.Fortheevokedstudy,autisticshadnoticeablyhigheramplitudesinallregionsusedinthegazecueingprocess.Theseresultssuggestthattheautisticsweremorefocusedonanunknowntask,andusedmorebrainpowertocompleteadecisionintheevokedtasks.Theseregionsofabnormalbrainactivityindicatepossiblebiomarkersforautism.
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Missouri
Determining the Effects of Oxidizing Graphene on the Efficiency of Dye Sensitized Solar CellsDaniel M. HallCamdenton High School, Camdenton, MO, Missouri JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Reeves, Camdenton High School
Aroundtheworld,theneedfornewformsofenergyisgrowing.Ashydrocarbonbasedformsofenergyarebecomingmoreexpensivefortheaverageconsumertobeabletoaffordpurchase,aneedforalternativeenergysourceshasrisen.OnesuchalternativeformofenergythatisbeingproposedisthatofDyeSensitizedSolarCells(DSSC).Muchresearchhasbeendonetoincreasetheefficiencyofthesecells;howeverresearchpertainingtooxidizinggrapheneinDSSCshasnotbeenextensivelyexplored.Thepurposeofthispaperistoexperimentandinvestigatetheeffectsofoxidizinggrapheneanditsefficiencycomparedtoplatinumandnon-oxidizedgraphene.Theoxidizedsolarcellscontainedgraphenethathadbeenoxidizedatseveraltimeintervals.Thiswastoexaminethedifferencesofefficiencyasthegraphenewasslowlyoxidized.Thecontrolgroupsthatwereusedtocomparetheoxidizedgraphenetowerethreesetsofregularnon-oxidizedgraphenecells,andthreeplatinumbasedcells.Resultsfromthisexperimentindicatethatoxidizinggrapheneusingheatdidnotimproveefficiencyofthecell.Thisisshownbythedropinvoltageasthegraphenewasoxidizedattheten,twenty,andthirtyminutemarks.
The Impact of Inclusion Programs for High School Students with and without Special NeedsKatherine E. HufkerLindbergh High School, St. Louis, MO, Missouri JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kimberley Dailey, Lindbergh High School; Megan Roegner, Lindbergh High School
Thisprojectsoughttoinvestigatetheimpactofaninclusionprogramwherestudentswithandwithoutdevelopmentaldisabilitieseatlunchtogethertwiceaweekonthesocialskillsandmentalwell-beingofthestudentswithdevelopmentaldisabilitiesandthetypicallydevelopingstudents’attitudestowardsspecialneeds.Scoreswereobtainedatthebeginningoftheschoolyearandaftersixweeksofparticipationornointervention.AsmeasuredusingtheAutismSpectrumQuotientQuestionnaire,therewaslittleimprovementinsocialskills,althoughthecontrolgroupshowedagreaterimprovementonthecommunicationsubscale(p=.016).AsmeasuredusingGoodman’sStrengthsandDifficultiesQuestionnaire,thecontrolgroupimprovedmoreontheemotionalsubscale(p=.029).Theinterventiongroupdidshowagreaterdecreaseinpeerproblems,butitwasnotstatisticallysignificant(p>.05).Finally,thenon-disabledpeersimprovedmorethanthecontrolgrouponthreeoffourfactorsoftheAttitudesTowardIntellectualDisabilityQuestionnaire,withasignificantdifference(p=.007)forknowledgeofcapacityandrights.Futureresearchshouldutilizealongerinterventionperiod.Thisresearchsupportsthatinclusionprogramsincreasethenon-disabledstudents’knowledgeofthecapacityofthosewithspecialneedsandmaydecreasepeerproblemsforthosewithspecialneeds.
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Investigation of Enantioselective Solvation of Chiral α-hydroxyphosphonates by Cinchona Alkaloids by Nuclear Magnetic Resolution SpectroscopyJohn L. O’KeefeMaplewood Richmond Heights, St. Louis, MO, Missouri JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Bruce Hamper, University of Missouri St. Louis; Kathleen Dwyer, Maplewood Rich-mond Heights
NuclearMagneticResonance(NMR)spectroscopywasusedtoobservethemolecularinteractionsbetweenchirala-hydroxyphosphonateestersandcinchonaalkaloids(quinineandquinidine).Evaluationofcinchonaalkaloidsasselectivechiralsolvatingagents(CSAs)forenantiomerica-hydroxyphosphonateswasdeterminedbymeasurementofthechemicalshiftofthephosphorusinthe31P-NMRspectra.Changesinchemicalshiftoftheenantiomericphosphonateestersweremeasuredrelativetotheconcentrationofthecinchonaalkaloids.DeterminationofthebindingconstantsKforeachphosphonateenantiomerwiththeCSAwasdeterminedbyevaluationofNMRtitrationdatausingadoubleinversionplot.Differencesinbindingenergyofthetwodiastereomericsolvatesweredetermineddirectlyfromthebindingconstants.
The Effect of Aging on the Differentiation Potentials of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal ProgenitorsOlivia LongJohn Burroughs School, Saint Louis, MO, Missouri JSHS
Amaincauseforage-dependentosteoporosisisdecreasedosteoblastnumberandfunction.However,itisnotclearwhetherthedeficiencyarisesfromintrinsicdefectsinprogenitorsorchangesinthebonemarrowmicroenvironment.Thepresentstudyutilizesbonemarrowprogenitorsfrommicetoinvestigateosteoblastdifferentiation.Furthermore,sincemorefatisobservedinthemarrowofolderpeople,Ihypothesizethatcellsfromoldermicedifferentiatelessefficientlyintoosteoblastsandmoreefficientlyintoadipocytes.Bonemarrowprogenitorcellsfrommiceaged2,5,12and24monthswereculturedinspecificmediatodifferentiatethemintoeitheradipocytesorosteoblasts.Stainingforalkalinephosphataseactivity,amarkerforosteoblasts,revealedthatcellsfromthe24-old-monthmiceshowedthegreatestextentofdifferentiation.qPCRforotherosteoblastmarkersconfirmedthisfinding.Moreover,qPCRanalysesforadipocytemarkersdidnotdetectanobviousincreaseinadipocytedifferentiationwithage.Therefore,bonemarrowprogenitorsfromtheoldestmicewerenotintrinsicallydeficientinosteoblastdifferentiation,norweretheymorepronetoadipocytedifferentiation.Thus,extrinsicfactorsmaybeamaindeterminantforage-dependentosteoporosis.
Generating And Computing Perfect Phylogenies Using Saturated ChainsEzra Umen and Yang LiuLadue Horton Watkins High School, Ladue, MO, Missouri JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: John Pais, Ladue Horton Watkins Highschool; James Umen, Danforth Plant Science Center
Aphylogenetictreeisarootedtreeinwhicheachcharacterlabelsexactlyoneedge(oronevertex)ofthetreeandeachtaxonisrepresentedbyauniquepathtoexactlyoneleafofthetree.Givenacollectionofcharactersandtaxa,thePerfectPhylogenyProblemistodeterminewhetherornotthereisaphylogenetictreethatfaithfullyrepresentsthisdata.Insteadofthestandardapproachusing0-1matrices,thispaperrecaststheproblemintermsofpartialordersofsetsofattributes(characters).Usingsaturatedchainsofsetsofattributes,aPhylogenyRepresentationTheoremisprovedforperfectphylogenies,andaPhylogenyEquivalenceTheoremisproveddemonstratingtheequivalencebetweenthesaturatedchainapproachandthestandardrepresentation.Furthermore,severalinterestingcombinatorialresultsusingStirlingNumbersandgeneratingfunctionsareprovedinanattempttoenumeratethenumberofpossible(extended)perfectphylogenies.Anothergoalofthisworkisthecomputationaltestingandvisualizationofphylogenetictrees.UsingLSDradixsort,versionsofGusfield’salgorithmsareimplementedintheJavaprogramminglanguageinordertocomputationallydeterminewhetherasetofattributes/traitscanformaperfectphylogeny,andiftheycan,howtoconstructthisperfectphylogeny.
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Determining the Behavioral Response of Drosophila melanogaster to Blue Light (470nm) as a Wake Enhancing StimulusSydney L. ZuraskiCamdenton High School, Camdenton, MO, Missouri JSHS
Findingtimetosleepisbecomingstrenuous.Aphotopigmentintheeyewasdiscoveredtoberesponsibleforreactingtolight(Benowitz,2001).Technologyoutputslargeamountsofbluewavelengthsthroughscreens.(Cajochen,2011).Withbluewavelengthshypothesizedtoaffectourcircadianpatterns,useoftechnologyispotentiallyinitiatinglongerwakefulnessperiodswithaloweramountofmelatoninproduced.Bluewavelengthscouldplayavitalroleinthefutureinprovidingwakefulness.Thisexperimentattemptedtodeterminethebehavioraleffectsofbluewavelengthsaswakeenhancingstimuli.Atestingunitwascreatedwherebluelightandvisiblelightwereexposedtofruitflies.Fruitflieswerechosenduetotheirsimilaritiesinmammaliansleep(Cirelli,2006).Theseparatedchambersdisallowedlighttoescapefromindividualunits.Photosweretakenattimedintervalsofthefruitfliesdocumentingtheireffectstothewavelengths.Bluelighthadasignificant(p<0.05)effectonfruitflieswhenprovidingincreasedactivity.Resultsindicatethatexposuretobluelightcouldpossiblyplayanimportantroleinourliveswhenincorporatedinsituationswherewakefulnessiscrucial.Bluelightscouldrevolutionizenightshifts,andcollectedresultscouldinformpeopleofthepossibleeffectsofbluelight.
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New Jersey (Monmouth)
Creating an Accurate Analytical Tool for the Efficiencies of Various Fuel CellsAdedayo R. GbadamosiMarine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science, Manahawkin, NJ, New Jersey (Monmouth) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. John Wnek, Marine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science
Fuelcellsareelectrochemicaldevicesthatconvertchemicalenergyintoelectricitythroughachemicalreactionwithoxygenoranotheroxidizingagent.However,becauseofthedrasticvarietyinfueluse,analyticaltoolsusedtodeterminefuelcellefficienciesareoftengeneralizedacrossallfuelcells,thusrenderingtheminaccurate.Thisprojectdetailsthefabricationofananalyticaltoolusedtoaccuratelydeterminetheefficienciesofavarietyoffuelscells.Inaddition,theprojectdescribestheassessmentandcomparisonoftheefficienciesofvariousfuelcells.Subsequently,efficiencywascalculatedbytheratioofoutputreactionenergytoinputreactionenergy.Furthermore,thisstudycomparedtheefficienciesofthetwodifferentfuelcellsaswellasfoundacorrelationbetweenmethanolfuelconcentrationandfuelcellefficiencyforthedirectmethanolfuelcell(DMFC).TheresultsofthisresearchindicatethattheDMFCissignificantlymoreefficientthanaprotonexchangemembranefuelcell(PEMFC),andefficienciesofvariousfuelcellscanbemoreaccuratelydeterminedintheenergyindustrythroughthefabricationofamorepreciseanalyticaltool.Theresultsofthisprojectwillhelpreformtheenergyindustryincreatingmoreefficientsourcesofenergybothnationallyandglobally.
Investigating the Therapeutic Mechanism of Angiogenin in Alzheimer’s DiseaseSang Hyun KimBergen County Academies, Hackensack, NJ, New Jersey (Monmouth) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Donna Leonardi, Bergen County Academies
InvestigatingtheTherapeuticMechanismofAngiogenininAlzheimer’sDiseaseSangHyunKimBergenCountyAcademies,Hackensack,NewJerseyMentor:Mrs.DonnaLeonardi,BergenCountyAcademiesAngiogenin,apotentagonistofneovascularization,hasbeenimplicatedinthepathogenesisofvariousneurodegenerativedisorders,includingParkinson’sdisease(PD)andamyotrophiclateralsclerosis(ALS).ArecentstudyhasshownthattheserumlevelofangiogeninisdirectlycorrelatedwiththecognitivefunctionsofpatientswithAlzheimer’sdisease(AD),suggestingthatangiogeninmayplayaroleinADaswell.However,itsmechanismofaction,independentofitsregulatoryeffectsonneovascularization,isunknown.UsinganinvitromodelsystemofAD,thisstudyidentifiedapossiblemechanismofactionofangiogenininvolvingboththelevelofphosphorylatedtauandbeta-amyloid(Aß)production,eachofwhichplayacriticalroleintheprogressionofthedisease.ExogenousangiogeninreducedtauphosphorylationandAßproductionwithstatisticalsignificance(p<0.05),byregulatingtheactivitiesofAKTandglycogensynthasekinase3ß(GSK3ß).Theseresultsprovidenewinsighttoangiogenin’spotentialasaviablemulti-targetedtherapeuticagentforAD.
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The Cellular Pathways Mediating the Anti-Tumor Effects of Paeonia suffruticosa on Human Breast Cancer CellsDongyeon KimBergen County Academies, Hackensack, NJ, New Jersey (Monmouth) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Donna Leonardi, Bergen County Academies
ExtractsofPaeoniasuffruticosa,traditionallyusedinChineseherbalmedicine,havedemonstratedanti-tumor,anti-inflammatoryandanalgesiceffectsofunknownmechanisms.ThepresentinvestigationstudiedandelucidatedpotentialapoptoticmechanismsofaqueousextractofP.suffruticosa(0.3-8mg/mL)ontriplenegativebreastcancercells(MDA-MB-231).Analysisofcellviabilityrevealedabiphasicdose-responsewithproliferationatlowconcentrations(<0.6mg/mL)anddecreasedviabilityathighconcentrations(p<0.01).IL-6,IL-2,andTNF-alphasecretionlevelswereinverselyrelatedtoviability(p<0.05).CellcyclearrestatG0/G1wasdemonstrated.IL-24,atumorsuppressorprotein,increasedathighconcentrations(p<0.05),indicatingasignificantcellularmechanism.ThedecreaseinBcl-2:Baxratio(p<0.01)indicatedtheinductionofapoptosis.FasLigandproductionandcaspase9secretionlevelsdemonstratedanintrinsicmechanismofaction(p<0.05).ThereductionofpAKT(p<0.05)suggestedthemechanismofcelldeaththroughJNK1/2pathway.WhenevaluatedbyHPLC,resultsrevealedpenta-O-galloyl-beta-D-glucose(PGG),benzoicacidandpaeonolastheactiveconstituents.TheireffectsonviabilityshowedthatPGGandpaeonolmaybetheactiveingredientspromptingapoptosis.P.suffruticosaandPGGhasaselectiveeffectoncancercellsdemonstratedthroughitseffectonviabilityinkeratinocytes.P.suffruticosamightbeapromisingagentfortriplenegativebreastcancertreatmentorasanadjuncttoconventionaltherapies.
An Analysis of Tweets for the Presidential DebatesKunal V. SinghHigh Technology High School, Lincroft, NJ, New Jersey (Monmouth) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Michael T. Roche, High Technology High School
The2012U.S.presidentialelection,peopleusedTwittertorespondtothepresidentialdebates.GivenTwitter’s140-characterlimit,werepeopleabletorespondinanymeaningfulway?Mynullhypothesiswasthattherewasnocorrelationbetweenthenumberoftimesacandidatementionedatopicduringadebateandthenumberoftweetshereceivedaboutthattopic.Icollectedover2milliontweetsandthetranscriptsforthethreepresidentialdebatesheldinOctober2012.Iconstructedasetoftopicsbasedonthecontentdiscussedinthedebates.Ananalysisofthenumberofmentionsofatopicinthefirsttwodebatesbyacandidateandthenumberofmentionsofthattopicinthetweetsforthatcandidateshowsthattheyarepositivelycorrelated(Spearman’scoefficient:.8177)withap-value<0.0001,rejectingthenullhypothesis.Further,usingthefirsttwodebatesasthetrainingsetandthethirddebateasatestset,Idesignedpredictorsthatwillpredictthenumberoftweetsforatopicgiventhenumberofmentionsofthattopic.Myworkhelpstounderstandpeople’sresponsetothe2012presidentialdebatesandhasapplicationsinpredictingirregularactivityonTwitter.
Development and Analysis of a Double Displacement Method to Detect Nitrates, Sulfates, and Phosphates.Tony ZhengMarine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science, Manahawkin, NJ, New Jersey (Monmouth) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: John Wnek, MATES Academy; Datta Naik, Monmouth University
Waterisvitalforlife,therefore,maintainingthehealthofourwaterisessential.Nutrientsareconsideredamajorthreattothehealthofwaterbodiesworldwide.Therearenumerousmethodsestablishedtodetectfornutrients;however,manyofthemareextremelycostlypertest,qualitative,takea2hourperiodorlonger,and/oraredifficulttofundforlongperiodsoftime.Thisstudyincludesthedevelopmentandevaluationofanovelmethodtodetectnutrients.Toassessthenovelmethod,SO2,NO,andPO3ionsweretestedandcompared.Forty-sixwatersamplesweregatheredfromtheMetedeconkRiver,NJandaBrickMUA,NJtapwatersource.SamplesweretestedusingthenovelmethodagainstaLaMotteSMART2Colorimeter.ResultswerethencomparedtotheBrickMUA’sstatelabtestmethods.Resultssuggestthatthenovelmethodwassixtimesmoreaccurateandover3,000timemorecostefficientcomparedtotheColorimeter.TheresultswerealsosignificantlysimilarastheBrickstatelaboratoryresultswithlesscost($0.005/testvs$50.00/test).Overall,resultssuggestthatthenovelmethodcouldbeapossiblemethodtodetectnutrientspresentinwaterbodies.
56
New Jersey (Northern)
Characterization of Nitrogen Plasma Treated and Amide Functionalized Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes for Enhanced Photothermal ApplicationsAditya BalajiBergen County Academies, Hackensack, NJ, New Jersey (Northern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Jean Patrick Antoine, Rutgers University
Multi-walledcarbonnanotubes(MWCNTs)canphotothermallykillcancercellsowingtotheirstrongabsorptioninthenear-infrared(NIR)region,thusavertingsomeofthesideeffectsofcurrentcancertreatments.Nitrogen-dopedMWCNTsviachemicalvapordepositionhavebeensuggestedasgoodcandidatesforhighNIRabsorption,butmassproductionofthesecouldbecost-prohibitive.Inthisstudy,alternativemethodsofincorporatingnitrogenintoMWCNTswereattemptedusingnitrogenplasmaandamidefunctionalization.NIRspectroscopyofnitrogenplasmaMWCNTsshowedapronouncedabsorptionpeakat959nm,whichcanbeattributedasathirdovertoneC≡Nstretch,whileamidefunctionalizedMWCNTsrevealedtheircharacteristicN-Hstretchingovertonefrom900nmtothevisiblerange.InordertoinvestigatethecorrelationbetweenNIRabsorptionandtemperatureincrease,threedifferentMWCNTs(nitrogenplasmatreated,amidefunctionalized,andplain;alldispersedinwaterandsurfactantat1mg/mLconcentration)wereexposedtobroadbandNIRradiationwhiletheirtemperaturesweremonitoredover15minutes.ThenitrogenplasmaMWCNTsgeneratedastatisticallysignificantincreaseintemperaturecomparedtoothers.TheresultssuggestthatnitrogenplasmatreatedMWCNTscancoupleenergymoreefficiently,andwarrantmorefutureinvestigation.NitrogenplasmatreatedMWCNTsmayprovetobekeyfactorinmakingphotothermaltherapyamorecost-effectiveandviableoptionforcancerpatients.
Development of a Novel, Safe Method for In Vitro Re-creation of the Tooth Enamel LayerLaura Beth FultonEgg Harbor Township High School, Egg Harbor Township, NJ, New Jersey (Northern) JSHS
Centeringontheinnovativeconceptofprovidingare-createdenamellayer,Iestablishedaviable,enamelsolutionwithabiologicallycompatiblebondingagent.Toothenamelprotectsunderlyingdentinagainstdentalcariesanderosionwhichpermanentlyexposeteethtodeterioration.Ameloblasts,cellsthatmaketoothenamel,areinertaftermatureenamelformation;nocurrentmethodshaveprovensuccessful,safeorcosteffectivetore-formtheenamellayeroncedamaged.Replicatingenamel’sstructureandbondprovesdifficult;enamel’scomposition-hydroxyapatite(HA),easilysynthesized,isachalkywhitepowderwithoutbondingability.Hypothesis:throughdevelopmentofanovelenamelsolutionusingabiologicallycompatiblebondingagent,artificialenamelcanbecreatedandappliedinsimulatedinvitroconditionsandassessedtodetermineefficacy.Chemicalcharacterizationandadherencetoteethwasdetermined:X-raydiffractionidentifiedchemicalcomposition;Microleakagetestsrevealedenamelbonddurabilityequivalenttonaturalenamel’s;VickersHardnessconcludedenamelanddentinbondstructurerivalstrue,naturalenamel;SEManalysisrevealedrod-bondedstructuresidenticaltonaturalenamel’s.Adherenceof30secondswhenphotoionized:decreasesbacterialinfectionrisk,increasesmicroleakageresistance.Thehypothesiswassupported.Re-createdenamelshieldsteethagainstcavities,providesinsulationtotemperature,protectsteethindailyuse,andimprovesoverallhealth.
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Visible Hertz-level optical beatsJiyoun J. HaTenafly High School, Tenafly, NJ, New Jersey (Northern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Helen Coyle, Tenafly High School; Professor Tanya Zelevinsky, Columbia Univer-sity
Toillustratethewavenatureoflight,physicsinstructorsareoftenlimitedtostaticdemonstrationsofalightinterferencepattern.Thisnovelprojectpresentsalecturehalldemonstrationofthewavelikenatureoflightcreatingavisiblebeatseffect.WhilethedemonstrationofvisibleHertz-levelopticalbeatshasbeenwrittenaboutbefore,thisstudypresentsanewdesignwherethedemonstrationwasbuiltsimply,compactly,andrelativelyinexpensivelybyusingopticalcomponentscommonlyfoundinmanylaserphysicslabswithouttheuseandexpenseofaphotodetector.AninterferometerintheMach-Zehnderconfigurationwasconstructedandmodifiedtoincorporateanacousto-opticmodulatorineachofthelegs.Theacousto-opticmodulatorDoppler-shiftsthefrequencyofincominglightbyscatteringphotonsfrommovingdiffractiongratingformedbyradiofrequency(RF)-inducedtravelingpressurewavesinacrystal,causingafrequencyshiftexactlyequaltoachosenRFdrivefrequencywhichwasaroundthevisible1Hz.Thisinterferometeralsoprovidesastrikingillustrationoflight’swavenatureasitstwoprojectionsareexactlyoutofphase.Thisdemonstrationwasconstructed,tested,andshowntobeaconvenientclassroomdemonstrationofopticalbeatfrequency,whichisrarelyseenoutsideaspecializedphysicslab.
Resistance of Long-Term Survival Phase Cells to Oxidative StressPaige HammellMontville Township High School, Montville, NJ, New Jersey (Northern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Salazar, Montville Township High School
RecentstudieshaveshownthatListeriabacteriaenterintoalong-termsurvival(LTS)phasewhennutrientsintheirenvironmentaredepleted.IthasalsobeenshownthatinthisLTSphase,Listeriaareresistanttomanyenvironmentalstresses,suchastemperatureandpressurestresses.TheobjectiveofmyresearchwastodetermineifLTSphasecellsofListeriaInnocua(LI)aremoreresistanttooxidativestressthanlogandstationaryphasecells.LIcellswereincubatedat35degreesCelsiusuntilthecellshadreachedlog,stationary,andLTSphase,thenweretreatedwithvariousconcentrationsofhydrogenperoxide(0.5%and1%)for30minutes.Contrarytoexpectations,LTSphasecellswerenotmoreresistanttothehydrogenperoxide;bothLTSandlogphasecellswerehighlysusceptibletothehydrogenperoxide.Interestingly,theseresultsindicatethatstationary,notLTS,phasecellswerethemostresistanttooxidativestress.
A New Fibonacci-Like Sequence Of Composite NumbersJaesung SonRidgewood High School, Ridgewood, NJ, New Jersey (Northern) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dan Ismailescu, Hofstra University
Anintegersequence(xn)n_0issaidtobeFibonacci-likeifitsatisfiesthebinaryrecurrencerelation
xn=xn–1+xn–2;n≥2.
In1960,Grahamprovedthatthereexistrelativelyprimepositiveintegersx0andx1suchthatthesequence(xn)n≥0definedbytherecurrenceabovecontainsnoprimenumbers:x0andx1have33and34digits,respectively.Graham’sconstructionwasgraduallyrefinedbyKnuth,Wilf,NicolandVsemirnov;thecurrentrecordisx0=106276436867,x1=35256392432,andwasfoundbyVsemirnovin2004.
Thecommonfeatureofalltheaboveconstructionsistheexistenceofafinitesetofprimes{p1;p2,…,pt}suchthatforeverypositiveintegern,thereexistsani∈ {1,2,,…,t}withxn_0(modpi).Wesaythat{p1,p2,…,pt}isacoveringsetforthesequence(xn)n≥0.
InthispaperweconstructaFibonacci-likesequenceofcompositenumbersforwhichsuchafinitecoveringsetdoesnotappeartoexist.
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New Mexico (Southwest)
Phase IV: Revisiting Quorum Sensing and Investigating Bioluminescent Fluctuation in Marine DinoflagellatesSarah R. DalloAlbuquerque School of Excellence, Albuquerque, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Fahri Arik, Albuquerque School of Excellence
ProblemStatement
PartA.)Isitpossibleforisolatedgroupsofdinoflagellatestorespondtoflashesfromotherdinoflagellatesincloseproximity?
PartB.)Doeslimitinglightexposuretoanarrowbandwidthimpacttheluminosityofmarinedinoflagellates?
Hypothesis
PartA.)Dinoflagellateswillrespondtoeachother’sglowbecauseofobservationsinpreviousexperimentation.
PartB.)Changestothebandwidthoflightwillaffectthenormalglowfunctionindinoflagellates.Thelightwithashorterwavelengthwillmakethedinoflagellatesglowwithagreaterintensitybecausebluelightisthefrequencythattheynaturallyproduce.
Results
PartA.)P.lunulareactedtobothP.fusiformisandP.noctiluca.However,P.fusiformisandP.noctilucadidnotreactwitheachother.
PartB.)Longerwavelengthsproducebrighterglowindinoflagellates.BothredandgreenLED’sproducedgreaterintensity.
Conclusion
PartA.)Mydataconcludedthatdinoflagellatesrespondtoflashingfromotherspecies.
PartB.)Dinoflagellatesexposedtolongerwavelengthsincreasedluminosity.GreenLED’sproducedahigherluminosity,whichmaybeduetochlorophyllindinoflagellates.
New Generation of Hydrogen Storage Materials: From Synthesis to System IntegrationKathryn M. HarrisRio Rancho High School, Rio Rancho, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Robert Keeney
NewGenerationofHydrogenStorageMaterials:FromSynthesistoSystemIntegrationThepurposeofthisprojectistoseeifaMOF(MetalOrganicFramework)andCNT(Carbon-nanoTube)hybridmaterialfoundinscientificliteraturecanbereplicatedinordertostorehydrogen.IworkedalongsideDr.AlexeySerovformorethan48hoursinthelab.UNMprovidedknowledgeofsynthesisofCNTswhichgaveparameterstocomparemyproductto(40-70nm).Synthesisbeganwithaprocessofgrindingsilicaandcarbon.ProducingMOFswasmorecomplicatedinthatironandsilicawerecombinedaspowder.ThenDMFwasadded,butevaporationoccurredsoacondenserwasutilized.CNTandMOFmaterialswerethengroundtogether.Icaptureddetailedpictures(usingaScanningElectronMicroscope)demonstratingshapeandsizeofeachsample;MOFandCNTsseparatelyandcombined.AccordingtoSigma-Aldrich,myMOFs(110.8855sq.m/g)wasalittlelower,butwasexpected,thentheirfindings(~150sq.m/g).MyCNTswereinbetweenUNMparametersat50nm.Thesedatasuggestthetheoreticalstorageofhydrogen.Ifbothproductscanseparatelystorehydrogenatthosemeasurements,thenthehybridmaterialcouldabsorbsandreleasehydrogenefficientlyasafuel.
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Humidity vs. Radiation DetectionSean P. PalmerSanta Teresa High School, Santa Teresa, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Alicia Stevens, Santa Teresa High School
Anionizationchamberindirectlydetectsradiationviathemeasurementofionspresentintheairbycollectingionpairsandregisteringvoltage.Theproblemwithionchambersisthetendencyforinaccuracywhenexposedtohumidity.Thepurposeofthisprojectistotesttheeffectivenessoftheionchamberundervaryingdegreesofrelativehumidityinanefforttofindthetruereadingonahumidday.Accuracyinthedeviceisfundamentallycrucialtomaintainsafetyprecautions.Myhypothesiswasthatthegreaterthehumidity,thelowerthemeasurementwouldregisteronthemultimeter.Thetakenproceduresincludedmakingtheionchamber,makingthehygrometertoreadhumiditylevels,andtakingreadingsunderdifferentconditions.TwotrialsutilizedtheradioactiveisotopeAmericium-241,andanothertwotrialsutilizednaturalbackgroundradiation.Myhypothesiswassupportedineachtrial,namelytrial1inwhichtherelativehumidityrisesfrom23%to51%andthevoltagesdropfrom0.1to.044volts.Inenvironmentalsciences,thisprojectprovidesawaytofindthetruevoltagemeasurementonahumiddayandmaintaintheaccuracyaftermakinguseofpercenterrorcalculationsandexperimentalvoltagemeasurements.
Sound as Energy: pluggeDINMelanie B. SchneiderV. Sue Cleveland High School, Rio Rancho, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Angelica Lopez, V. Sue Cleveland High School
Duetotheworld’sincreasingpowerdemand,alternativesourcesneedtobedeveloped.Thisprojectwasengineeredwiththehopesofobtainingausableelectricalchargefromsoundwiththeintentionsofestablishinganotheralternativeenergy.Microphones,whichtransduceacousticenergytoanelectricsignal,wereusedtocapturethispower.Piezoelements,usedincontactmicrophonestoconvertpressuretoelectricity,wereconnectedinseriesandplacedatafocalpointofanellipticalstructuretonaturallyamplifythesoundavailableandtransducethissoundbasedpressure.Dynamicmicrophones,whichproduceachargewhenadiaphragmmovesacoilthroughamagneticfield,werealsousedinanattempttotransducesound.Theintentionofthisprojectwasmet,inthatvoltageswereproducedfromsound;however,theamountgeneratediscurrentlyindicativeofaninefficientsourceofpower.Inordertoproduceausablecharge,soundmustbefurtheramplified,aswellasthecurrentitproduces.Onalargerscale,withgreaterresources,theenergyofsoundcouldbeamplified,utilized,andelectrified.Itremainshopefulthatwecouldonedayplugintodin.
Measuring the Wave Function of a Quantum SystemKatherine A. SchneiderV. Sue Cleveland High School, Rio Rancho, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Angelica Lopez, V. Sue Cleveland High School
MeasuringtheWaveFunctionofaQuantumSystem,KatherineA.Schneider,V.SueClevelandHighSchool,RioRancho,NM;Sponsor:Ms.AngelicaLopezThetime-independentSchrödingerequation,whensolved,producesawavefunctionofferinginformationaboutaparticle’spositionvalues.Byapplyingthiswavefunctiontothefinitesquarewellconcept,it’spossibletopredictvaluesafterasingleparticleislocalized.Asresultsofotherstudiesmademequestionthepredictabilityofwavebehaviorsunderthewell,thegoalsofthisprojectaretodevelopawavesimulationundersetconditions,analyzinghowchangingconditionsaffectwavepatterns.Todothis,IusedaMicrosoftExcelspreadsheetcreatingthreedifferentfinitesquarewellmodels.Eachscenarioproducedawavefunctioninonedimensionwiththeenergy,differentialdistancestepvalue,anddepthofeachwellmanipulated.Numericalandgraphicalrepresentationsshowthewavebehaviorscorrelatingwiththeenergydifferenceofthesystemproducingpositionprobabilitiesforthewavefunctions.Thisyieldsthatwavestendedtoexistclosetotheirgroundstatesandcouldbefoundoutsideoffinitebarriersastheyreachedthewellwall(π)withverylowprobabilities.Thisvalidatesconsistentwavesunderspecificconstraintswithinawell,andtheabilitytopredictdiscretevaluesbasedonit.Futureresearchwillincludethestudyofquantumtunneling.
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Air-Baked Glass for Ultra-High VacuumMary C. SpanjersEast Mountain High School, Sandia Park, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Matthew Squires, Air Force Research Labratories
Beforeglasscanbeusedinavacuum,themoleculesmustberemovedfromthesurfaceoftheglassthroughtheprocessofoutgassing.However,whenmolecules,mostofwhicharewater,aredeeplyembeddedintheglasstheytakemuchlongertodiffusefromtheglass.Byairbakingglassbeforeoutgassingitmoreoftheseembeddedmoleculesmayberemoved.Thisexperimentinvolvedair-bakingglassathighertemperaturesbeforeenteringtheglassintoanoutgassingprocedurewithinavacuumchamber.Datacollecteddemonstratedadecreaseinthelevelsofwatermoleculesintheglasswhichhadbeenairbakedovertheglasswhichhadnotbeenairbaked.Inadditionairbakingperiodsof1to2dayswillproducetheimprovedresultsduringpumpdown.
Art, Personality, and the Mind: The Effect of Personality Type on the Liking of ArtSierra VenegasRio Rancho High School, Rio Rancho, NM, New Mexico (Southwest) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Miyashiro
Thepurposeofthisexperimentwastodetermineifpersonalitytypeaffectsthelikingofrepresentationalart.UsingtheNEOfive-factorpersonalitytest,Iwasabletotest35right-handedfemalesbetweentheagesof15-17.IhypothesizedthatthesubjectswithOpennesstoExperience,Agreeableness,andConscientiousnesswouldhavethehighestaverageratings.Ithendidacontrolledsurveytofindtheiraverageratingof25figurative/representationalimages.ThedatashowedthatthesubjectswithO-typesofpersonalityratedtheimageshigher(7.147).Theotherpersonalitytypesareasfollows:A(6.713),N(6.18),C(5.7),andE(5.36).TheANOVAp-valuewas0.039,makingtheseaveragesdifferwithpersonalitytypes.IconcludedthatthesubjectswiththeO-typepersonalityhadahigherratingoftherepresentationalartbecausetheyenjoythingsthatleadtocreative/intellectualadvancement.ThosewiththeC-typedidnothavethehighestratingasexpected,duetotheagerange.ItcanbeassumedusingresultsofpaststudiesthatsubjectswiththeO-typepersonalityhavehigheractivityintheleftcingulatedsulcus,bilateraloccipitalgyri,fusiformgyrus,andcerebellum.E-typepersonalitieshaveloweractivityinthecaudatenucleusandputamen.Possibleresearchapplicationsincludeimplementingmoreefficienttherapyforpatientswithdisordersintheabovelistedareasofthebrain.Byshowingpatientsdifferenttypesofartwork,youcanpotentiallystrengthencertainpartsoftheirbrain.Inthefuture,IwouldliketodoasimilarexperimentwithMRIscansandmoresubjects.
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New York (Long Island)
A Practical Notification System to Identify Incoming Sudden Ionospheric DisturbancesAnthony R. BisulcoCommack High School, Commack, NY, New York (Long Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Richard Kurtz, Commack High School; Lorraine Solomon, Commack High School; Fred Kruger, Kruger Inc.
Solarflares,whicharethesuddenreleaseofhigh-energyparticlesfromthesun,areathreattoourvitalcommunicationandpowernetworksbecausetheyhavetheabilitytodisablethesesystems.Inthisinvestigationamethodtominimizethisthreatwasdevelopedandevaluated.ThecentralaspectofthismethodwascreatingasolarflareearlydetectionsystembasedonidentifyingthecharacteristicsofasolarflarethroughitseffectonVeryLowFrequency(VLF)radiosignalpropagation.WhenasolarflarehitstheionosphereitincreasesthereflectivityoftheDlayeroftheionosphere.ThiscausestheVeryLowFrequency(VLF)wavesthatpropagatethroughtheatmospheretoreflectwithattenuation.Therefore,ahighamplitudeVLFsignalcouldindicateasolarflare.ThedetectionandwarningsystemconsistedofconstructingandusingaloopantennathatdetectstheVLFwaves,apreamplifierandsoundcard,andMATLABRasoftwareprogramusedforwritingthecodethatprocessesthesignalandidentifiesthepotentialsolarflare.Asmartphoneapplicationhasbeenwrittenandimplementedtodelivertheinformationaboutapotentiallydisruptivesolarflaretovariouscommunicationdevices.
The Effects of PLGA and Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles on Endothelial Cell Proliferation. Implications for Angiogenesis.Leandra Meraglia-Garcia and Daphne ChenSt. Anthony’s High School, South Huntington, NY, New York (Long Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Miriam Rafailovich, Stony Brook University; Mr. Paul Paino, St. Anthony’s High School
Angiogenesisisthegrowthofbloodvesselsfrompreexistingvasculature.Itisvitaltowoundhealing,causingimprovedbloodflowandoxygen/nutrientdeliverytoinjuredtissue.Successfulangiogenesisrequirescelltractionandregulationofendothelialcellinteractionwiththeextracellularmatrix.ThisstudyexaminedtheeffectofPLGA(poly[lactic-co-glycolicacid)andTitaniumDioxide(TiO2)nanoparticlesonendothelialcellcytotoxicityandangiogenesis.PLGAwassynthesizedwithasurfactantstabilizerPF68(Pluronic-68).Theemulsionwascentrifuged,theisolatedpelletlyophilized,andnanoparticlesizedeterminedbyTransmissionElectronMicroscopy.PLGAconcentrationsof0.1mg/mL,0.4mg/mL,and1.0mg/mLwereusedforthecytotoxicitytests;0.1mg/mLand0.4mg/mLwereusedfortheangiogenesisassay.AnataseandRutileTiO2wereat0.1mg/ml.Cellcountingwasconductedattwentyfourandfortyeighthours.PLGAwascytotoxicandnotangiogenictoendothelialcells.RutileTiO2hadnonotableeffect.AnataseTiO2hadnocytotoxicitybuthadapositiveangiogeniceffect,exhibitingthegreatestmagnitudeoflargelatticeformation.AnataseTiO2canbeutilizedinangiogenicsubstancesontoscaffoldingmaterialsandforframeworksinwhichangiogenesisisappliedtoaidwoundhealing.
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Development of a Multi-Sensory System to Better Relay Pharmacotherapy InformationMatthew M. O’ConnellCommack High School, Commack, NY, New York (Long Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Richard Kurtz, Commack High School
Thepurposeofthisprojectwastodevelopaninteractivecomputer-basedsystemformedicationprescriberstobetterconvey,throughmulti-media,pharmaceuticalinstructionstotheirpatients.
Patientsworldwidecontinuallyfacethedangersofdosingerrorsresultingfrompoorunderstandingofmedicalinstructions.Retentionofmedicationinformationgivenverballyisminimalandlowliteracyskillscanfurtherimpedeunderstandingandrecall.Pictograms,translations,andorationsofmedicalinstructionswereprovidedbytheInternationalPharmaceuticalFederation(FIP)andcompiledintodatabases.AsoftwareprogramtitledThePrescriptionArchitect(TPA)wasdevelopedforprescribingmedicalprofessionalstocreatepictogramhandoutsandgeneratespokeninstructionforpatientprescriptions.TPAisdownloadableonlineforfreeanddoesnotrequireinternetaccesstouse.Additionally,newdata(translations,pictograms,&orations)canbeappendedtotheprogram’sdatabases.TPAwaspresentedattheFIP’s2013worldconferenceinIrelandandhassincebeendownloadedbyover500individualsworldwide.TPAwillbeininfulluseafterFIPvalidation.Studiesarecurrentlybeingdevelopedand/orconductedtoevaluateusabilityofthesoftware.
An in vitro assessment of Nitric Oxide-Releasing Nanoparticles as a Potential Drug Delivery Vehicle for Treating Hypoxia-Induced Pulmonary Vascular InflammationAnkoor TalwarHerricks High School, New Hyde Park, NY, New York (Long Island) JSHS
Purpose:Pulmonaryvascularremodelingassociatedwithhypoxialeadstoelevationinpulmonaryvascularresistance,rightheartfailure,anddeath.MacrophageMigrationInhibitoryFactor(MIF)asacriticalmoleculeinhypoxia-inducedvascularremodeling,andthyroxine(T4)asanaturalinhibitorofMIFinflammatoryactivity.De-iodinase2(DIO2)catalyzesbreakdownofT4.Thus,DIO2expressionmaybeconsideredaproinflammatorymarkerundertheseconditions.Studiesalsosuggesttheinvolvementofubiquitin-proteasomesysteminremodeling.IevaluatedtheefficacyofnovelNitricOxide-releasingnanoparticles(NOnps)inlimitinghypoxia-inducedinflammationincellculturesthroughchangesintheseinflammatorymarkers.Methods:NOnpsusedwerebasedonahybridparticlecombininghydrogelpropertieswithastronghydrogenbondingnetworkthatlimitsNOreleaseuntiltheparticlesareexposedtowater.BothNOnpandnitrite-freenanoparticles(controlnanoparticles)wereaddedtoculturesofhumanlungfibroblasts(CCL210)undernormoxicorhypoxicconditions(1%O2concentration).MIFaccumulationwasassessedusingELISA,intracellularDIO2expressionbyWesternblot,andproteasomeactivitybyfluorometricsmallpeptidecleavageassay.Results:NOnpsignificantly(p<0.05)reducedMIFaccumulationcomparedtocontrolparticlesinbothnormoxia(253vs582pg/ml)andhypoxia(360vs668pg/ml).DIO2expressionwasalsosignificantlydecreasedinasimilarfashion.Inaddition,proteasomeactivityunderhypoxicconditionswassignificantlyincreased(p<0.05)inpresenceofNOnp(21.4vs19.2).Conclusions:ThisstudyrevealstheeffectofNOnp(anovelNOdeliverysystem)inattenuatingrelevantpro-inflammatorymarkersinhypoxia-inducedpulmonaryvascularinflammation,whichmayhavesignificantclinicalimplications.
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Design, Synthesis, and Testing of Novel Inhibitors Against InhA in Mycobacterium tuberculosisNeil M. ThivalapillGreat Neck South High School, Great Neck, NY, New York (Long Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Carol Hersh, Great Neck South High School; Lauren Spagnuolo, Institute of Chemi-cal Biology and Drug Discovery: Stony Brook University; Dr. Peter Tonge, Institute of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery: Stony Brook University
Tuberculosisclaims2millionliveseachyear.Emergingmulti-drugresistantstrainshighlightstheneedfornewdrugstobedeveloped.Thecurrentlyexploitedtargetisthefattyacidbiosynthesispathwaythatproducesvitalcomponentsofthecellwall.Inthisstudy,fournovelinhibitorsofInhAweresynthesizedwhosestructuresvariedtodeterminestructureactivityrelationshipsbetweenthesedrugsandtheactivesiteofInhA.OntheA-ringofthedrugs,anethylgroup,acyclopentylgroupandacyclohexylgroupweresubstitutedinandamethylorcyanogroupwasaddedtotheB-ring.Kineticstudiesandthermodynamicconstantsweremeasuredtodetermineinvitroefficacy.Drug-likecharacteristicsoftheinhibitorswerealsocalculatedtopredictthecompounds’efficacyinvivo.ThestructureactivityrelationshipsshowedthattherewasasizelimittotheA-ringsubstituentandthatalesspolargroupontheB-ringwaspreferable.MoleculardockingstudiesweresubsequentlyexecutedtovalidateinvitrofindingsandMICdatawasusedtotranslateinvitroefficacyintoinvivoefficacyanddeterminetheoveralleffectivenessofthedrugs.ThesedrugspresentthemselvesasadvancementstounderstandingthestructureactivityrelationshipsbetweeninhibitorsandInhAinMycobacteriumtuberculosis.
64
New York (Upstate)
A Novel Device for Crowd-Sourced Road Quality MonitoringMaxim S. DiamondCroton Harmon High School, Croton on Hudson, NY, New York (Upstate) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Donna Light-Donovan, Croton Harmon High School; Anthony Rowe, Carnegie Mellon University
Whetherbycar,truck,orbus,roadtransportofpeopleandgoodsisanintegralaspectofmodernlife.Inurbanenvironments,roadswearoutquicklyandcausedamage,oftenataratethatishigherthancivilengineerscancompensate.Inruralenvironments,roadscandeteriorateasaresultofweatherfactors,cuttingoffremoteareasfromsupplyroutes.Toenableefficientroadmaintenance,civilengineersmustbesuppliedwithdatathatreflectscurrentroadqualityconditions.Tofacilitatethis,roadqualitymustbemonitoredfrequentlyinanefficientmanner.Previousresearchhasindicatedthatthiscanbedonebyutilizingaparticipatorysensingnetwork.Toevaluatesuchasystem,anoriginally-designedparticipatoryroadqualitysensingsystemwasdesignedandbuilt.ThissystemistermedPRAD-ParticipatoryRoadAnomalyDetection.PRADusesaGPSmoduleand3-axisaccelerometertorecordvehiclevibrationsresultantfromtheroadsurfaceincorrespondencetovehicle’slocation.Statisticalprocessesareusedtocalculateroadqualityfromthisdata.TestingresultsshowthatPRADiseffectiveatmonitoringroadqualitywhenGPSsignalstrengthpermits.Futureworkinvolvesalgorithmcreationtocorrectforvehicletiltandbehavioralanalysisofdriveractions.
Relative vs. absolute orientation judgments: a re-evaluation of some neural decoding modelsStephanie DingByram Hills High School, Armonk, NY, New York (Upstate) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Ning Qian, Columbia University
NeuronsinareaV1oftheoccipitallobearetunedtoorientationinexternalstimuli.Acertainorientationwillleadtoaspecificdegreeofresponseofacellintheformofactionpotentials.Thebrainisthusabletodeterminethevisualorientationofalineby‘listening’toapopulationofcellresponses.ResearchershaveattemptedtomodelhowthebraindecodestheelectricalresponsesusingseveraldecodingtheoriessuchasMaximumLikelihoodTheory,BayesianTheory,andPopulationVector.Onecommonassumptionamongallthesetheoriesisthatourrelativejudgments(i.e.,comparisonoftwostimuli)arereferenceduponabsolutejudgments(i.e.,perceptionofeachstimulusalone).Accordingtothisassumption,ourrelativejudgmentsareslightlylessaccuratethanabsolutejudgments.However,intuitionimpliesthecontrarysincejudgmentbasedoncomparisoniseasiertoevaluatethanjudgmentofasingleitem.Resultsfromthisstudyindicatethatactualrelativejudgmentperformanceissignificantlybetterthanperformancepredictedbytheassumptionofthesethreetheories.Theresultofthisdemonstratesthattheassumptionofthesetheoriesisincorrectandthusdrawsattentiontotheneedforanadjustmenttothetheoriesforfuturestudiesandapplications.
65
The MAPT H1 haplotype is Associated with Increased Clinical and Neuropathological Severity of Chronic Traumatic EncephalopathyAdam Z. Illowsky, Sr.Ossining High School, Ossining, NY, New York (Upstate) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Angelo Piccirillo, Ossining High School; Valerie Holmes, Ossining High School
Post-mortemexaminationofbrainsfrompatientswithchronictraumaticencephalopathy(CTE)revealsmassiveaccumulationofneurofibrillarytangles(NFTs)throughoutthebraintheorizedtobeamanifestationofrepetitiveheadtrauma.ExtensiveexplorationoftheroleofMAPTintheonsetorseverityofCTEhasyettobeconducted.ThisstudyexaminedthepossibleassociationbetweentheMAPTgeneandtheseverityofclinicalandneuropathologicalfeaturesofCTE.MAPTgenotypingwasconductedon39CTEbrainsamplesfromprofessionalfootballplayers,professionalhockeyplayers,professionalwrestlers,mMilitaryVeteranspatients,and52controls.TheMAPTH2haplotypewasfoundtobeassociatedwithincreaseddiseasedurationamongstCTEpatientsinthisstudy(p=0.015).AgeofdeathoftheCTEpatientsinthisstudywasfoundtobeloweramongstMAPTH1homozygotesthanMAPTH2carriersbyapproximately9.2years,butthiswasnotastatisticallysignificantdifference(p=0.137)).Thestage/-ageratioofMAPTH2carrierswasfoundtobesignificantlylowerthanthatofthehomozygousH1carriers,indicatingamuchslowerprogressionofneurodegenerationamongstMAPTH2carriers(p=0.0184).Thus,theMAPTH12haplotypeseemstoleadtoamoresevmayserveandfasterasaprotectivefactorintheprogressionofCTEandhighlightsapotentialroleforgeneticfactorsinthedevelopmentofCTE.
An In Silico Model to Describe the Localized Dendritic Transport of β-Actin mRNAJason S. RosenbergBlind Brook High School, Rye Brook, NY, New York (Upstate) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Michele Sugantino (teacher), Blind Brook High School; Dr. Robert Singer (mentor), Albert Einstein College of Medicine
mRNAtraffickingandlocaltranslationarephysiologicallyimportantprocessesinthefunctioningofmanycells,includingneurons.However,observationsoftheisolatedcontributionsofthecomplexmechanismsinvolvedinmRNAlocalizationhaveprovendifficultexperimentally.Here,singlemoleculeexperimentalandinsilicotechniquesareusedtocreateamodelofthedendritictraffickingofβ-actinmRNA.Inthismodel,createdusingtheVirtualCell,theindividualeffectsofthefactorsinfluencingmRNAtransportcanbequantified.Additionally,thelocaltransportofβ-actinmRNAintheabsenceofoneofitsregulatoryproteinsismodeled.ThemodelssuggestthatthedegreeofsomatodendritictaperinggreatlyaffectsmRNAdistribution.Themodelsalsorevealthatintheabsenceofaregulatoryprotein,diffusiveprocessesandincreasedtranscriptionratescanlargelycompensatefordecreasedactivetransportofmRNAinmaintainingproperdendriticmRNAdistributions.ComparisonsofthesemodelstoexperimentaldatasuggesttheutilityofinsilicomodelsofneuronalmRNAlocalization.Furthermore,themodelscanbereadilyadaptedtoinvestigatethetraffickingofmRNAspeciesotherthanβ-actinmRNA,includingthoseforwhichdefectsintheirneuronaltraffickinghavebeenimplicatedindiseasessuchasamyotrophiclateralsclerosisandfragileXsyndrome.
66
An Investigation Comparing the Flight Orientation of Lab-raised & Wild-caught Migrating Monarch ButterfliesAlexis A. Scott, Jr.Burnt Hills - Ballston Lake High School, Burnt Hills, NY, New York (Upstate) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Regina Reals, Burnt Hills - Ballston Lake High School
Everyfall,theMonarchbutterflymakesitsannualmigrationfromnorthernNorthAmericatothemountainsofCentralMexicowheretheyhibernateduringthewinter.Thismigrationhasbeenmadeforcountlessyears,butisnowthreatenedasthespeciesundergoesadramaticpopulationdecline.Thespeciesisstrugglingtosurvivebecausethehabitatintheirwinteringsiteshasdecreased,globalclimatechangeisaffectingthetimingoftheirmigration,andtheirfoodsource,milkweed,isthreatenedbyexpandingagriculturaldevelopment.Effortstoreducetheimpactofthesefactorsmightcometoolateifthebutterflypopulationreachesacriticallylowlevel.ItmightbenecessarytoconservetheNorthAmericanmigratingMonarchsbyboostingtheirpopulationwithlab-raisedindividuals.Aflightsimulator,withsomemodificationsfromthebasicdesignbyMouritsenandFrost(2002),wasconstructedtorecordtheflight-orientationofMonarchbutterflies.Thesimulatorwillbeusedtoinvestigatethepotentialdifferencesandsimilaritiesoftheflight-orientationofwildandlab-raisedMonarchbutterflies.Ifanysimilaritiesoforientationbetweenwildandlab-raisedMonarchsareobserved,thenthereispotentialthatthemigratingNorthAmericanMonarchbutterflypopulationcanberevivedbythereleaseoflab-raisedMonarchs.
67
New York City (Metro)
Electrically Characterizing NbSe2 through Soft Micro-Stencil Lithography and Atomic Force MicroscopyWaqarul B. IslamStuyvesant High School, New York, NY, New York City (Metro) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Chul Ho Lee, Columbia University
Theelectricalcharacterizationofnewlydiscoverednanomaterialsallowsresearcherstodiscoverpropertiesthatmayprovideseveralnewapplicationsofnanomaterialsinelectronics.However,alargesubsetofnanomaterialscannotbeconventionallycharacterizedduetotheirincompatibilitywithorganiccompoundsthataretraditionallyrequiredforsuchelectricaltesting.Toalleviatethisissue,IworkedondevelopinganovelmicrofabricationprocedureaptlynamedSoftMicroStencil(SMS)lithography,whichemploysapolymerbasedstencilmaskthatispatternedusingelectronbeamlithography.ThisSMSprocedureprovidesforhighresolutionconstructionofnanodevicesonbothplanarandnon-planarsurfacesofnanomaterialsafeatthatexpandsthetoolsetofresearchersinnanoscience.TailoringSMSlithographytoNbSe2providesachemical-freeproceduretofabricatenanostructuresforelectricaltestingonthesurfaceofa20-30nmpieceofNbSe2withoutsurfacecontaminationorotherdamage.ThisstudyfurtherdetailsthedeteriorationofNbSe2inbothairandorganiccompoundssuchasacetoneusingatomicforcemicroscopy(AFM).RunningacurrentthroughlayersofNbSe2resultsinpropertiessimilartothoseofgraphene(asinglelayerofcarboninahexagonalpattern)intermsofsuperconductivitytherebyenablingthepotentialusageofNbSe2infutureelectronicsorexperiments.
Using Ligands to Control the Growth Kinetics of Cadmium Selenide ClustersAlexandra L. LaGrassaThe Bronx High School of Science, Bronx, NY, New York City (Metro) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Karen Fien, The Bronx High School of Science; Alexander Beecher, Columbia Uni-versity; Dr. Jonathan Owen, Columbia University
Althoughresearchershaveintenselystudiedcolloidalsemiconductingquantumdotsforthepasttwentyyearsrecognizingthattheiroptoelectronicproperties,especiallytheirnarrow,size-dependentemission,makethemidealforapplicationsinthefieldsoflighting,solarenergy,andbiolabeling,fundamentalstudieshavebeenlimitedbytheirinherentpolydispersity.Inparticular,kineticsoftheirgrowthprocessesisdifficulttostudywithoutaconsistent,atomicallydefinedstructure.Inthisstudy,cadmiumselenidequantizedgrowthclustersareemployedasmolecularlydefinedmodelsofquantumdotsthatgrowintodiscreteuniformsizes.Thedatashowsthatthemostimportantstepinthegrowthmechanismishighlysensitivetotheinteractionbetweentheligandandthesurfaceofthenanocrystal.Ahighconcentrationofbothligandsduringsynthesisfromtheprecursorsslowsdowntherateofthereaction.Kineticstudiesvaryingthestrengthofthechargedligand-surfacebonddemonstratesthatthereactionissignificantlyinfluencedbyelectronics.AHammettsigmaplotshowsthatthekeystepinthereactionhasabuild-upofnegativecharge,indicatingachargedliganddissociationstep.Thiskineticsstudyusingmolecularlydefinedclusterswithahighsurfaceareatovolumeratiorigorouslydemonstratescontroloverclustergrowthusingsurfacechemistry.
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Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition is a Key Factor of Perineural Invasion in Pancreatic AdenocarcinomaErica LinHunter College High School, New York, NY, New York City (Metro) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Chun-hao Chen, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Dr. Richard Wong, Me-morial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Ms. Gilana Reiss, Hunter College High School
Pancreaticadenocarcinomaisoneofthemostcommoncausesofcancer-relateddeath.Perineuralinvasion(PNI)occursfrequentlyinpancreaticadenocarcinomaandcorrelateswithpoorprognosis.EpithelialMesenchymalTransition(EMT)ofcarcinomacellsisassociatedwithincreasedmotilityandinvasiveness.Therelationshipbetweenthesetwoprocesseshasnotbeenestablished.ThestudyhypothesiswasthatEMTcontributestoPNI.Inordertotestthehypothesis,PANC-1cellsweretransfectedwithhumanTwist1genetoinduceEMT.Boydenchambermotilityassaysusingdorsalrootganglion(DRG)assubstractwereperformedtoevaluateforcellmotility.InvitroDRGmodelsofnerveinvasionwerealsoperformedtoevaluatecellinvasion.ThestudyresultsshowedthatEMTleadstoincreaseinmotilityandinvasivenessofpancreaticcarcinoma.CellswithEMTphenotypemovedthroughthemembraneintheBoydenchamberassayingreaternumberand,similarly,invadedDRGinhighernumberintheinvitroDRGmodelofnerveinvasionmodel.ThesefindingsindicatethatcellswithEMTphenotypehavegreatermotilityandinvasivenesspotentialforPNI.Therefore,inhibitionoftheEMTmechanismrepresentsapotentialtherapeutictargetthatcanbeusedtodecreasePNI,andthus,improvetheprognosisofpancreaticadenocarcinoma.
The Effect of Solvents on the Photorelease of a Model Drug from a New PhototriggerRasidha RahmanQueens High School for the Sciences at York College, Jamaica, NY, New York City (Metro) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Jong Ill Lee, York College CUNY; Shanaz Baksh, Queens High School for the Sci-ences
Thepurposeofthisresearchistotestthephotoreleaseefficiencyofthephototrigger,t-BocGABATriphenylEthanonewhichcanbeusedtotreatcancermoretargetedandeffectively.Acetonitrile-D3andChloroform-Dwerethesolventsthatwereusedforeachphotoreactionina300nmRayonetPhotoreactor.Theexperimentshowsthatphototriggersuccessfullydeliversdrugandisefficientduringphotoreleaseinanenvironmentthatcloselymimicsthehumanbody.ThephototriggerhadhigherphotoreleaseefficiencyinAcetonitrile-D3thaninChloroform-D.48.8%oft-BocGABAwasreleasedinChloroform-Dwhereas91.5%oft-BocGABAwasreleasedinAcetonitrile-D3.t-BocGABATriphenylEthanonehasahighphotoreleaseefficiencyandsolubilitywhichmakesitareliabledrugdeliverysystem.Inthelongrun,thedrugt-BocGABAcouldbereplacedwithothercancertreatmentdrugsinordertotreatcancermoreefficiently.
The Role of Serotonin in Impulsivity in MicePraveen RammohanBronx High School of Science, Bronx, NY, New York City (Metro) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Adam Kepecs, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Dr. Hyun Pi, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Mr. Richard Lee, Bronx High School of Science
Problemsinpatienceandimpulsivitycanleadtoseveraldisorders,includingsuicidalbehavior,attentiondeficitdisorder,drugaddictionandcriminalbehavior.Thisprojectinvestigatesthemechanismsbehindpatienceandimpulsivitybasedonthepreviouslysuggestedideathatserotoninhasacontrollingroleinimpulsivebehavior.Fourtransgenicblack-6miceweretrainedtoperformataskinwhichtheypokeaportforasetamountoftimetogetawaterreward.Thewaitingtimewasprogrammedtoautomaticallyincreaseinsmallintervalsaftereverysuccessfultrialsothatthemicewouldn’tperformpoorlyasaresultofalargedifferenceinwaitingtime.Afterthemicewereabletowaitforatleastasecondandcompletethetasksuccessfully,anopticfiberwasimplantedattheserotonin-neuron-densedorsalraphenucleusofthebrainsothatwhenablue-lightlaserwasshonethroughittheserotonergicneuronswereactivated.Themouse’sperformanceinstimulationandnonstimulationtrialswascompared.Theincrementaltaskhelpedthemiceincreasetheirwaitingtimegreatlyinashorttrainingperiod.Asforthestimulationandnon-stimulationdistinction,furtherexperimentationneedstobedonebeforeconcludingwhetherpatiencecanbeinducedoptically.
69
North Carolina
The Radio Number of Grid GraphsTian-Shun A. JiangNorth Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, Durham, NC, North Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Dan Teague, North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Theradionumberproblemusesagraph-theoreticalmodeltosimulateoptimalfrequencyassignmentsonwirelessnetworks.Aradiolabelingofaconnectedgraphisafunctionsuchthatforeverypairofvertices,wehavewheredenotesthediameterofandthedistancebetweenverticesand.Letbethedifferencebetweenthegreatestlabelandleastlabelassignedto.Then,theradionumberofagraphisdefinedastheminimumvalueofoverallradiolabelingsof.Sofar,therehavebeenfewresultsontheradionumberofthegridgraph:In2009CallesandGomezgaveanupperandlowerboundforsquaregrids,andin2008FloresandLewiswereunabletocompletelydeterminetheradionumberoftheladdergraph(a2bygrid).Inthispaper,wecompletelydeterminetheradionumberofthegridgraphfor,characterizingthreesubcasesoftheproblemandprovidingaclosed-formsolutiontoeach.Theseresultshaveimplicationsintheoptimizationofradiofrequencyassignmentinwirelessnetworkssuchascelltowersandenvironmentalsensors.
Fuel Efficient Passive Flow Control for Class 8 Tractor TrailersMegan E. MillerWestern Alamance High School, Elon, NC, North Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: David Vernon, Western Alamance High School
Tractor-trailersuse13%oftheannualUSpetroleum.Dragbehindtherearofthetrailerortrailerbasedragconstitutesthegreatestportionofaerodynamicdragathighwayspeeds.Toperformdragtesting,a10meterlongbackyardwindtunnelwasoptimizedandvalidated.Usinggeneralphysicsprinciplesandcomputationalfluiddynamic(CFD)modeling,anopencircuit,pullfantunnelwasoptimizedbyaddingtwofansinsequencewithflowstraightenervanes,aroundedinletandalengtheneddiffuser.Theoptimumtunneldemonstrateda32%increaseinairflowwithimprovedlaminarflow.Trailerbasedragreductiontestinginvolvedrearmountedvortexdevicesona1:16tractortrailerscalemodelat1.8x105Reynoldsflow.Testingoccurredatsteadystateconditions,airdensityrange1.14-1.16kg/m3with5000datapointspertest.Theoptimumdevicesweretwo5mmspheresoneachsideofthetrailerbase,placedat5cmand10cmfromthetrailerbottom.Thisconfigurationunderwentreproducibilitytestingandanaverageof7%totaldragreductionwasfound.The5,10sphericalconfigurationrepresentsasimplevortexdevicewithapotentiallysignificant,costeffectivesolutiontotrailerbasedragonafull-scaleclass8tractortrailer.
Tracking Electron Density Change in a Photocatalyst and Exploring Replacement Central AtomsPranay OruguntaTeacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Jonathan Bennett, North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Photocatalyticwateroxidationisanareaofstudythathasgainedrecentattentionduetointerestinhydrogenfuelcells.Weusecomputationalchemistryinordertomodeltheelectrondensityfluctuationsasacopperphotocatalystreduceswater.Wehopethiswillprovidesomeinsightintohowthephotocatalystcanbeoptimizedforreactionrates.WealsouseGaussiansoftwaretoreplacethecentralatomofthecatalysttofinddifferentactivationenergies,whichaffectstherateofthereaction.Fromourresults,wefindthatwecanmodelelectrondensitychangethisreaction,andthatthelocationofgreatestelectrondensitymovesfirstfromthephotocatalystintothewatermolecule.Then,densityslowlyflowsintothemorepolarbondsandthenbackintothephotocatalyst.SinceAuandCuphotocatalystsexhibitsimilarelectrondensitybehavior,werunenergycalculationsusingcopperandgoldasthecentralatom.Theactivationenergyforthetransitionstates,onaverage,forAuis25%lowerthanthatofCu.WecanconcludethatthereactionrateforAuis~23%fasterthanthatofthecopperphotocatalyst.Thisstudysuggeststhattheefficiencyofphotocatalystscanbeimprovedbysubstitutingdifferentcentralatomsandligands.
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Screening for endophytes that produce volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can be used as biofuelsJoseph H. RobertsBrevard High School, Brevard, NC, North Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Jennifer Williams, Brevard High School
Biofuels(fuelsderivedfromplantoranimalmaterial)havebeenresearchedlatelybecauseoftheemphasisonrenewableenergy.Recently,anewfocusforbiofuelproductionhasbeenonfungithatproducevolatileorganiccompounds(VOCs).SomefungithatproduceVOCsareendophytes.Endophyteshavemutualisticrelationshipswiththeirhostplantandlivewithinandaroundthecellsoftheirhost.ThehypothesisforthisstudyisthatsometreespeciesthatemitabundantVOCsharborendophytesthatproduceVOCs.Thirty-eightendophytesisolatedfromtheleavesandbarksofeasternwhitepine,tulippoplar,magnolia,blackwalnut,andblackgum,wereculturedandidentified.ThesetreeswerechosenbecausetheyemitVOCsandarefoundinwesternNorthCarolina.Theendophytesweretestedfortheproductionofvolatilealcoholsusingacolorimetricdichromatereductionassay.AnisolateidentifiedasDiaporthesp.orPhomopsissp.fromblackgumbark,anisolateidentifiedasEntonaemasp.orXylariasp.fromblackwalnutleaf,andanisolateidentifiedasDiaporthesp.frommagnoliabarkproducedalcoholswhenculturedonrice.Theseresultssupportthehypothesisstatedaboveandsuggestthatthesethreefungalspeciescouldpotentiallybeusedforbiofuelproduction.
Mitigating the Neurodegenerative and Teratogenic Effects of Ziram with UVC WavesJoshua ZhouEast Chapel Hill High School, Chapel Hill, NC, North Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Wu Dong, Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment
Ziramisacommonpesticideandchemical,beingappliedonmostproduce,usedtomakemanyproductsforhomeconstruction,yards,papers,andplastics,andpresentinanimals,water,andsometimesair.Americaaloneuses2millionpoundsannually.Ziram,however,isacutelyandchronicallytoxictovitalorgansofcertainvertebrateanimals.Ziram’sharmismagnifiedbyitsreadyabsorptionupondermalcontactwithskinoil.Aquaticorganismscanaccumulateupto90timesasmuchziramastheamountpresentinsurroundingwater.Usingembryosofamodelvertebrateanimal,medakafish,thisstudyinvestigated(1)ifziramposesriskstovertebrateanimals,ingeneral,and(2)ifUVCwavescanquickly,cheaply,andsignificantlyreduceziram’sharm.ObservationsofmedakafishduringdevelopmentandafterfixedtissueunderwentAlcianBluecartilagestainingandTUNELstainingshowedthatziramwasextremelyimpairingin8significantaspects.Infact,3mgofaccumulatedziramcouldkill2000medakafish.AfterrelativelyshortexposuresofziramtoUVCwaves,however,therewassignificant,andoftencomplete,eliminationofziram’seffects.Throughasimilarmechanismofdecomposition,UVCwavescaneffectivelyeliminatetheharmofotherpotentchemicalsinapracticalmannerforreal-worldapplication.
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North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota)
Determination of Factors that Impact Clearance of Suspended Particulate Matter (Dust) in AirAlanna M. BramJohn Marshall, Rochester, MN, North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Richard Bram, John Marshall
Environmentaldustisdeleterioustohumanhealth,machinery,andagriculture.Multipleinterventionshavebeenusedtoreducedustlevels,includingfilteringtheair,andalteringlocalatmosphericconditions.Ihypothesizedthatfilteringwouldprovidethemosteffectivedecreaseinatmosphericdust,whilechangesinlocalhumidity,temperature,orionicchargeswouldbelesseffective.Totestthishypothesis,Idesignedandbuiltamicroprocessorcontrolleddustmeter,withsensorstoalsomeasuretemperature,humidity,time,andlocation.DustlevelsinRochester,MNweredeterminedtoidentifyareaswithhigherdustconcentrations.Toanalyzeeffectsofatmosphericconditions,dustfromsmokewasmonitoredinacontrolledenvironment.Ratesofdustdecayovertimeweredeterminedunderconditionsofvaryinghumidity,temperature,andionicchargepotential.Ifoundthatdustlevelsdecayedatreproducibleexponentialrates.Ialsotestedtheabilitiesofseveralmaterialstofilteroutdust.Surprisingly,themosteffectiveconditionthatremovedsuspendedparticulatematterwasthegenerationofnegativeions.Finally,acompactpersonaldustdetectorwasdesignedandbuilt,anddemonstratedtodetectdustlevels.Thismethodologymaybeusefulfordetectingharmfulatmosphericdustatlowcosttoimprovehealthandpreventdamagetomachinery.
Improved Efficiency of Seawater Steam Generation Using Carbon Nanoparticles Carolyn K. JonsEden Prairie High School, Eden Prairie, MN, North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Christopher Hogan, University of Minnesota
Waterscarcityisaworldproblem.Althoughessentialforlife,almostonebillionpeoplelacksafedrinkingwater.RiceUniversity’sscientistsrecentlydiscoveredfocusedsunlightshoneonnanoparticles,inpurewater,generatessteamwithoutsubstantiallyraisingthesurroundingwatertemperature.Myresearchaimstodetermineifnanoparticlescanbeusedtogeneratesteam,withsimilarefficiency,fromseawater.Priortotesting,ahighintensity,focusedlightsourceandtestingapparatuswereconstructed,artificialseawatersolutionsweremade,andcarbonnanoparticlesweredispersed.Preliminarystudiesdemonstratednanoparticleswerenecessaryforefficientsteamgeneration.Thisstudyparticularlyfocusedoncomparingenergyefficienciesofsteamgenerationforpurewater,3.5%NaCl,and3.5%seawater,where“energyefficiency”isthefractionofenergyvaporizingwatercomparedtoenergyheatingthebulkfluid.At95%confidence,atwo-tailedt-testdemonstratedstatisticallygreatersteamgenerationefficiencyforwatercontainingNaClorseawater,ascomparedtopurewater.Thesteamgenerationefficienciesforseawaterandsaltwater(NaCl)werenotstatisticallydifferentat95%confidence.Laterextensionsfoundtop-surfaceilluminationachievedsubstantially(3X)greatersteamgenerationefficiencythanbulksolutionillumination.Anapplicationofthisresearchincludeswaterpurificationinsunrich,waterpoorregions.
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Biofeedback Controller: Virtual Training for Myoelectric Transradial ProsthesisMatthew T. LerdahlCoon Rapids High School, Coon Rapids, MN, North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Gary Alexander, Coon Rapids High School
RoboticProstheticsofthemoderndayoftenutilizemyoelectriccontrol.Myoelectriccontroluseselectromyography,asystemofdetectingandquantifyingtheelectricalactivityofcontractingmusclesasawaytoactuatedexterousmovement.TheelectricalsignalquantifiedbyEMGsensorscanbetrainedandstrengthenedbyrepeatedcontraction.Usingtheextensorandflexormusclegroupsasisolatedmyoelectricsites,Icreatedadevicethatincorporatesmoderngamingtoincreasetheelectricthresholdofmusclescommonlyusedformyoelectriccontrol.WithcollaborativeeffortsfrombothAdvancedArmDynamicsandAdvancerTechnologies,thesystemcreatedmakesuseofAdvancerTechnologies’v3EMGsensorandemploysasensororientationthatiscapableoftrainingfourmusclegroupsatonce.UsingtheAdruinoUnoandthecorrespondingsoftwareasamicrocontroller,aninterfacewascreatedthatallowstheusertoplaymultiplescrollinggamessuchasMariousingonlymusclecontractionsascontrols.Thecurrentdevelopedprototypewouldcosttheuserundertwohundreddollarswhilecurrenttrainingdevicesrangefromupperhundredstothousandsofdollars.Thisdeviceiscapableofincreasingtheelectromyogramsignalexponentiallyandthereforeallowsclinicalprosthetiststoobtainmoreinformationfromthepatient’smuscles.
Hand Hygiene Gone Viral? A Study of Student Involvement in a Social Media Campaign as a Method of Bringing Hand Hygiene to the MassesTimothy J. RenierDuluth East High School, Duluth, MN, North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Robin Churchill, Holy Rosary School; Dr. James Boulger Ph.D, University of Minnesota Medical School Duluth
Aim:Thisstudyaimedtopromotehandhygienebehaviorthroughoutahighschoolpopulationthroughstudentdevelopmentandsharingofasocialmediacampaign(SMC)(FacebookandTwitter).Methods:114consentedhighschoolstudentsparticipatedinanintervention(INT),receivingeducationandcreatingaSMC.308controlstudents(CON)weresurveyed.Assessmentsincludedanonymoussurveysabouthandhygienebehavior,socialmedia,andSMCreceptionforINT(weeks1(baseline),7,and12(follow-up))andCON(baselineandfollow-up).School-wide,lunchroomhandsanitizeruse(LHS)wascovertlyobserved(baseline,7,follow-up)andillness-relatedabsenteeismchangewascomparedwithacontrolhighschool.FacebookInsightsmeasuredviewership.Results:INThadsignificantimprovement(p<0.05)inhandwashingbeforeeating(LinearRegression),knowledgeofhandwashingtime,anddesiretoimprovehandhygienebehavior(LogisticRegression).30%ofCONviewedtheSMC.CONwhoviewedtheSMCimprovedhandwashingatschoolmorethanCONwhodidnot,withINTreportinggreaterimprovementthanCON.Significantpre-postSMCimprovementinLHSoccurredschool-wide(t-test).TheFacebookcampaignwasviewed13,292times,reaching2806people.Conclusion:TheSMCsignificantlyimpactedstudenthandhygieneandmayeffectivelycommunicatewithandchangehealthbehaviorsamongadolescents.
Creating a Cavity-Dumped Helium Neon LaserKevin ZhengWayzata High School, Plymouth, MN, North Central (Minnesota, N. & S. Dakota) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Martin Cohen, Stony Brook University; John Noé, Stony Brook University
Anacousto-opticmodulatorisusedtoquicklyextractcirculatingopticalpowerfromahome-built1.4mopen-cavityheliumneonlaser.100nspulseswithamaximumpeakpowerofapproximately2mWareextractedfromthelasercavityatarepetitionrateof100kHz.Repetitionratesofover1MHzareattainedwithdecreasedpeakpower.Atheoreticalmodelfortheshapeoftheextractedpulsesispresented.Theuniquehome-builtandadjustablenatureofthelasersuggestsitspedagogicalpotentialforintroductorylasersciencestudentsattheundergraduateorgraduatelevel.TheauthorwouldliketoacknowledgeSamGoldwasserforprovidingkeyequipment.ThisworkwassupportedbytheLaserTeachingCenteratStonyBrookUniversityandtheSimonsFoundation.
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Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont)
Nanofibrous Collagen Scaffold Production via Ice TemplatingEvan T. BrewerBangor High School, Bangor, ME, Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Cary James, Bangor High School
TypeIcollagenisanextracellularmatrixstructuralproteinfoundinavarietyoftissues.Biomedicalcollagenscaffoldshavebeenformedinvitroviafreezingtechniquesfortissueregeneration.Currentmethodsofcreatingcollagenscaffoldsproduceaporousmonolithicmorphology,butnomethodofproducingnanofibrouscollagenscaffoldsexists.Theaimofthepresentworkistoadaptonesuchtechnique,previouslyutilizedtogeneratenanofibermatricesofwatersolublepolymers,andemployittoproducesimilarlystructuredcollagenscaffolds.Therapidfreezingmethoddirectsastreamofsolutioncontainingthetargetmaterialontoarotatingmetaldrumcooledwithliquidnitrogen.Asthesolutioncontactsthedrum,acontinuousfrozenribbonofmaterialisformed;theribbonissubsequentlyfreezedried.Therapidfreezingoftheaqueoussolutioncreatesdendriticicecrystalswithnanoscaledimensions,andphaseseparatesthedissolvedpolymeraroundthem,therebycreatingnanofibersofpolymer.CollageniswaterinsolubleatambientpHandassuchmustbesolubilizedinordertobeemployedintherapidfreezingtechnique.AceticacidisaknownpHmodifier,andassuchhasthepotentialtoaidincollagendissolutionatdecreasedpH.Additionally,aceticacidisvolatileandwouldberemovedinthefreezedryingprocessingstep-leavingapurecollagenscaffold.Thepresentworkhasproventhefeasibilityofdissolvingcollageninaceticacidmodifiedaqueoussolutions,andemployingtheresultingsolutionforcollagennanofiberformationviarapidfreezing.
Novel Silver Doped Photocatalytic Composites for Inactivation of Bacteria in WastewaterDeepika S. KurupNashua High School South, Nashua, NH, Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Linda Polewarczyk, Nashua High School South; Ramaswamy Nagarajan, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Duetotheincreasingscarcityoffreshwaterresources,wastewatertreatmentforreuseisgainingconsiderableattention.Thegoalofthisresearchwastodevelopasafe,cost-effective,andeco-friendlymethodtoharnessultraviolet(UV)radiationandvisiblelightfromthesunforwastewaterremediation.SimplemethodologiesweredevelopedtosynthesizerobustandlightweightTiO2-ZnOandAg-TiO2-ZnOphotocatalyticcompositesusingtitaniumdioxide(TiO2),zincoxide(ZnO),silvernitrate(AgNO3),hollowglassmicrospheres,andahydrauliccementingbinder.Thecompositesweretestedtoevaluatebacterialinactivationinwastewaterunderdifferentlightexposureconditions(sunlight,visiblelight,anddark).ThebacterialinactivationbytheTiO2-ZnOphotocatalyticcompositewasprimarilyduetoUV-Aactivatedphotocatalysis,asshownbyitsefficacyindestroyingbacteriawhenexposedtosunlight.Ontheotherhand,theAg-TiO2-ZnOphotocatalyticcompositeexhibitedbactericidalpropertiesinsunlight,visiblelight,andinthedark.Therateofbacterialinactivationwasgreatestwhenexposedtosunlight,followedbyvisiblelightandfinallyinthedark.Thisprojectopensnumerouspossibilitiesforsustainable,economicallyviable,andeffectivewaterpurificationthatrequiresminimalresources.
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Water Conservation and Climate Change in Northern PeruAndrew D. SandweissBangor High School, Bangor, ME, Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Cary James, Bangor High School; Professor Shaleen Jain, University of Maine
ElNiño(ENSO)haslongbeenaconcernforfarmersintheextremedesertofnortherncoastalPeru.ClimatechangeispredictedtoincreaseENSOfrequencyandassociatedfloods,andtomeltAndeanglaciers,causinga40%reductioninaverageannualstreamflowinthisregion.ENSOcouldhelpmitigateflooddamagetoirrigationsystemsviaconstructionofmicrodamstoretainanddistributeENSO’srainfallforagricultureandtoproviderelieffrompermanentlossofstreamflowduetoglacialmelting.LookingatENSO’seffectsonstreamflow(datafromUCLAandPeru’sNationalWaterAuthority),precipitation(datafromtheWorldMeteorologicalAssociation),andcropproduction(datafromPeru’sMinistryofAgriculture)inthisEnvironmentalScienceprojectIusedMATLABandExceltocreateamodelthatcalculatespotentialdamagefromincreasedENSOfrequency.AnewlyidentifiedtypeofElNiño,ElNiñoModoki(EMI),isbecomingmorefrequent.EMIraisesSeaSurfaceTemperatures(SST’s)intheCentralPacificOcean,ratherthantheEasternPacific,wherenormalENSOsraiseSST’s.IconcludedthatENSOincreasesstreamflowandprecipitationwhiledecreasingcropproduction,butthatEMIcausesasignificantlylowerstreamflowthannormalyears,increasingtheneedforwaterconservationviatheproposedmicrodams.
Design of an Apparatus for the Efficient Radiation of Light within a Specified Wavelength RangeKeenan G. WoodBerlin High School, Berlin, NH, Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mr. Kevin Carpenter, Berlin High School
Thegoalofthisengineeringprojectwastodesign,build,andtestanapparatusthatcouldefficientlyemitelectromagneticradiationofwavelengthswithinaspecifiedrange.Thelightsourcewasdesignedtobeanironcylinder,repelledaboveandawayfromthewallsofitscylindricalchamberviaelectricforces.Thetheorywasdevelopedfortheconversionofpowerfromasurroundingsolenoidatitsresonantfrequencytothefilamentthrougheddycurrentandhysteresislosses,andmethodsofchamberchargingandrareficationwereconsidered.Finally,usingthecriticalanglesandchromaticaberrationsofvariousdielectricmaterials(inthiscaseglasses),abulbgeometrywasdesignedtoreflectallradiationnotinthedesiredwavelengthrangebacktothefilament,andtoemitallradiationofthedesiredwavelengthsatapowerequaltotherateofenergytransferredtothefilamentfromthesolenoid.Ashortageoftimeandresourcespreventedtheconstructionandempiricalevaluationoftheapparatus,therebymakingtheproductionofaprototypethenextstepinresearch.
75
Ohio
Developing a Sustainable Water Cleaning System for use in Rural Areas of Low Income CountriesBluyé DeMessieWilliam Mason High School, Mason, OH, Ohio JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. George Sorial, University of Cincinnati
Adsorptionofheavymetalionsfrompollutedwaterwasstudiedusingdriedpowderedbananapeelsandpyrolyzedbananapeels(PBP).Testsincludedequilibriumadsorption,kineticsofadsorption,andcolumnstudies.Theresultswerecomparedwithadsorptionusingcommercialactivatedcarbon.Themorphology,physical,andchemicalpropertiesoftheadsorbentswerecharacterizedusingthermo-gravimetricanalysis,Fouriertransferinfraredspectroscopy,pHelectrophoresis,surfaceareaanalysis,scanningelectronmicroscopicimaging,andX-raydiffractionanalysis.PBPisaporous,largesurfaceareaadsorbent(50-60m^2/g),withnegativesurfacechargesresultinginincreasedadsorptioncapacity.TheadsorptioncapacityofCu(II)andPb(II)ionswere347.78and180.92mg/gforPBP,and28.24and3.22mg/gforclay.TheequilibriumadsorptiondatawasmodeledwiththeFreundlichandLangmuirisotherms.Adsorptionkineticsfollowedpseudo-secondordermodel.FixedbedcolumnstudieswereconductedtodeterminethefloweffectsandbreakthroughpointsfordifferentCu(II)andPb(II)concentrationsinthefeed.TheThomasmodelwasemployedtodeterminetheinfluenceofprocessparametersonadsorptionrateandadsorptioncapacity.IonexchangeandelectrostaticcomplexationofmetalionswithPBPwereproposedaspossibleadsorptionmechanisms.Theeffectivenessofsand-clay-PBPinreducingtotalsuspendedsolidswasalsotested.
Human Glioblastoma CellsShaleen GoelSylvania Southview High School, Toledo, OH, Ohio JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Blythe Tipping, Sylvania Southview High School
EffectsofAlkylationandPoly-ADPRibosePolymerase(PARP)InhibitionontheSurvivabilityofGlioblastomapatientshavelessthana3%fiveyearsurvivalrate.Currenttreatmentsincludeusingalkylationthroughtemozolomide(TMZ),towhichthecancereventuallybecomesresistant.Thealkylationinitiallykillscancerouscellsbecauseitinitiatesmismatchrepair(MMR),causingapoptosis.ItdoesnotkillhumancellsbecausetheyhaveMGMT,whichrepairsthealkylation.Glioblastomacellsbecomeresistantisby“losing”MMR,andthusnothavingapoptosisfollowingalkylations.PARPisaproteinintegraltotheDNArepairpathwayofbaseexcisionrepair(BER).BERisarepairpathwaywhichalsorepairsDNAalkylations.ThepurposewastofindoutifasyntheticlethalapproachusingalkylationandPARPinhibitionwillkillglioblastomacellsbothshortandlongterm.TherationalewasduetotheextremevolumeofmutationsintheTMZresistantglioblastoma.TheresultsshowedthatthesyntheticlethalapproachworkedtocausecelldeathinTMZresistantglioblastomacellsbothshortandlongterm.Therewasonlya0.5%cellsurvivalforthesyntheticlethalapproach,overfivetimeslessthanusinganalkylatingagent.Theoretically,thisprovidesanewapproachtotreatglioblastomatumorsinpatients,butfuturestudiesarerequiredtoextrapolatetheresults.
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An Investigation of Electrowetting for Variable Focus Liquid LensesAditya JogWilliam Mason High School, Mason, OH, Ohio JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Karen Young, William Mason High School
Thefeasibilityofelectrowettingforcreatingvariablefocusliquidlenseswasinvestigated.Itwashypothesizedthatvoltageappliedtoaconductivedropplacedonadielectricsubstratewouldexperiencechangeinshapesufficienttocovertherangeoffocallengthstypicallyrequiredforvisioncorrection.Totestthehypothesis,asmalldroplet(diameterlessthancapillarylength)wasplacedonaglasssubstrateconsistingofanIndium-Tin-Oxideconductivelayerwith300-nm-thickParylene-HTdielectriccoating.Thedropletwasphotographedatdifferentappliedvoltagesandthecontactanglewasdeterminedbyimageprocessing.Theexperimentwasrepeatedwithanaddedsurfactantandawaterdropletimmersedinsiliconeoil.Thechangeintheradiusofcurvatureoftheoil-waterinterfaceandcorrespondingfocallengthoftheliquidlenswascalculated.Bychangingtheappliedvoltagefrom0to45Vthecontactanglechangedfrom65to48degreesforwater,35to22degreeswiththesurfactant,and109to70degreeswithoil.Basedonthecontactanglemeasurements,a25-mm-diameterwater-oillenscancover-4.5to4.5diopterswithverticalsides.Thisrangecanbeexpandedto-6.5to6.5dioptersbychangingsideanglesby+/-20degrees.
The Synthesis Of 6-deoxy Gulal Derivatives for the Stereoselective Synthesis of S-Linked DigitoxinRagavi LankaSylvania Southview High School, Sylvania, OH, Ohio JSHS
HeartdiseasesaretheleadingcauseofdeathintheUnitedStatesofAmerica;however,thenumberofcaseshasdeclinedsignificantlyduetopharmacologicaladvancementsinthestudyofcardiacglycosides,therapeuticagentsderivedfromnaturallyoccurringmaterials.Themostcommonlyusedcardiacglycosideisdigitoxin,whichisutilizedtotreatcardiacarrhythmia.Despiteitsusageasatreatment,digitoxinhasvariousnegativesideeffectsthathaveledtorenalkidneyfailure.Inordertoremovethesesymptoms,digitoxinhasbeenformedthroughthesynthesisofanalogs,syntheticmolecules;however,mostoftheseanalogscontinuetohaveadetrimentaleffectoncertainhumancelllines.Itwas,therefore,hypothesizedthatS-Linkeddigitoxin,ananalogueofdigitoxin,canbepreparedbyglycosylatingasimplethiolacceptorwith6-deoxygulaldonorthroughthecatalysisofmetalssuchasTintoformthioglycosidiclinkage.Theformationofgulaloccurredthroughaseven-stepreactionusinggalactosepentaacetateasthestartingmaterial,andthreetrialswerecompleted,resultingwith92percentyield.Thisprocessincludedvariousreactionmethodssuchasreduction,thioglycosylation,deacetylation,andFerrierrearrangement.Thus,thisimpliesthat6-deoxygulalcanbeusedtoformthethioglycosidiclinkagesinS-linkeddigitoxin.
77
Oregon
Novel Automated Next-Generation Multijunction Quantum Dot Solar Panel Designs Using Monte Carlo-Based ModelingValerie S. DingCatlin Gabel School, Portland, OR, Oregon JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Veronica Ledoux, Catlin Gabel School
Multijunctionquantumdotsolarcells(MJQDSCs),especiallythoseusingleadsulfide(PbS),arerapidlygainingattentionasapotentialeconomical,highly-efficientsolutionforsolarpower,duetotheirabilitytoutilizesamematerialswithbandgaptuning.However,workisprimarilyatthefeasibilitystage,aslittletheoreticalorexperimentalworkhasbeendonetounderstandexactlyhowtodesignefficientsystems.ThisworkaimedtoaddressthisgapbysystematicallyinvestigatinginteractionsbetweenquantumdotsandphotonsinMJQDSCsandidentifyingfundamentallimitsofsolarcellefficiency,utilizingcomputationalquantumphysicstodesignmaximum-efficiencysolar-harnessingtechnology.AutomaticallysearchingthroughPbSquantumdotsrangingfrom1to5nmindiametercorrespondingtoultravioletthroughinfraredregionsofthesolarspectrum,novelalgorithmswereprogrammedinJAVAtoconductstochasticMonteCarlosimulationstosimulate10millionincomingsolarphotonsandsortthroughagridofallpossiblequantumdotstackscombinationsin1through9-stackMJQDSCdesigns.Highest-efficiencyconfigurationswereidentifiedfor1through9-stackMJQDSCs.Theresultsoftheinvestigationindicatedthatefficiencycanbeincreasedupto2.23timesmaximum33.7%conventionalsingle-junctionsiliconsolarcellefficiency,to75.0%inthebest9-stackMJQDSCsdesign.
Hybridized Characteristic 3 Galois Field Arithmetic for Elliptic Curve CryptographyVinay S. IyengarOregon Episcopal School, Portland, OR, Oregon JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Bevin Daglen, Oregon Episcopal School
HybridizedCharacteristic3GaloisFieldArithmeticforEllipticCurveCryptographyVinayS.IyengarOregonEpiscopalSchool,Portland,OregonSponsor:Dr.BevinDaglen,OregonEpiscopalSchoolGivenarapidriseincybersecuritythreatsforInternetusers,corporations,andgovernments,thereisadireneedforsafercryptographicalgorithms.Galoisfieldsaremathematicalgroupsthatformthebasisoftoday’scutting-edgepublic-keycryptographyalgorithms.Thepurposeofthis3rdyearcapstoneprojectwastocreateahighlyefficientandscalablecharacteristic3Galoisfieldarithmeticalgorithmforhigh-securityellipticcurvecryptographyapplications.ByusinganovelcombinationoflogarithmtableandconventionalarithmeticalgorithmswithinGaloisextensionfields,anewalgorithmwasdeveloped.Whenevaluatedbasedontheoretical,computational,andstatisticalanalyses,thisalgorithmprovedtobemoreefficientthanthebestalgorithmspreviouslypresentedinliteratureintermsofpre-computationtimeandoperationspeed.Thishybridizedalgorithmspecificallyincreasedthespeedofellipticcurvescalarmultiplicationbyfactorsof7to26whilecuttingpre-computationcoststojustaroundamillisecond.Furthermore,thisalgorithmshowedadistinctapplicabilitytocreatingveryhigh-levelsecurityellipticcurvecryptosystemsandthereforehasmajorimplicationsforthefieldofcryptography.
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Capacity Limits of Working Memory: The Impact of Multitasking on Cognitive Control and Emotion Recognition in the Adolescent MindAlexandra Ulmer and Sarayu CaulfieldOregon Episcopal School, Portland, OR, Oregon JSHS
Mediamultitaskingisincreasinglyprevalentinoursociety,especiallyamongtheyoung.Processingmultipleinformationstreamssimultaneously,however,challengescognitivefunctionandmayreduceperformance.Workingmemoryisthebrainfunctionresponsibleforprioritizingtasksandlimitingdistraction.Thisstudyexaminedtheeffectsofmultitaskingontheperformanceofworkingmemory.403participantswererandomlyassignedtoeitheramultitaskingornon-multitaskingroom;bothgroupscompletedaMediaMultitaskingIndexusedtoidentifygroupsofHighandLowMediaMultitaskers,teststoassesstheabilitytojuggletasksandfocus(AX-CPT)andtoassessemotionrecognition(DANVA2).Participantsinthemultitaskingroomcompletedthesestudiessimultaneouslywithadditionalcognitivetasks.Theresultssuggestthatthepatternofmediauseisreflectedintheperformanceoftheindividual’sabilitytoswitchbetweentasksandfilterirrelevantinformation.HighMediaMultitaskerswerebetterabletofilteroutdistractingirrelevanttasks(p=0.014),butsurprisinglyperformedworsewhentheywerenotpursuingmultipletasks.Theywerebetteratmultitasking,butperformedworsewhenmadetofocus.LowMediaMultitaskerswerelessabletofilteroutinterferencefromdistractingtasks,butwerebestabletofocusonsingletasks(p<0.0001).
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Pennsylvania
Use of LED Lights as PhotovoltaicsGlen S. GallikLewisburg Area High School, Lewisburg, PA, Pennsylvania JSHSTeacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Wayne Latchford, Lewisburg Area High School
Renewableenergyistakinganincreasinglyimportantroleintheenergygrid.Solarenergyiscurrentlyoneofthemostpromisingandwidelyusedrenewableenergysources.MyresearchfocusedonthephotovoltaicpropertiesofcommonLEDlightsandtheirpotentialtobeusedtoproduceenergy.MyresearchfocusedonthepotentialforLEDlightstogeneratepoweratusable,storable,levels.Iconductedtestsonanarrayof150LEDlightsthatwereattachedtoarechargeablebatteryIcouldmonitor.IfoundthattheLEDlightarraywascapableofgeneratingbothamperageandvoltage,andthatthisenergycouldbeeasilystoredinbatteries.ThedataclearlyshowedpotentialforLEDlightstobeused.
The Effects of Caffeine on the Aggregation of Dictyostelium discoideumHoang Anh T. PhanWyoming Seminary, Kingston, PA, Pennsylvania JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Andrea Nerozzi, Wyoming Seminary; Ms. Renee Casterline, Wyoming Seminary
Dictyosteliumdiscoideumisacellularslimemoldthatcanaggregateunderspecialconditionssuchasstarvation.Inthisexperiment,theeffectofcaffeineontheaggregationofDictyosteliumdiscoideumwasexamined.Thehypothesisisthatthehighertheconcentrationofcaffeine,thegreaterthenumberofaggregatesandsmallerthesizeoftheparticles.Culturesweremaintainedatfourdifferentconcentrations(0mM,1mM,3mM,5mM)caffeine.AdigitalmicroscopeandMoticImagesPlus2.0softwarewasusedtocollectdata.AT-test:Two-SampleAssumingEqualVarianceswasperformedbetween6possiblepairsoutofthe4differentconcentrations.TheT-testindicatedasignificantdifferencebetweenthenumberofaggregatesinallpairs(|t|>|2.1009|),exceptforthe1mM-3mMcaffeine(t=|1.3606|<|2.1009|).AnANOVA:SingleFactortestindicatedasignificantdifferenceinaggregatesizesatdifferentcaffeineconcentrations(ANOVAp=0.000329<Alpha:0.05).TheseeffectswerelikelytheresultsofvariationincAMP,themostimportantsignalsindividualamoebasendsout,whichinterfereswiththeactivationofadenylylcyclaseandwithphosphodiesteraselevel.Theseresultsshowthatastheconcentrationincreasesfrom0mMto1mM,thenumberofaggregatesincreases.Thenumberofaggregatesisaboutthesamein1mMand3mMofcaffeinebutiftheconcentrationofcaffeinegoesuptohigh(5mM),littleornoaggregationhappens.Also,astheconcentrationincreases,theareaofaggregationdecreases.
Nano-Formulated Quercetin: A Novel Therapy for Neuroblastoma by the Re-expression of RIZ1Priyanga SelvakumarMarple Newtown High School, Newtown Square, PA, Pennsylvania JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Ashakumary Lakshmikuttyamma, Thomas Jefferson University; Mrs. Elizabeth Lan-des, Marple Newtown High School
Neuroblastomaisanaggressivepediatriccancerwithasurvivalrateoflessthan50%.Currentdrugscauseadversesideeffectswhichgreatlyaffectthedevelopmentalmilestonesinchildren.Therefore,anewtherapeuticdrugisneededtotreatneuroblastomaeffectivelyandreduceapatient’ssideeffects.RIZ1,atumorsuppressorgene,issilencedintheaggressiveformsofneuroblastomaduetopromotermethylation.Quercetin,anaturalflavonoid,re-expressedRIZ1andinhibitedthegrowthofneuroblastomacells.StudiesidentifiedthatQuercetindosedependentlyinhibitedtheDNMTenzyme.ThisisthefirstreportindicatingQuercetin’sabilitytoactasaDNMTinhibitor.Further,Quercetinwassuccessfullyencapsulatedintoachitosannanoparticle(Quercetin-CNP)whichresultedinasizeof152nmandanactionpotentialof43mV.TheQuercetin-CNPismoreeffectivethanQuercetinaloneindecreasingthecellsurvivalofneuroblastomacells.Nano-formulationofQuercetinhasagreatpotentialtodevelopintoadrugasmono-orincombinationtherapywithotherchemotherapeuticsdrugsforthefuturetreatmentofneuroblastoma.
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Investigation of Aquatic Plants & Bacterial Solutions as Efficient Bio-filters to Remove Ammonia from WaterDavid R. ShipeFreeport Area Senior High School, Sarver, PA, Pennsylvania JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Donald Orlowski, Freeport Area Junior High School
Purpose:Theobjectiveofthisstudywastodeterminethemostefficientcombinationofaquaticplantsandcommerciallyavailablebacterialsolutionstocreateabio-filtertoremoveammoniaanditsbyproductsfromwater.Methods:9containerswerefilledwithspringwateranda1ppmsolutionofammonia(NH4OH).Twotypesofplants,waterlettuceandwaterhyacinth,andtwobacterialsolutions,NiteOutIIandFritzyme7,wereusedtocreatefourcombinationsofbio-filters.WatersamplesweretestedforpH,ammonia,nitrite,andnitratedailyfor8days.Results:ThepHremainedstableat7.0-7.4.BasedonprogressionofammoniaremovalthebacterialsolutionNite-OutIIwasmoreeffectivethantheFritzZyme7,andthewaterlettucewasmoreeffectivethanthewaterhyacinth.Concentrationsofnitrateandnitritewerenegligiblethroughoutthestudy.Conclusions:Bothbacterialsolutionsandaquaticplantsreducedammoniainwaterataconcentrationof1ppm.Ifscaledappropriatelybothaquaticplantsandbacterialsolutionscouldbeusedcommerciallytoremoveammoniafromwater.
The Effect of Varying Light Frequencies on Plant GrowthSpencer YacuboskiBerwick Area Senior High School, Berwick, PA, Pennsylvania JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Stephanie Rothery, Berwick Area Senior High School
Myexperimenttestedhowdifferinglightfrequenciesaffectedplantgrowth.Duringthelight-dependentreactionofphotosynthesis,plantsabsorblightenergytoaidintheproductionofglucose,themoleculebrokendownforcellularenergy.Myhypothesisstatedthatthecontrol(white)groupofplantswouldgrowththefastest,andthegreengroupwouldgrowtheslowest.Theoriginalhypothesiswassupported.
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Puerto Rico
Earthquake Probability Based on the Position of the MoonAngelic ArzolaCROEM, Mayaguez, PR, Puerto Rico JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Elba Sepúlveda; Gilberto Jimenez
ThisresearchaimstofindifearthquakesareinfluencedbythegravitationalpulloftheMoon,andhowtocalculatetheprobabilitiesofittooccurconsideringtheeffecttheMoonhasontheEarth.Thisresearchstudiedwhetherthepositionofthemooncouldbeofinfluenceintheeruptionoftheseearthquakes.Earthquakesfrom2010to2013,mostwithamagnitudeof8.0MLormore,andsmallerearthquakesthathappenedbeforeandafter,wereselected.TheirmagnitudeswererelatedtothephaseoftheMoon,thelocationoftheMoonatthetimeoftheearthquake.Itrequiredtoconsiderhowclosertoperigeeorapogeeitwasandthelocationoftheearthquakeatthetimeithappened.Theresultswerelaiddownonagraph,wheretherelationscouldbeseen.Theexpectedresultswouldthenshowanincreaseand/ordecreaseinearthquakes,relatedtothepositionoftheMoon.Afterthis,aconclusionandapossible,moreaccuraterelationbetweentheMoonandtheeffectithasonearthquakesaretobedrawn.
Potential of Macroalgae for the Removal of Aluminium ion and Organic Pollutants from Natural WatersHennessy BasPa’ los Duros, Carolina, PR, Puerto Rico JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Yiria Muñiz; Dr. Liz M. Díaz
PreviousstudiesshowedthattheimmobilizedalgaeGlacilariaandSargassumabsorbsapercentageoftheemergentsemi-volatilepollutantsfoundinthePuertoNuevoRiver.ThisstudyaimstoabsorbapercentageofAluminum,thoughttobeoneofthecausesofAlzheimer;foundintheRioGrandeRiver,CarraizoReservoir,PithayaRiverandMaunaboRiverinPuertoRico,throughthealgae.Tocarryoutthisresearchweusedthealgae:GlacilariaandSargassum;thesearenotlaboratoryalgae.Thenitwasproceededtotheidentificationofthealuminuminwatersamplesandtheimmobilizationofthealgaewithsilica,forlatertoprecedewiththeabsorptionofthealuminum,bothasthealuminumsubstanceandtheriverwatersamples.FinallythedetectionofaluminuminthesampleswasrealizedbyacolorimetricmethodEDTAComplexometric.ThealgaewhichabsorbedmostthealuminumpresentinthesolutionwasGlacilaria,butitdidnotdifferedbymuchfromSargassum.Thealgaeabsorbed67and64%ofthealuminumpresentinthesolution.
The behavioral changes in Apis mellifera when infected with Nosema sporesWaldemar Ortiz, IIIJose E. Aponte HS, Carolina, PR, Puerto Rico JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Yiria Muñiz; Dr. Zachery Huang
ThegoalofthisresearchistoidentifythebehavioraldifferencescausedbyNosemainfectedbeestoaidtherecoveryofdeclininghoneybeepopulationsworldwide.TheNosemaparasitewasrecentlydiscoveredanditseffectsontheEuropeanhoneybee(Apismellifera)populationarestillunknown.WebegantestingwiththetwomainNosemaparasiteswhichwhereNosemaapisandNosemaceranae.MyhypothesisisthattheApismelliferawouldhavethecapacityadapttotheparasite’spresenceandpreferothertemperaturestoreduceorsuppresstheeffectsonthehoneybee.Webegantheexperimentationprocessbycreatingacanal/apparatusthatwouldhavethecapabilitytocreateatemperaturegradienttoobservethedifferenttemperaturepreferencesthatwouldbecausedbythebee.Thebeesusedintheexperimentareonethathaverecentlyemergedfromthebrood.Wethenstarvethebeesforaperiodof24hours,dividethebeesin3groupsandinfect2ofthemfeedingthemacertainquantityofNosemasporesandplacetheminanincubator.Wethenbeginathe6dayprocessofplacingthebeesinthetemperaturegradientcanalandrecordtheirpositionsaftera15minuteacclimationperiod.
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The effect of the runoff water in the population of Pyrodinium bahamenseKenaly OrtizColegio de Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro, Humacao, PR, Puerto Rico JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Lizbeth Delgado; Adolfo Rodriguez
InPuertoRico‘sbioluminescentlagoonshasbeenaffectedbythedeclineinpopulationsofPyrodiniumbahamensis.ThisresearchwillexploretheeffectofwaterrunoffonpopulationsofPyrodiniumbahamensis(dinoflagellates).Duringtheyears2012-13intheCabezasdeSanJuaninFajardo,PuertoMosquitoinViequesavisualinspectionoftheareawasperformedinordertoidentifypossiblechannelsformedbyrain.InadditionaqualitativeanalysisofpHwereconductedincludingqualityanalysis.Theseyieldedahigherconcentrationofnitrate,phosphateandsulfate,commonindetergents,insecticidesandpesticides.Thirtymillilitersofwaterwerefilteredeachsampletobeanalyzedunderanelectronmicroscope.Duringthecurrentyear(2014)thesameprocedurewasconductedinLaParguerainLajasinordertomakecomparisonsbetweenthethreewaterbodies.Itwasfoundthatsamplescollectedonrainydayscontainedfewerorganismsandpossessedinjury.Thethreesampleswiththehighestnumberofdamagedspecimensbecameanalyzedunderalasermicroscope.Changesinthecoveringoftheorganismsaredescribed.Osmoticconsiderationrelatedtopopulationdeclinearediscussed.
Synthesis Of Pd & Ni Catalytic Particles To Improve The Performance Of An Alkaline Media Fuel CellJancel TaverasUniversity Gardens HS, San Juan, PR, Puerto Rico JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Pablo J. Hernandez
Overthepastyears,fuelcellshaveemergedasamethodofrenewableenergy.Thisresearchisaboutthesynthesisofnano-particlescatalystsofPalladiumandNickeltoimprovetheperformanceofanalkalinemediafuelcell.Severaldyesweresynthesized:PtandPd,PdNi(75:25),PdNi(50:50)(100);eachwasreducedusingNaBH4.ThesedyeswerethenpaintedinaFAA-3membraneandwerepreparedfortestsinfuelcells.Thecatalystsweresynthesizedeffectively.TheywereanalyzedintheSEM,showingthattheparticleswereoflargesizewithanapproximatedifferenceof6000-27000nmcomparedtoPt.Performancetestswereconductedinacellstationandusedhydrogenasfuel.ResultsinproductionofcurrentweremuchlowercomparedtoPtanditwashighlyunlikelytoworkbetterwithammonia,possiblefueltobeused.Pd(100)obtained0-0.5(mA/cm2),PdNi(75:25)0-0.4(mA/cm2)andPdNi(50:50)3-6(mA/cm2)currentdensities.ComparedwithcommercialPt,whichisof200-250(mA/cm2)currentdensities,theperformanceofthecellisnotenhancedwhichstatesthatthehypothesisisrejected.
83
South Carolina
The effect of a n-type TiO2 photocathode with a wide band gap on a Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 microbial fuel cellKrishna T. GorrepatiSpring Valley Highschool, Columbia, SC, South Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dale Soblo, Spring Valley Highschool
Microbialfuelcells(MFCs)showpromiseasarenewableenergysourcethatcangenerateelectricitythroughmicrobes.Thepurposeofthisstudywastocomparen-typeTiO2with3.2-3.35eVbandgapcathodicelectrodeswithgraphitecathodicelectrodesinaMFC.ItwashypothesizedthattheTiO2electrodeswouldincreasevoltageoutputduetophotoirradiation.Twentytrialsandfourteentrialswereconductedforthegraphiteelectrodes(ControlMFC)andtheTiO2electrodes(TiO2MFCs)respectively.Ineachtrial,thevoltageoutputwascollectedeveryminuteforfivedays.Oncethebacteriumhadstabilized,themeanforeachtrialwascalculated.Usingatwo-samplet-Testwiththemeans,theresultsshowedthatControlandTiO2MFCswerefromthesamepopulation:t(32)=1.69,p>.05.However,withouttheoutliers,theresultsindicatedthatthetwopopulationsweresignificantlydifferent:t(30)=1.70,p<.05.TheTiO2MFCsalsohadgreaterQ1,median,andQ3valueswithandwithoutoutliers.Moreover,TiO2MFCshada10.3%increaseinvoltageoutputs.ThisfurthersupportedthatTiO2MFCsproducedgreatervoltageoutputsthanthecontrolMFCs.AsthepowerdensityofMFCscontinuetoincrease,theywillcontinuetobecomeamorereliableformofgreenenergy.
The Influence of Social Networking on Teenage Decision-MakingBushra B. IslamSpring Valley High School, Columbia, SC, South Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Michelle Wyatt, Spring Valley High School; Michelle Spigner, Spring Valley High School
Astheusageofsocialnetworkingwebsitesincreasesdramatically,itisimportanttoanalyzetheeffectsofsocialmedia.Thisexperiment’spurposewastodeterminetheinfluenceofsocialnetworkingwebsites,namely,FacebookandTwitter,onteenagedecision-makingregardingblooddonation.ItwashypothesizedthatteenagestudentsexposedtoFacebook/Twitterpostssupportingblooddonationwouldbemorelikelytodonateblood.ParticipantscompletedasurveyabouttheirsocialnetworkingusageandtheiropinionsregardingtheInternet’sinfluence.TheyalsoprovidedtheirTwitter/Facebookusernames,althoughtheywerenotinformedabouthowthisinformationwouldbeutilized;theresearcherutilizedthisinformationby“following”studentsonTwitter/“friending”themonFacebook.Afterparticipantswererandomlyplacedintotheexperimentalgroup,whoseparticipantswereexposedtopoststhatsupportedtheblooddrive,orthecontrolgroup,whoseparticipantswereblockedfromseeingsuchposts,socialnetworkingactivitywasmonitoredforonemonth.Attheblooddrive,thenumberofstudentsfrombothgroupswhovolunteeredtodonatebloodwascompared.StudentsweredebriefedandinformedthattheirTwitter/Facebookusernameswereutilizedtoallowexperimental-groupstudentstoseepostsabouttheblooddriveandblockcontrol-groupstudentsfromseeingthem.AChi-squaredtestforindependencewasconductedataconfidencelevelofα=0.05,x2(2,N=50)=9.93,andp<0.001;aparticipant’sdecisiontodonatebloodwasdependentupongroupplacement,ashypothesized.Participantsexposedtoencouragingpostsabouttheblooddriveweremorelikelytosuccumbtosocialnetworkinginfluenceandchoosetodonateblood.
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Effects of Azadiractin, from the Neem Tree, on Colonization and Mortality of the Sweet Potato Whitefly Biotype B on CollardDana KrzyzaniakAcademic Magnet, North Charleston, SC, South Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Merle Shepard, Clemson Extension; Alvin Simmons, USDA; Katy Metzner-Roop, Aca-demic Magnet
Astudywasconductedtodeterminetheeffectsoffoliarspraysof1.25%AzadiractinoncolonizationanddevelopmentbytheB-biotypesweetpotatowhitefly(Bemisiatabaci)oncollards.Cagedchoice,cagedno-choice,andy-tubeolfactometerassayswereconductedonoviposition,survivalandadultbehaviorinresponsetoazadiractin.Datawasanalyzedusingat-test(p=0.05).Inthecagedchoicestudy,whitefliesmostoftenchosetocolonizeandlayeggsoncontrolplants.Decreasednumbersofwhiteflieswereabletocontinuedevelopmentinthetreatmentgroupsofthecagednochoicestudies,ascomparedtothecontrol.Y-tubeolfactometertestsindicatedthatazadiractinhasarepellencyeffectonwhiteflies.Thefindingsmaybeusefulinprovidingamoreecologicallysoundwaytomanagepopulationsofthesweetpotatowhitefly.
Effects of Genetically Engineered Maize and Glyphosate on Eisenia fetida Growth and ReproductionBrett WintersDutch Fork High School, Irmo, SC, South Carolina JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Elizabeth McShane, Dutch Fork High School; Ms. Tamara Turner, Dutch Fork High School
Biotechnologyhasprovidedapproximately144geneticallyengineered(GE)crops.BecauseGEfoodshaveonlybeenconsumedsince1994,thelong-termeffectsarevirtuallyunknown.Additionally,theincreaseduseofglyphosateherbicide,appliedtoRoundupReady®GEcrops,mayposehealthrisksuponingestion.ThisprojecttestedthegrowthandreproductioneffectsofGEmaizeandglyphosateonEiseniafetida.GEandnon-GEmaizeweregrown.GlyphosatewassprayedonhalftheRoundupReady®andBt/RoundupReady®plants.Ondays50and183,therewasanincreasedweightinthosefedRoundupReady®,Bt/RoundupReady®,andglyphosate-sprayedvariablesandadecreasedweightinthosefedtheBtmodification.Onday183,therewasagreaterweightincreaseinpopulationsfedGEmaizewithglyphosatesprayedcomparedtothosefednon-sprayedGEmaize.Nodifferenceswerenotedinmortalityorinthenumberofjuvenileshatchingfromcocoons.Asoilanalysisonday106revealedthatallsamplescontained38-80%decreasedbacterialcountcomparedtothecontrol.ThisexperimentrevealsthatsomevarietiesofGEmaizevegetationandglyphosatemayresultinweightgain.ResultssuggestthepotentialforGEproductsandglyphosatetocontributetoobesitybypossiblyalteringgutflora.
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Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island)
Change Agent Attribution in the Pacific Northwest using LandTrendr Label Interface, Version 1.1Easton J. EhlersManchester Essex Regional High School, Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA, Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island) JSHS
Remotesensingisbecomingincreasinglymoreimportantintheenvironmentalsciencesbecauseanyareacanbeaccessedremotelyviasatellite.TheLandTrendrLabelInterface,Version1.1,rootedintheconceptofremotesensing,isaimingtodevelopanalgorithmtodetectuniversallandchangesasinfireandorharvesting.Theobjectiveisfortheinterfacetobecomedependentfromhumanattribution,atthemoment,thisprocessesisstillinprogress.Thequestionariseswhetherwhichchangeprocessisthemostprevalent;itisconditionallydependentonLandtrendr’scurrentfocuslocationofthePacificNorthwest.
A Novel Bioinformatics System to Aid Researchers in Using Computational Biology to Guide Pharmacological Research for Different Disease PathogensKatie HudekHudek Homeschool, Grafton, MA, Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Gail Hudek, Hudek Homeschool
Inthispaper,amethodforusingcomputationalbiologytohelpguidepharmacologicalresearchwasdevelopedanddemonstrated.Additionally,anewbioinformaticssystemwasdesigned,developed,anddemonstratedwhichautomatesthisoverallmethodtoaidresearchersinfindingnewchemicalcompoundstotreatdisease.Computationalbiologyisarelativelynewfield,whichutilizesthedisciplineofbioinformatics.Bioinformaticsistheuseofcomputers,software,andmathematicalmodelstoprocessandintegratebiologicalinformation.Proteinsarethemainagentsofbiologicalfunction,makingthemidealsubjectsforstudyofdiseasedstates;protein-proteininteraction(PPI)maps,whichcanbeutilizedtoanalyzeproteinsandtheirinteractions,areusefultoolsinunderstandingthemolecularbasisofdisease.ThebioinformaticssystemwaswrittenusingtheJavaprogramminglanguage.Itusesnaturallanguageprocessingtechniquesforuserinput,andassiststheuserbyautomaticallysearchingweb-based,publiclyavailableproteindatabases,creatingPPImapsandaidingintheiranalysis,andsearchingpubliclyavailabledrugdatabaseinformationforchemicalcompoundsthattargetspecificproteinsofinterest.Thisbioinformaticssystemautomatesaprocessthatcanbeusedforanydiseasepathogen,andwassuccessfullytestedanddemonstratedusingboththeHIV-1andH1N1viruses.
Solving the Protein Structure of the Ultrasensitive Calcium Indicator Protein GCaMP6 and Designing New Calcium IndicatorsAndrew F. LuoLexington High School, Lexington, MA; JingJin Ding, National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing, Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island) JSHS
Calciumisimportantfornumerousphysiologicalprocessesanditscytoplasmiclevelsreflectthecellularactivitylevels.GCaMPisthemostpopularlyusedcalciumindicatorincellbiologyandneuroscience.ThenewlydevelopedGCaMP6exhibitssuperiorbrightnessandultra-sensitivitytocalciumatphysiologicalconcentrations(Chenetal.Nature,2013).IworkedinabiochemistrylaboratoryandproposedtodeterminetheproteinstructureofGCaMP6(Ding&Luo,etal.,SCLS,2014).IpurifiedandcrystalizedGCaMP6manddeterminedthecrystalstructuresofCa2+boundGCaMP6attheresolutionof2.8Å.Alongwithmymentor,IpresenteddetailedstructuralanalysesandrevealedthestructuralbasisfortheoutperformanceofGCaMP6.Incomparisonwithitsparentversion,GCaMP6has3substitutionmutationsthatchangeslocalstructureandinteractiontoenhanceCa2+sensitivityandgreenfluorescenceintensity.SpecificsubstitutionsinthethreeversionsofGCaMP6arealsostructurallyconsistentwiththeirdifferentialsensitivityandintensity.Thisstudygivesusinsightonpotentialstrategiesforfurtherstructure-guidedoptimizationandthedesignofnovelcalciumindicators.
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Engineering Novel Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery to Treat Cryptococcal InfectionsVivek SubramaniamWestborough High School, Westborough, MA, Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Miriam Rafailovich, Stony Brook University; Mr. Mathew Desjardins, Westborough High School
Cryptococcusisaleadingcauseoffungalmeningoencephalitisworldwide,accountingforoverhalfmilliondeathsannually.Glucosylceramide,animportantglycosphingolipidpresentinCryptococcus,isessentialformembraneintegrityandpathogenicity.Auniquecharacteristicofthesefungiistheirproductionofanegativelychargedcapsulethatallowsthemtoresideunharmedwithinpulmonarymacrophages.AmphotericinB,theleadingdrugfortreatingCryptococcalinfectionsisexpensiveandnephrotoxic.Theobjectiveofthisresearchwastoengineeracosteffective,specificandsafedrug-deliverymechanismtotreatCryptococcosis.PromisingantifungaldrugcandidateN’-(3-bromo-4-hydroxybenzylidene)-2-methylbenzo-hydrazide(BHBM)wasencapsulatedinpoly(lactic-co-glycolicacid)(PLGA)nanoparticlestoallowdispersionofthehydrophobicdrugandforspecificityofthenanoparticles.ThePLGAnanoparticleswerecreatedwiththepositivelychargedsurfactantchitosanchloridefortargeteddrugdeliverybyelectrostaticattraction.Thedrugencapsulationwasconfirmedbynuclearmagneticresonance.Dynamiclightscatteringrevealedthezetapotentialoftheparticlesandtransmissionelectronmicroscopyrevealedtheirsphericalsizeandshape.Thedrug-loadednanoparticlesreducedintracellularCryptococcusinmacrophage-likecelllineJ774A.1andreducedsyncytiaformationwithoutaffectingmacrophageviabilityover72hourscomparedtodrug-freenanoparticles.Asfuturework,drugelutionandnanoparticledrugreleaseratescouldbestudied.
Developmental Effects of Correlated Color Temperature of Artificial Lights on Painted Lady Butterflies Vanessa carduiSimiao YouHolyoke Catholic High School, Chicopee, MA, Southern New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island) JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. L. LeTellier, Holyoke Catholic High School
Thisexperimentaimedtodeterminetheeffectsofartificialnightlightingonthelifecycleofbutterflies.Paintedladybutterflies,Vanessacardui,wereexposedtovariouslightsourceswithdifferentcorrelatedcolortemperature(CCT).Lightintensityandtemperatureweremonitoredbydatacollectiondevicesplacedineachexperimentalunit.Butterflydevelopmentandlifecyclestagelengthwereobservedandrecordedregularly.Thelarvaethatgrewunderartificialnightlight,whichhadhighCCT(5000Kand6500K),werewiderandlongerthanthelarvaethatgrewunderlowCCTlights(2700K).ThebutterfliesthatgrewunderhighCCTlightsourcespupatedandemergedfromchrysalidesearlierthantheonesthatwereunderlowCCTlights.Thisresearchsuggestedthatartificialnightlightstimulatesthedevelopmentofthepaintedladybutterflies.Whetherartificialnightlightinducessimilareffectsinotherspeciesofinsectsremainstobeexplored,butlightinducedchangesinphenologycouldhaveecosystemwideeffects.
87
Tennessee
A Study of the Biodegradation of Dimethyl Benzyl and Didecyl Dimethyl Quaternary Ammonia Compounds by Antibiotic Resistant BacteriaZheer AhmedMartin Luther King Magnet School, Nashville, TN, Tennessee JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Thomas Byl, US Geological Survey; Dr. Chand Desai, Martin Luther King Magnet School
QuaternaryAmmoniaCompoundsarecommonlyusedinindustrial,domestic,agricultural,andhealthcarerelatedfields;consequently,25%ofthesecompoundsaredischargedintowastewaterandlittleisknownabouttheirenvironmentalfateinecosystems.Despitethis,QACsarevulnerabletotheprocessofbiodegradation.TheobjectiveofthisprojectwastodeterminetheroleofbiofilmdevelopmentonbiodegradationratesofQACs(didecyldimethylanddimethylbenzylammoniumchloride).BacteriaresistanttoQACswerecollectedfromadecontaminationstationtotestwhetherbiofilmbacteriaorfree-livingnonsymbioticbacteriaweremoreefficientatbiodegradingQACs.Allmicrocosmsreceived250mLofthesamesolutioncontainingQACandbacteriaandwereallowedtoequilibratefor4weekstoaccountforsorptionandbiofilmdevelopment.TheQACconcentrationswereperiodicallymeasured(withthreereplicatesamples).Themicrocosmswithhighsurfaceareaandbiofilmdevelopmenthadhalf-livesof15dayswhiletheoneswithoutsurfaceareaforbiofilmdevelopmenthadQAChalf-livesof60days.Additionalexperimentsindicatedthatthebacteriawerethermophilic,gramnegative,andslightlyacidophilic.
Confirming next generation sequencing (NGS) data on the effects of NAG-1-induced cancer cellsAmany AlshibliFarragut High School, Knoxville, TN, Tennessee JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Seung J. Baek, University of Tennessee; Mrs. Neely Tonos, Farragut High School
Non-steroidalanti-inflammatorydrug-activatedgene(NAG-1)playsacomplexroleincancerdevelopmentasatumorinhibitor;itsmechanismofsuchactivity,however,isunknown.Onepossiblemechanismmaybethroughtheregulationofvariousgenes,producingacascadethatmayleadtothesuppressionoftumorgrowth.ThisstudysoughttoconfirmNGSdatawhichfoundthatNAG-1regulatestheexpressionof142genesinosteosarcoma(U2OS)cells.ThedatawasconfirmedthroughpolymerasechainreactionamplificationofgenesNRP1,HMGB1,ZMAT4,andIGFBP5.TheexpressionoftheseamplifiedgenesintheNAG-1-inducedU2OSandhumanembryonickidney(HEK)cellswasthencomparedtosimilaramplificationsinwildtypeU2OSandHEKcellsbyanalyzingagarosegelelectrophoresisimages.TheresultsshowedthatgenesZMAT4andHMGB1areup-regulatedinNAG-1-inducedU2OScells,confirmingNGSdataandsuggestingthatthesegenesmayinhibittumorgrowth.Additionally,NRP1andIGFBP5exhibiteddown-regulationinNAG-1-inducedHEKcells,suggestingthattheymaypromotetumorgrowth.ThesefindingsfurthertheinvestigationofthecentralcausesofNAG-1tumorsuppression,andsuggestfuturestudyoftheaforementionedgenesthatmayplaysignificantrolesincarcinogenesis.
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Effect Of Artemesinin And Aleuropein Compounds In Colorectal Cancer Cell GrowthGrace J. BaekKnoxville, TN, Tennessee JSHS
EffectofartemesininandoleuropeincompoundsincolorectalcancercellgrowthNaturalcompoundsareaviable,cost-efficientoptionincancertreatmentcomparedtopotentiallyharmfulexistingtreatments.Artemesininandoleuropeinhavebeenshowntoinhibittumorgrowthinvariouswell-knowncancerssuchasbreast,liver,andleukemia.Artemesinin,acompoundderivedfromawoodyherbaceousplant,ArtemesiaAnnua,hasbeenrecognizedbytheWorldHealthOrganizationintreatingmalaria.Oleuropein,acompoundderivedfromtheolivetree,aplantthatiswidespreadaswellasreadilyavailableintheMediterraneanclimatesandfoodcultures.Ithasbeenshowntopreventatherosclerosis.Theexperimenttestedtoseeartemesininandoleuropein’seffectivenessbydosageindifferentbovineserumconcentrations.HCT-116(humancolorectaltumor)cellswereputthroughacellproliferationassaytomeasurecelldeathbyabsorbencyintwodifferentserumlevels.Versusthe10%serummedia,the2%serummediashowedtohavethemosteffectiveenvironmentforthetwocompounds,oleuropeinandartemesinin,ininitiatingcelldeath.Thisinnovativeresearchoffersaviewontheimportanceofmediaserumlevelsandcancerproliferationassays.
Prediction of Epileptic Seizures using an Android ApplicationMaria D’AzevedoOak Ridge High School, Oak Ridge, TN, Tennessee JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Tammy Carneim, Oak Ridge High School; Dr. Lee Hively, Oak Ridge National Labora-tory
Epilepsyafflicts50millionpeopleworldwide,andanytypeofseizurehasthepotentialtobedangerous,especiallyifthevictimisunprepared.Epilepticpatientsneedaneasyandconvenientwaytopredictseizureeventssothattheyhavesufficienttimetoprepare.WedevelopedanAndroidapplicationinordertoaddressthisneed.Theappreadsandanalyzeselectroencephalogram(EEG)data,andthengraphsandmeasuresthedissimilaritybetweenbaselineandcurrentdata.Afteranalysis,theprograminformsthepatientwhetheraseizureeventhasbeenpredicted.Itaccuratelypredictswhetherornotaseizurewilloccur58/60,or45/60,iftheprecisionofthedataishalvedinordertosavememory.Theappwillbenefitpatients,doctors,andinsurancecompanies.ItcanpotentiallybemodifiedtoworkonaniPhoneTMoroncheaperhandhelddevicesfordevelopingcountries,wherethevastmajorityofepilepticpatientshavenoaccesstotreatment.
Testing the Bayesian Model of Hypothesis EvaluationVijaya R. DasariWhite Station High School, Memphis, TN, Tennessee JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Nikki Marinsek, University of California, Santa Barbara; Maridee Cornell, White Station High School
Bayesianupdatingisamathematicaltheorythatdescribeshowindividualsupdateandrevisebeliefsbasedonnewobservations.Theaimofthisexperimentwasto1)determinehowwelltheBayesianmodelexplainssubjects’hypothesisevaluationand2)identifyinstances,ifany,wheresubjectsdeviatefromidealBayesianbehavior.Tothisend,weusedamodifiedversionoftheWisconsinCardSortingTestinwhichsubjectsguessedwhichstimuli,attribute,orrule,wasrelevantinagiventrialandweregivenfeedbackontheirguess.Additionally,weusedprobabilisticfeedbackto1)dissociatethereceiptofnegativefeedbackandarulechangeand2)simulatethereal-worlduncertaintyofevidence.WefoundthattheBayesianmodelaccuratelydescribeshigh-performingsubjects’beliefupdatingbehavior.Wecannowusethismodelinfuturestudiestopinpointtheareasthatsupporthypothesisevaluationandmakeimprovementsindelusionalpatientswhodonotideallyevaluatetheirhypotheses.
89
Texas
Enhanced Third-Generation Biofuel Production from Genetically Modified AlgaeDara W. LiJasper High School, Plano, TX, Texas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Neil Milburn, Plano West Senior High School; Pat Kite, Jasper High School
Algaeareoneofthemostpromisingsourcesofbio-fuelsbecauseoftheirenvironmentalsustainability,andthedirectuseofalgallipidsasfuels.Traditionalmethodsofextractingtheselipids,however,preventalgalbiofuelsfrombeingacommerciallyviableoption.Thisprojectintroducesanoveltechniquethatcutscostsofbiofuelextractionthroughgeneticallymodifyingalgae.Asopposedtoconventionalhexaneextractionsthatbreakthecellwall,therebykillingthealgae,genemodificationsofacyl-acpsynthetaseandthioesteraseallowforautomaticexcretionoflipids.Inaddition,lipidproductionitselfwasalsooptimized.Ashypothesized,cellfunctionswerenotinhibitedbythetransformation;therefore,asinglecultureofalgaeisabletocontinuallyproducelipidsasopposedtore-culturing.Inordertomaintainhighalgaeculturesforlarge-scaleproduction,anoriginalracewaysystem,CACBA,wasdevelopedtoefficientlyculturealgaethroughspecificallyengineeredcultivationconditions.Thisbroughtthealgaecultureonparwiththebiofueldemand;eachcultureofalgaeholdsmillionsoflipid-excretingcells.Emissionstestswereconductedonbiofuel/fossilfuelmixturesforavisionofasmoothtransitionfrompetroleumtobiofuels.Itwasfoundthatasthepercentageofbiofuelincreased,theharmfulemissionscausingairpollutiondecreased.
Pan-Neuronal Over-Expression of the GCLc Gene to Mitigate Redox Stress and Mitochondrial ETC Complex Dysfunction in Alzheimer’s DiseaseLisa P. MichaelsPlano West Senior High School, Plano, TX, Texas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Neil Milburn, Plano West Senior High School
EffectivetherapieshaveeludedAlzheimer’sdiseaseforoveracentury.Thismulti-phasedprojectinvestigatespotentialbiomarkers,cellularGlutathionelevelsandMitochondrialenzymeactivityfortheearlydetectionandtreatmentofAlzheimer’sdisease.TransgenicDrosophilamelanogasterwithpan-neuronalover-expressionoftheGCLcgenewerecreatedbycrossbreedingAlzheimerAbeta42(c155-elav/elavGAL4;UAS-Ab42/cyo)andantioxidantGCLc-GAL4flies.TheseAbeta42-GCLcDrosophilaweresubjectedtoredoxstressandtheirlifespancomparedwithyellow-whiteandAbeta42Drosophila.ThemitochondrialbioenergeticsoftheElectronTransportChaincomplexesoftheDrosophilagroupswasthenanalyzedattheGeneticsLabusingColorimetricEnzymaticAssays.ThelifespanofAbeta42-GCLcDrosophilaweresignificantlyandstatisticallyhigherat128%comparedtoAlzheimer’sflies,andupto136%higherunderredoxstress.TheMitochondrialETCactivitiesinallcomplexesweresignificantlylowerby40-70%intheAlzheimerfliescomparedtotheyellow-whites.Ineachmitochondrialcomplex,theAβ-GCLcflies’enzymeactivitydoubledascomparedtotheAlzheimer’sflies,especiallyincomplexesI,IIIandIVencodedbymitochondrialDNA.ThisPatentPendingresearchsuggestsdiagnosticprotocolsusingmitochondrialbioenergeticsandGlutathionelevelsasbiomarkersinAlzheimer’s.Itpointstothepotentialofneuro-specificgenetherapyforAlzheimer’sbyincreasingpan-neuronalin-vivoGlutathionesynthesis.
90
Novel Dilithium Phthalocyanine-Graphene Composite Electrodes for Hybrid Supercapacitor ApplicationsMichael N. TrinhPlano East Senior High School, Plano, TX, Texas JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Kenneth Balkus Jr., University of Texas at Dallas
Supercapacitorsareenergystoragedevicesthatfacilitatehigherpowerdensitiesthanthoseofbatteriesandfuelcellsandhigherenergydensitiesthanthoseofcapacitors.Duetotheirabilitytochargeanddischargequicklyandinhighmagnitude,supercapacitorsareanenticingsolutionfortheenergycrisis.Graphene,ansp2hybridizedcarbonallotropewithhighelectrostaticchargecapabilities,isextremelyconductivewhiledilithiumphthalocyanine,duetoitsredoxactivity,canprovidepseudocapacitance.Inthiswork,anovelhybridsupercapacitorisfabricatedwithelectrodesthatexploitthesynergybetweentheelectricdoublelayercapacitanceofgrapheneandthepseudocapacitanceofdilithiumphthalocyanineincompositeelectrodes.Itwashypothesizedthatcoincellsupercapacitorswithgraphene-dilithiumphthalocyaninecompositeelectrodescouldbesynthesizedviaultrasonicationandfiltrationtoyieldhigheroverallcapacitance,energydensity,andpowerdensitythanthoseofpuregraphenesupercapacitors.Itwasobservedthatwhentheconcentrationofphthalocyaninetographenewasat5%,therewasastatisticallysignificantdifferenceinperformanceofthecell.Therefore,itwasconcludedthatacheap(about20centsperunit),reusable,andflexiblecompositeelectrodecanmaximizequalityofasupercapacitor,whichsuggestsnovelfunctionswherepreviouslyinefficientsupercapacitorapplicationsweresubstandard.
91
Virginia
A Natural Way to Improve Chemotherapy: Investigating the effect of Biochanin A on the efficacy of Thapsigargin in a C. elegans cancer modelAudrey L. FrancisLoudoun Academy of Science, Sterling, VA, Virginia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Julie Sohl, Loudoun Academy of Science
Multidrugresistanceisamajorobstacleinthetreatmentofcancer.OneofthemajorcausesofresistanceisP-glycoprotein,anATPbindingcassettetransporterthatbindsandremovestoxinsfromcells,enablingcellstoeliminatedrugsandtoxinsbeforedamageisincurred.ThisstudyaimedtotesttheeffectofapotentP-glycoproteininhibitor,BiochaninA,ontheefficacyofananticancerdrugcalledThapsigargin.Interestingly,ithasbeenfoundthatBiochaninAisabletospecificallytargetcellsthatoverexpressP-glycoprotein,potentiallyenablingittoincreasetheaccumulationofchemotherapeuticdrugsincancercellswithoutcausingfurtherharmtohealthycells.ThenematodeCaenorhabditiseleganshasbeenusedasanalternativecancermodelforcertaindrugssuchasThapsigarginbecauseitpossessesahomologforacalciumiontransporterthatistargetedbyThapsigargin.Inthisstudy,C.eleganswereusedtomodelcanceroustumorsandweretreatedwithThapsigargineitheraloneorincombinationwithBiochaninA.ItwasfoundthattreatingwormswithBiochaninAinconjunctionwithThapsigarginproducedsignificantlygreaterreductionsinpopulationthanThapsigarginalone,indicatingthatBiochaninAmaybeabletoimprovetheeffectivenessofchemotherapyandpreventorreversedrugresistance.Additionaltrialsarebeingconductedtoconfirmthesefindings.
The Impact of Community Acquired Ciprofloxacin-Resistant strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa on Rates of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the hospitalTarun V. KamathThomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, VA, Virginia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Nancy Donnegan, Medstar Washington Hospital Center; Dr. Barbara Wood, Thom-as Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
Inthisexperiment,thepercentageoccurrenceofciprofloxacinresistantPseudomonasaeruginosa(CRPA)incommunityandhospitalsettingsfrom1990to2013wasstudied.Thepurposewastodeterminetherelationshipbetweenthetwosettings.Thedataofhadbeenpreviouslycollected.Twostatisticalanalyseswereused:firstaFouriertransformofthedatawhichindicatedthatbothcommunityandhospitalgraphshadsimilarfrequencies.Secondmethodusedsuperpositiontodemonstratewhetherhospitalaffectedcommunityorviceversa.Forthis,thecurveswerestretchedtooverlayeachotherToshowthatthecurveswerestatisticallysimilar,thePearson’s‘r’valueofthetrendlineswerecalculatedandcomparedusingFisher’s‘r’to‘z’transformation.Itwasfoundthatthetwocurveswerestatisticallysimilar.Basedonabove,itcanbeconcludedthatatfirstthehospitalpercentageresistanceaffectedthecommunitypercentageresistance,howeverovertimepercentageresistancechangeswereintandem.Furthermore,whenthepercentageresistanceisindecline,itstartsatthecommunityandspreadstothehospitalwhereasintimesofresurgence,itismorelikelytobegininthecommunityandspreadtothehospital.
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THE PARADOX OF EMOTIONAL DIMENSIONALITY: The Effect of the Dimensionality of Audio Stimuli on the Brain’s Electrical Activity. - A Neuroscience Study -Michelle M. MarquezMath & Science High School at Clover Hill, Midlothian, VA, Virginia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dana Johnson, Math & Science High School at Clover Hill; Dana Johnson, Math & Sci-ence High School at Clover Hill
Thereistangibleproofthatmusictherapyworksintreatingsymptomsofmooddisorders,neurologicaldisorders,andanxietydisorderssuchasPost-TraumaticStressDisorder.Themechanismsofactionandtheoriginsofthesephenomenapresentaconfusingpicturetoexpertsinthefield.ThepurposeofthisresearchstudywastofindamathematicalcorrelationbetweentheFractalDimension(Dimensionality)ofaudiostimuliandtheselectiveemotionsinducedbythestimuliandtomonitoriftheseresultswouldbeconfirmedandverifiedusingElectroencephalography.Thisstudyrevealsthattheinternalmathematicalstructureofthesound-stimuliitselfcouldberesponsiblefortheinductionofselectiveemotions.ThereisatrendbetweenlowFractalDimensionaudiostimuliandthe“positive”emotionalresponsesofjoyalongwithashorteningeffectontimeperception.Meanwhile,highFractalDimensionaudiostimuliwereshowntopredominantlytrigger“negative”emotionalresponsesoffearwithalengtheningeffectontimeperception.Theseresultssupporttheideathatprimaryemotionscouldbeuniversalacrossculturesandmayhaveanevolutionaryandbiologicalbasis.Thisstudyprovidesafundamentalunderstandingtoadvancethefieldsofbiomathematics,emotionalresearch,andmusictherapy.
A Novel Beamforming Approach to Stereo SoundSamuel E. RohrerThomas Jefferson High School for Science and Tech, Alexandria, VA, Virginia JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: David Bell
Thegoalofthisongoingprojectistodeterminethebestmethodofcreatingstereosoundandseparationwithinthefootprintofatabletinthenear-field(lessthansixfeetfromtheuser).Beamforming(creatingdirectionalwavefronts)wasusedtoachievethis;however,thebestmethodofnear-fieldbeamformingwasunknown.ThreetechniquesweresimulatedandcomparedusingMATLAB:pointandsum(anewmethoddevelopedduringresearch),delayandsumbeamforming,andnobeamforming.Simulationresultsshowedthatpointandsumbeamformingwasthesuperiormethod.Thistechniquewasthentestedinhardware.Todothis,thelogicfortheprocessingwasdefinedusingVHDLandsynthesizedontoaFieldProgrammableGateArray(FGPA).Onahigh-level,thisprocessingcircuitrysamplesallaudioinputsandthentransfersthedatatoamatrixofregisters.Thedatawasthenselectedfromtheregistersbasedonthedelaysthathadalreadybeencalculatedtocreatethebeamforming.Resultssuggestthesystemisfunctioningcorrectlybyseparatingthesoundasmanyusershaveconfirmed.Itisclearpointandsumbeamformingisthebestmethodfornear-fieldbeamformingandthatstereoseparationcanbecreatedinthefootprintofatablet.
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Washington
Generation of Power Using Piezoelectric LeavesMaeve W. HarrisSequim High School, Sequim, WA, Washington JSHS
Thevibrationofleavesinthewindprovidesapotentialrenewableenergysource.Thegoalofmyprojectwastodesignanartificialleafsystemthatwouldmimictheoscillationofnaturalleaves.Newtechnologiessuchaspiezo-electricscouldconvertthissmall-scalevibrationalenergytoelectricalenergy.Iinitiallytestedninedifferentleafshapeswithvaryingpetioleconfigurations.IemployedaSlamStickaccelerometertorecordtheaccelerationing’sandthefrequencyinHz.IanalyzedthecollecteddatausingaFastFourierTransform(FFT)intheSlamStickSoftware.Resultsindicatedthattheoptimumsystemwasabirchleafwitharound,bent-wirepetiole4cmlongwiththeleaforiented30degreestothewind.Thissystemproducedanaverageof0.1389g’satanaverage35.9564(Hz).Iidentifiedapiezoelectric,VoltureVibrationEnergyHarvester,thatwouldoperatewithintheaccelerationandfrequencyindentifiedbytheSlamStick.IreplacedtheSlamStickwiththeenergyharvester.ItunedthepiezoelectricenergyharvestertotheoptimumfrequencywhichIthenconnectedtoarectifierboard.ThiscircuitwasattachedtoaVernierMeterandthedatawastransferredtotheLoggerProsoftwareonthecomputer.
M9 Earthquakes as a Basis for Soil Liquefaction AnalysisKatherine LandoniSequim High School, Sequim, WA, Washington JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Ms. Beckett, Sequim School District; Ron Tognazzini, Sequim Science Club
Earthquakeshavecausedpropertydamageandinfrastructuredamagefromsoilliquefaction.AnalyticalmethodsusedintheUnitedStatestopredictliquefactionpotentialweredevelopedwithdatafromsmallmagnitude,shortdurationearthquakes.TheMagnitude9subductionzoneearthquakeonMarch11,2011offthePacificCoastofJapanresultedinliquefaction.SimplifiedliquefactionanalyticalmethodsuseaMagnitudeScalingFactor(MSF)asaproxyfordurationduringanearthquake.ThepurposeofthisinvestigationistodevelopaDurationScalingFactor(DSF)basedonlargemagnitude,longdurationshakingfromsubductionzoneearthquakesandapplyittothesimplifiedliquefactionanalyticalmethod.Recordsofdigitizedaccelerationdatawithin30kmofstiesthatliquefiedduringfoursubductionzoneearthquakeswereobtained.IcalculatedthesignificantdurationofstronggroundshakingforeachrecordfromtheCumulativeAbsoluteVelocity(CAV).IdevelopedtheDSFfromaregressionanalysisofdurationandmagnitude,andcomparedliquefactionpotentialofthreesitesusingtheDSFandMSF.TheresultsindicatedthattheMSFisnotadequateasaproxyforDuration.ThisindicatesthattheuseofaDSFwouldpredictliquefactionpotentialatabout5%lowergroundshakingthanthestandardMSF.
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Cranberry Extracts: A Quorum Sensing Inhibitor and the Novel Application of Cranberry Extracts as an Environmental Measure to Inhibit Pectobacterium carotovorum in Crops.Indira RayalaHenry M. Jackson High School, Mill Creek, WA, Washington JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Andrew Sevald, Henry M. Jackson High School; Carol Tanner, Henry M. Jackson High School
Bacteriaexhibitcomplexmethodsofcommunicationscalledquorumsensing.Quorumsensingallowsbacteriatochemicaldeterminewhenspeciesdensitybecomeshighenoughtoovercomethehostcellsabilitytoproduceaneffectiveimmuneresponse.Ifquorumsensingwastobeinhibitedthenbacteriawouldnotbeabletolaunchvirulence.Plantdiseaseisaneconomicproblemandthecurrentmethodstotreatplantpathogensarevariedandhazardoustotheenvironment.Nearlyallplantpathogenaregram-negativebacteriaanduseAHLautoinducerstolaunchvirulenceinthehost.CranberryExtracts(DehydratedCrushedCranberryPowderandcPACs)willbetestedfortheirpotentialasanenvironmentalantibioticforplantdisease.Theanti-quorumsensingabilitiesofCranberryExtractswereassessedwithaDiffusionAssayusingthebiosensorstrainAgrobacteriumtumefacienstomeasurebeta-galactosidaseactivityandshowedanti-quorumsensingabilities(p<.001).TheextractshadasignificanteffectontheintegrityonAHLs.(p<.05)CranberryExtractswereappliedtoPectobacteriumcarotovorumtomeasureinhibitionofbiofilmformation(p<.05).Theextract’sabilitytopreventpost-harvestlosseswasalsoassessedandresultsshowthattheCranberryExtractdiddisplayinhibitionofinfectioninpotatoes.(p<.05).
Does BPA Cause Hearing Loss? Assessing the Potential Ototoxicity Induced by Bisphenol-A in Danio rerio Lateral LineMeghal ShethCamas High School, Camas, WA, Washington JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Allison B. Coffin, Washington State University Vancouver; Mrs. Kimberly Newman, Camas High School
DoesBPACauseHearingLoss?AssessingthePotentialOtotoxicityInducedbyBisphenol-AinDaniorerioLateralLineMeghalShethCamasHighSchool,Camas,WAMentor,Dr.AllisonB.Coffin,WashingtonStateUniversityVancouverTeacher,Mrs.KimberlyNewmanCamasHighSchoolBisphenol-A,(BPA)isaplasticizerusedintheproductionofpolycarbonateplastics,epoxyresins,andthermalpaper.BPAhasbeenshowntocausemanyhealthdefects,whichiswhyresearchisbeingdonetolearnmoreabouttheadverseeffectsofBPA.Inmyresearch,IhavetestedfortheototoxiceffectsofBPA,andhavebeguntoidentifyhowBPAspecificallycauseshaircelldeathandhearingloss.Hearinglossisoftencausedbythelossofhaircells,whicharemechanosensorycellsinthecochleathatreceivesoundstimuliandtransferittothebrainviaauditorynerve.Thehumanbodyproducesabout15,000auditoryhaircellsandoncelost,haircellscannotbereplaced.Manyresearchersusezebrafishasamodelforhaircelltoxicitystudiesinvivobecausethelaterallinestructurealongthebodyofthefishcontainshaircellbearingorganscalledneuromaststhatallowfortheaccurateidentificationofdamagedhaircells.Ihaveconcludedthat24-hourexposuretoBPAcauseshaircelldeath,andthatcertaincompounds,likeantioxidants,canpreventthisdamageinhumans,whichcouldpotentiallyalterthewaythehouseholdconsumerviewsBPAandtheimportanceofhearing.
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Synthesis, Characterization and Solar Cell Application of Zinc-Oxide Nano-StructuresSwetha V. ShutthanandanRichland High School, Richland, WA, Washington JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Vaithiyalingam Shutthanandan, Pacific Northwest National Lab
Thedyesensitizednanoparticlesolarcell(DSNSC)isoneofthenewtypesofsolartechnologythatconvertssolarenergyintoelectricalenergy.TiO2isthetypicalnanomaterialusedinDSNSC.However,becauseofitsverylowelectronmobility,TiO2basedsolarcellsufferfromelectronrecombinationeffectsatthecell.Thisreducestheoverallefficiency.Assuchscientistshavebeentryingtodiscovernewmaterialstoovercomethisissue.ZincOxidebasednanostructuresshowsomepromisingeffectsinthisdirection.Inthiswork,severaldifferentnanostructuresofZnOweresynthesizedusing“Self-CatalyticassistedVapor-Liquid-Solid”growthprocess.Differenttypesofnanostructuressuchaswires,rods,flowers,andsheetswereformedonthesubstratesdependingontheirlocationinthesynthesistube.ThesenanostructureswerecharacterizedbyusingX-RayPhotoelectronSpectroscopyforsurfacecomposition,RutherfordBackscatteringSpectrometryforbulkcomposition/porosity,andHeliumIonMicroscopyformorphology.FourdifferentDSNSCwerefabricatedusingthesenanostructures.Forcomparisonpurposes,twoadditionalDSNSCwerefabricatedusingcommerciallyavailableZnOandTiO2nanoparticles.TheI-Vcharacteristicsofthesecellswereobtainedfordifferentlightingconditions.DSNSCfabricatedfromZnOnano-wiresshowedthelargestefficiency,whilethecellsynthesizedfromnano-flowershowedtheleastefficiency.
The Effect of Body Mass Index on the Concentrations of Acetone, Isoprene, and 1-octene in Human BreathCarrie M. StumpColumbia River High School, Vancouver, WA, Washington JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Kelly Cameron, Columbia River High School; Todd Rogers, Columbia Basin College/Center for Laboratory Services at RJ Lee Group
ObesityisanepidemicintheUnitedStates;itisbecomingmorevitalthatadeeperunderstandingofhumanmetabolismbegained.NewtechnologiessuchasProtonTransferReaction-MassSpectrometry(PTR-MS)enableafasterandmorecosteffectiveanalysisofhumanbreathwherehumanbreathisexaminedunderthepremisethatitcontainsVolatileOrganicCompounds(VOCs)thataremetabolicbyproducts.Theresearchquestionis:Whatistheeffectofbodymassindex(BMI)ontheconcentrationofacetone,isopreneand1-octeneinhumanbreathsamples?
BreathsampleswerecollectedinTedlarBagsfrom31teachersofvaryingBMIsatColumbiaRiverHighSchool.Participantsinflatedthebag,whichwasthensealedandlockedfortransporttoColumbiaBasinCollegeandRJLeeGroupinPasco,WA.Heightsandweights,fromwhichBMIswerecalculated,weremeasured1-2dayslater.Isopreneconcentration,whichdemonstratedaweakpositivecorrelationwithBMI,hada95%significance.AcetoneconcentrationhadaweaknegativecorrelationwithBMIandaconfidenceof90%.1-octenedemonstratedalmostnocorrelationbetweenocteneconcentrationsandBMI.Overall,thestudywaslimitedbyalackofcontrolleddietandpotentialtimefromsamplecollectiontoPTR-MSanalysis.
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Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan
Evaluating the toxicity of triclocarban on a sensitive algal strain, Scenedesmus subspicatusKaitlin M. BrueggenWest Salem High School, West Salem, WI, Wisconsin JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Barb Thompson, West Salem High School
Triclocarban(TCC)isachemicalcompoundthatisoftenaddedtohouseholdproducts,suchashandanddishsoap,toimpartantimicrobialproperties.Antimicrobialproductsareusedtokillinfectiousmicrobes,buthavealsobeenshowntoleadtomanynegativeeffects,includingantimicrobialresistantbacteria,negativehealtheffects,andnegativeeffectsontheenvironment.LittleisknownaboutthetoxicityofTCCandhowitmayaffectalgaeifthecompoundweretocontaminateaquaticecosystems.TodetermineTCCtoxicity,thegreenalgaScenedesmussubspicatuswasgrowninsolutionscontainingdifferentconcentrationsofTCC.Bycountingthecellspresentineachflaskoveraperiodofthreedays,cellularreproductionwasmonitored.ItwasdeterminedthatS.subspicatuscannotgrowinconditionscontaining50.0ppbofTCC.BecauseTCChasbeenfoundtobetoxicatrelativelylowconcentrations,useofitinantimicrobialproductsshouldbeconsideredcarefully.
Comparing the Trophic Position of Burbot (Lota lota) in the Apostle Islands Archipelago (Lake Superior, USA) to Determine Factors Promoting Contaminant BioaccumulationEllie L. HoopmanBayfield High School, Bayfield, WI, Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Richard Erickson, Bayfield High School; Toben Lafrançois, Northland College; Bill Route, National Park Service
NearshorecoastalfisheriesofLakeSuperiorareunderstudiedrelativetotheireconomicandculturalimportance,yetstudiesofcontaminantbioaccumulationshowunexplainedpatternsacrossnearshoreenvironments.Thegoalofthisresearchistoidentifyspatialpatternsoffoodwebpositionusingelementalanalysisofburbot(Lotalota).Stableisotopeanalysisprovidesinsightintothefactorsthatinfluencepersistenttoxinbioaccumulationinapexpredators.Fiftyburbotweresampledfromcommercialfisheryby-catchalongagradientfrominnertoouterislandsinandneartheApostleIslandsNationalLakeshorearchipelago.Tissuebiopsiesweretakenforisotopeanalysisfromcaudalfins,pectoralfins,anddorsalmuscletissue.Otolithswerecollectedtodetermineage.Carbonandnitrogenisotoperatiosindorsalmuscletissueweresignificantlydifferentthanthosefoundinpectoralandcaudalfinclips.Linearregressionequationsweredevelopedtocorrelateisotoperatiosinburbotdorsalmuscletissuetofinclips.Carbonisotopesweresignificantlyhigherforburbotcaughtintheouterversusinnerislands,indicatingthatburbotintheouterislandswerefeedingonamorebenthic-dominatedfoodweb.Analysisoftheisotopeδ15Nindicatedtheburbotfromtheinnerandouterislandswerepositionedatapproximatelythesametrophiclevel(5.1).Resultsshowednostatisticalrelationshipbetweenstableisotopeaccumulationandage.DifferencesfoundinburbotbioaccumulationwillbeusedinongoingworktohelpdeterminesourcesandpathwaysofcontaminantsintheLakeSuperiornearshoreecosystemandtorefinemethodsofcomparingfoodwebstudiesthatusedifferenttissuesources.
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Planktonic Food Web Structure of Island Lagoons and Nearshore Waters: Tools for Determining Pathways of Contaminant Accumulation in Bald Eagles of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore (USA)Emily L. HoopmanBayfield High School, Bayfield, WI, Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Richard Erickson, Bayfield High School; Toben Lafrançois, Northland College; Bill Route, National Park Service
DeterminingthestructureoflowertrophiclevelsoftheLakeSuperiorfoodwebisnecessaryforunderstandingpatternsofcontaminantaccumulationintop-levelpredators.Astudyofbaldeagles(Haliaeetusleucocephalus)oftheApostleIslandsindicatedthatnestlingsontheislandsfarthestfromthemainlandcontainedthehighestDDElevels.Thepurposeofthisprojectwastoanalyzethebottom-uppathwaysofcontaminantaccumulationbyquantifyingeffectsofdifferentnearshorehabitatsinstructuringthebaseofthefoodweb.PlanktonsampleswerecollectedinpairsfromLakeSuperiornearshoreandApostleIslandslagoons.Sampleswereanalyzedusingstableisotoperatiosofcarbonandnitrogentoidentifyvariancebetweenlocation,habitattype,andsizefraction(0to35µm,35to63µm,and>63µm).Analysisofδ13Candδ15Ndistributionsoverallsizefractionsshowedsignificantheterogeneityamongallinteractions.Analysisofzooplankton(63+µm)showedasignificantdifferenceinδ13C(p<0.001)andδ15N(p<0.001)betweenhabitattypes,aswellasaδ15Ndifferencebetweenlocations(p=0.012).Lagoonsitesweredepletedin13Candenrichedin15N,indicatingthatplanktonfromnearshoresiteswassituatedatalowertrophiclevelthatismorecharacteristicofabenthicfoodwebpathway.ProceedinganalysisofzooplanktoncommunitiessuggeststhatFCLislongerinthelagoonpelagiccommunitiesstudied.Thisresearchvalidatestheideathatthe“inner”and“outer”islandssupportmorethanoneprimaryfoodweb,andinformsongoingworktodeterminepathwaysofcontaminantaccumulation.
The Relationship between the use of Foliar Fungicides and the Improvement of Alfalfa Forage ProductionCarrie A. UrbanekCashton High School, Cashton, WI, Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Julie Lundeen, Cashton High School
Thisprojectwasconductedtoevaluatetheeffectofpopularfoliarfungicidesandinsecticidesonthequalityandquantityofalfalfa.Ihypothesizedthefungicideandinsecticidetreatedplotswouldgenerateahigherprofitthantheplotwithjusttheinsecticidetreatment,becauseofthepresenceoffungusandinsectsinitiallyobservedatthestartoftheproject.Ialsohypothesizedthesectiontreatedwithbothtreatmentswouldgeneratethehighestprofit,regardlessofthecostofthetreatment,becausetheprotectiononthealfalfaplantwouldgreatlyincreasetheyieldandqualityatharvest.Ascontrolvariablesinthisexperiment,thesamebrandofalfalfaseedwasused,alongwiththesamebrandsoffoliarfungicides.Theindependentvariablewasthetypeoftreatmentused.Thedependentvariablewasthequalityandyieldofalfalfa.Whenasignificantdifferencewasfoundinmydata,mostofthetimethefungicide+insecticidetreatmentgeneratedahigheryield,buttheinsecticidetreatmenthadbetterquality.Thisstudywillhelpfarmersmakeaneducateddecisiononwhetherfoliarfungicidesshouldbeappliedtotheiralfalfa,andwhichtreatmentismosteffective.
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Evaluating Differences in Electrolyte Concentration Among BeveragesCasey R. UrbanekCashton High School, Cashton, WI, Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Mrs. Julie Lundeen, Cashton High School
Eachyear,sportsdrinkcompaniesspendmillionsofdollarsadvertisingtheirproduct,butaresportsdrinksreallythebestchoiceforathletes?Inmyexperiment,Itestedtheelectrolyteconcentrationsofsportsdrinks,coconutwater,orangejuice,andmilk.Ihypothesizedthatthemilkwillhavethemostelectrolytesbecausemilkishypertonic,meaninghighinelectrolytecontent.Inaddition,Ihypothesizedthatorangejuiceandcoconutwaterwouldcontainmoreelectrolytesthansportsdrinksbecausetheyarehighinpotassiumwhichisanimportantionreleasedforelectrolytes.Inmyexperiment,theindependentvariablewasthebeveragetested;Iusedseveralsportsdrinks,fruitjuicesandmilktotestelectrolytecontent.Thedependentvariablewastheelectrolyteconcentrationofthedrink.Iuseddistilledwaterasacontrolvariabletocomparewithtestedelectrolytevalues.Myhypothesiswasincorrect,coconutwaterhadthehighestelectrolyteconcentration,butchocolatemilkwasalsohigh.Iconcludedthatchocolatemilkisthebestchoiceforexerciserecoverybecauseitisthehighinelectrolytesandcontainsmorebeneficialvitaminsandhigherlevelsofcalcium.
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Wisconsin
L-selectin and α4β7 interactions with VCAM-1 cooperate in regulatory T cell adhesion under shear stressJenna R. LieunghDivine Savior Holy Angels High School, Milwaukee, WI, Wisconsin JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Douglas Steeber, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Jessica Loppnow, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Mrs. Betty Jo Azpell, Divine Savior Holy Angels High School
RegulatoryT(Treg)cellscanbebothbeneficialbysuppressingimmuneresponseanddetrimentalbypreventingbodilyeliminationoftumors.Tregcellmigrationandrecirculationareimportantforfacilitatingeffectivesuppressiveimmuneresponses.LymphocytemigrationismediatedbyadhesionmoleculesthatbindtoligandsontheendotheliumandregulateTregmovement.Specifically,L-selectinmediatescaptureofthecellsfromthebloodstreamandfacilitateshighvelocityrolling.Then,α4β7decreaseslymphocytevelocityandbindstoVCAM-1.TheroleofL-selectinandα4β7integrininTregrollingandadhesioniscurrentlyunknown.TodetermineifL-selectinandα4β7/VCAM-1interactionscooperatetofacilitateTregcelladhesion,aninvitroflowchamberassaywasused.LymphocytesfromperipheralmurinelymphnodeswerewithdrawnovertransfectedEA.hy926endothelialcelllines.Aftertreatmentoflymphocyteswithα4β7blockingantibody(DATK32),adhesionoftotallymphocytessignificantlydecreasedby54.0%.Inaddition,treatmentwithα4β7blockingantibodyresultedina42.0%reductioninTregcelladhesionafter10minutes.TheseresultsindicatecooperationbetweenL-selectinandα4β7/VCAM-1interactionsintotallymphocyteandTregadhesionundershearstress.FurtherstudiesofTregmigrationcouldpavethewayfornovelanti-cancertherapeuticstrategies.
Describing RuPAH Dye Excited-States In Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Films: A Method For Absorbance CorrectionAndrew K. SaydjariLincoln High School, Wisconsin Rapids, WI, Wisconsin JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Blake Simpkins, Naval Research Lab
Rutheniumtrisbipyridinewascovalentlyboundtopoly(allylaminehydrochloride)(PAH)topromoteitsdirectincorporationintomultilayerfilmsconstructedvialayer-by-layerself-assemblywithpoly(sodium4-styrene–sulfonate)(PSS).Observationofspectralphenomenonsurroundingabsorptionofdyeinmultilayerfilmspromptedaninvestigationutilizingvariousionicdepositionconditions.Plotstrackingthemaximasofdyeabsorptionpeaksdisplayednon-linearoscillatorybehavior.Bothphysicalandspectralpropertiesoftheincorporatedrutheniumdyeofthefilmsweremonitoredviaatomicforcemicroscopy(AFM),UV-visabsorptionspectroscopy,andfluorescencespectroscopy.AFMprofilesindicateddespitespectralphenomenon,filmsgrewlinearly,behavingasexpectedphysically.Modulationoftheexpectedlinearabsorbanceincreasewasattributedtoanopticalinterferenceeffect.Amodelwasdevelopedtodescribethiseffectandamethodforcorrectionofabsorbancespectrawasproposedthatimprovesuponcurrentmethodology.Thismodelmayfacilitatefar-reachingapplicationsintechnologiesrangingthemedicalfieldtospacetravel.Emissionspectraweretentativelycategorizedbyionicchargeofdepositionsolution.ResultswereanalyzedwithrespecttoaninitialhypotheticalFranck-Condonbasedmechanism.
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Immune Characterization of Conjunctiva-Associated Lymphoid Tissue(CALT)Sonali SrivastavaBrookfield East High School, Brookfield, WI, Wisconsin JSHS; Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Anthony J. St. Leger, National Institutes of Health (NEI-NIH); Mr. Ben Westphal, Brookfield East High School
Aberrantinflammationatmucosaltissuesroutinelyleadstodiscomfortandtissuedamageasseeninthewell-studiedinflammatoryboweldisease(IBD).Whileocularmanifestationsofinflammationarelesswell-studied,theramificationsarejustassevere.Forexample,ocularinflammationduetopathogensand/orallergenscanleadtoblindness.Manyproposethatlymphoidfolliclesresidinginocularmucosaltissue,otherwiseknownasconjunctivaassociatedlymphoidtissue(CALT),playafunctionalroleinoculardisease;however,theroleofCALTinthecontextofocularimmuneresponsesremainsunknown.Inthisstudy,weisolatedCALTfromWT,IL-10KO,andIL-22RKO,andC57BL/6micethatwerechallengedwithinnatereceptorstimulantstoassesstheocularimmuneresponse.Interestingly,ourresultsshowthatCALTharborsasignificantpopulationofinnatelymphoidcells(ILCs)whosedysregulationislinkedtogutinflammationanddisease.Uponstimulationwithcytokines,IL-1βandIL-23,thesecellsproducethepotentiallypathogeniccytokine,IL-17,suggestingaroleforILCsinocularinflammation.Inresponsetochallengewithinnatereceptorstimulants,micedeficientinregulatorycytokinesignaling(IL-10KOorIL-22RKO)hadelevatednumbersofIL-17+cells.ThesedatasuggestthatIL-10andIL-22signalingcouldhelpmaintainocularimmunehomeostasis.Consequently,thisdiscoveryopensupmodulationofIL-10,IL-17,andIL-22signalingasamechanismtocontrolocularinflammationduringeyeinfection,dryeyedisease,andautoimmunedisease.Additionally,thisstudyemphasizesapreviouslyunrecognizedroleofILCsininnateimmunesignaling,andinflammatoryresponseswithintheCALT.
Factors Affecting the Persistence of Quagga Mussel Shells in Lake MichiganClarise E. WhiteDivine Savior Holy Angels High School, Milwaukee, WI, Western Wisconsin, Upper Michigan JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Carmen Aguilar, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences; Dr. Russell Cuhel, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences; Betty Jo Azpell, Divine Savior Holy Angels High School
ThepurposeofthisresearchistoanalyzetherateatwhichquaggamusselshellsdissolveundervariousconditionsinordertodeterminetheresidencetimeoftheremainsandtheeffectofthemusselsonthechemicalcompositionofLakeMichigan’swater.Severalfactorsaffectingthepersistenceofquaggamusselswereexamined,suchasincubationtemperature,shellage,andsterilizationmethods.Thehypothesesareasfollowing:temperaturewillbeproportionaltotheshelldissolution;usingasterilizationmethodwillinhibitdissolutionoftheshells;shellsthatweredeadatcollectionwilldissolvemorereadilythanshellsthatwerefreshlydissected.Thequaggamusselshellswereincubatedinwaterinsyringesunderthevariousconditions,andwatersamplesweretakeneachweek.ThewatersampleswerethenusedforCO2testingwithaconductivitydetectorandcalciumtestingwithanatomicabsorptionspectrometerinordertodeterminetheamountofdissolutionperweek.Aspredictedinthehypotheses,thedataprovedthefollowing:incubationtemperatureisindeedproportionaltoshelldissolution;sterilizationmethodaffectsdissolutionat18°Cbutnotat8°C;musselshellsthatweredeadatcollectiondissolvedlessduetoadifferenceintheirsamplelocation.
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Wyoming, Eastern Colorado
The Effect of Phytoremediation on Heavy MetalsAlex L. Henkle and Mason SundstromNewcastle High School, Newcastle, WY; Wyoming, Eastern Colorado JSHS
Thepurposeoftheexperimentwastofindoutwhichplantwouldphytoremediateleadoutofwaterthebestoutofourchoices:sunflower,hyacinth,ornamentalgrass,andalyssum.Itwashypothesizedthatiftheseplantsareused,thenthesunflowerwillphytoremediateleadthebestduetoitstendencytophytoremediatewell.Totestthis,thematerialsneededwereobtainedandbucketsofwaterwithsuspendedblocksofrockwoolwitheachseedtestandoneofnoseeds(control)growinginthemwereputinside.Thewaterwasthentestedforleadcontentaftertheplantshadgrown.Afterwateringtheplantswith4%leadwaterforafewdays,samplesofthewaterweretakentobetestedtoseeifleadwasstillpresent.Theresultwasthatthesunflowerphytoremediatethemostlead,resultingina0.8%concentration.Thehyacinthwasreallyclose,however,witha0.89%leadconcentration.Inconclusion,goingthroughthetestsandcollectingthedata,itwasfoundthatthesunflowerplantwasmosteffectiveatphytoremediate.Afterthedatawascollectedthehypothesis:ifthesunflowerplantisusedthenitwillphytoremediateleadoutofwaterbestduetoitstendencytophytoremdediateleadwellwassupported.
Effect of Oil and Gas Development on Atmospheric Levels of Hydrocarbons and Tropospheric OzoneSo-Yun KimFairview High School, Boulder, CO, Wyoming, Eastern Colorado JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Gabrielle Petrón, NOAA; Dr. Gregory Frost, NOAA
UnconventionaloilandnaturalgashavebeenanincreasinglysignificantsourceofenergyintheUnitedStatesduetomoderntechnologysuchashydraulicfracturing.Theconsequencesoftheproductionandprocessingofoilandgasdevelopmenttoclimateandairqualityareimperativetounderstand,especiallyinprevalentoilandgassiteslikeColorado,Wyoming,andUtah.Inthisstudy,thedatafromatowerobservatoryinColoradofrom2008to2012areutilizedtocharacterizechemicalcompositionofoilandgasemissionsandinvestigatetheimpactoftheseemissionsontroposphericozone.AlkaneandbenzenearesignificantlyenhancedintheairoriginatedfromoilandgasdevelopmentregioninDenver-JulesburgBasin,whichconfirmstheresultsinpreviousresearchesfordifferenttimeperiods.ThisstudyisthefirsttoexaminedirectrelationshipbetweenhydrocarbonsandconcurrentlymeasuredozoneinsummerinColorado.Undertheconditionsofhighhydrocarbonsconcentrations,ozoneconcentrationishighandtendstoincreaseashydrocarbonaccumulates.Chemicalanalysissuggestslargecontributionofpropaneandbutanefromoilandgasdevelopmenttoozone.Additionalstudiesonanationallevelarebeneficialtofullyunderstandtherelationshipbetweenhydrocarbonsfromoilandgasexplorationsandtroposphericozone.
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Network Response to Intrusion Detection: Probabilistic methods in machine informatics to secure multiple targetsStephen L. Parish, Home School, Colorado Springs, COWyoming, Eastern Colorado JSHS; Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Maureen Parish, Home School
Computernetworksecurityisanincreasinglyimportantconcerntobusiness,industry,defenseandgovernmentoperations.Currentnetworksecuritypracticeusesagenericmodelbasedonastaticnetworkdescriptionthatcharacterizestheriskfromfutureintrusionsbasedonpastexperience.Suchagenericmodelignoresnewandpresentthreatsandlosestheopportunitytolimitattacksin-progress.Moreover,fluidmobilenetworksquicklyobsoletesuchstaticanalyses.Theproblemisthatcurrentalgorithmsignorewhatnetworkengineersactuallydo.Networkengineerstypicallyworkwithindividualcomputersandspecificthreatsastheyidentifynetworkintrusions.Adynamicsolutionisneeded.Whenathreatissuspected,mysolutionistorapidlyapplymycomputer-drivenalgorithmsto:(1)buildatopologicaljunctiontreeofsubnets,(2)replicateacustomprobabilitymodelasanattackgraphthatappliescomputer-by-computer,(3)detecttheintrusionandisolateitfromspreadingintomoresubnets.Atthispointaffectedcomputerscanbecleanedandrecertifiedtocontinuenormaloperations.
MyprototypeNetworkResponsetoIntrusionDetection(NRID)softwarealgorithmswillkeepcyberattacksfromdecimatingentirecomputernetworks.Theinnovativealgorithmsusemathematicalhypergraphs,evaluateBayesianmathematicalmodelsonIndicatorsOfCompromise(IOCs),andgathercomputerevidenceusingmyownanalysissoftware.Myalgorithmswilldiscoveraminimalresponsesetthatwilldefeatanon-goingintrusionintoacomputernetwork.IcreateahypotheticalnetworkwhereIperformthetopologicalanalysis.Testingthisconceptshowsthatthealgorithmscanpotentiallybeappliedthroughoutanentirecomputernetwork.
Application of Biomimicry to 3D Printing: Creating Lighter, Stronger, and Cost Efficient StructuresIan J. WilkinsFairview High School, Boulder, CO, Wyoming, Eastern Colorado JSHS;Teacher/Mentor/Sponsor: Dr. Paul Strode, Fairview High School
3Dprintingisaprocessofmakingathree-dimensionalobjectthroughdepositionofsuccessivelayersofmaterial.Despitemanyadvantages,considerableroomexiststooptimizethecost,strength,andweightofdesigns.Biomimicryistheimitationofthemodels,systems,andelementsofnatureforthepurposeofsolvingcomplexhumanproblems.Thepresentresearchevaluatestheuseofhexagonalprisms,oftenfoundinnature,inthedesignofsandwichbeams.Theoreticalanalysisofthreepointloadingofsandwichbeamandsoliddesignswasconducted.Forexample,a10%increaseinweight(0.1coredensity),producedabeamwithmorethanseventimesthestiffnessandthreeandhalftimesthestrength.Conversely,reducedweightdesignswithcomparableorgreaterstiffnessarealsopossible.Forexample,aminimumweightdesign(constantcoredensityof0.1)reducedweightby76.2%,albeitwitha38.5%reductioninstrength.Analternativeoptimaldesignachieved106%greaterstiffness,witha70%weightreductionandstrengthcomparabletothesolidmodel.Afiniteelementanalysisofthesolidbeamand70%weightreductionbeamsconfirmedthetheoreticalresults.Biomimicryshowsconsiderablepromisetooptimize3Dprinting.Directionsforfutureworkarehighlighted.