From: Stephen Decatur High School PR Liaison Elaine Wallingford

May 25, 2006

Event: Worcester County Science Fair Projects

Date of event: April 27, 2006

Article written by Elaine Wallingford

Photos by SDHS senior Joselyn DiPane

 

     On May 27th, Stephen Decatur High School students in science teacher, James Krall’s class, as well as other Worcester County students in grades 6-12, presented their Worcester County Science Fair projects at Snow Hill Middle School. Project categories included chemical, physical or life science. Students could work separately or in groups of three or less. All projects followed the scientific method of stating the problem, background information, hypothesis, necessary materials, procedure, variables, data results, conclusion and discussion.

    SDHS Principal Lou Taylor explains, "The science fair projects were on display in our media center. You could easily see how the displays generated student and staff interest. These very visual projects were artistic and informative. They included questions, graphs, photos, research and even humor."

     First place, eleventh grade, individual winner Marty Dori evaluated the effect of a sunscreen’s SPF rating on its absorbance of electromagnetic waves and concluded that, "The highest rated SPF sunscreen had the highest absorbance rate and the lowest rated SPF sun screen had the lowest absorbance rate."

     "Can Your Stomach Handle Five Seconds?" won Ashley Moreck and Elie Tilghman a second place ribbon. Their problem asked, "Does the type of food or the amount of time it is on the floor affect the amount of bacteria that is contracted?" The results, stated in graph form, "… moist foods such as pepperoni are more prone to contracting a significant amount of bacteria compared to a piece of bread or a cracker." You can also see that time is a factor and that the longer an item of food is on the ground the more bacteria it is going to pick up whether it is dry or moist."

     Projects included such ‘problems’ as ‘Does the color of light (wavelength of light) affect the rate at which a pea plant photosynthesizes in ‘Reach the Rainbow’ by Sarah Schiffer. The conclusion stated by Schiffer, "While the pea plants under the natural light did grow the most, the pea plants under the green light did not display the least amount of growth as I predicted. In fact, they were very close to displaying just as much growth as the plant under the natural light. Therefore, I must reject my hypothesis." Schiffer won first place in the individual category for twelfth grade.

     Leah Kramer won second place for twelfth grade for her research on how well do dental sealants prevent dental cavities. Her conclusion, "… sealants prevent dental plaque from getting into the pits and fissures of premolars/morals. By preventing plaque from getting into the pits and fissures, there is less of a chance of getting a cavity. It also creates a smoother surface which allows easy cleaning of the area with a toothbrush."

     Leah Anderson placed third in twelfth grade, individual, with a very timely problem: can you increase your gas mileage by using alternate fuels or fuel additives? Her conclusion was yes! She states, "The addition of substances and/or other gas substitutes increases gas mileage… To find out how long a gallon would run on each [substance] all you have to do is multiply the average by 4 (to equal a cup), then multiply that by 16 (to equal a gallon)."

     First place winners Chelsea Hulburd and Jeanne Vander Clute researched which type of nut, peanut, cashews, pecans, walnuts, pistachios, or almonds has the most potential energy. Their finding was pecans for their ‘Nuttin’ To Do’ project twelfth grade, group project.

     Seniors Brooke Benvenuto and Jaclyn Stiles placed second as a group with the heading ‘Rat Race.’ They hypothesized that, "If two sets of rats- one group of four in an enriched environment, and one isolated in a minimal-stimulation environment- are raised from birth to reproductive age, then the social rats will perform at a higher rate when tested in a maze." Their results were, " These results are similar to experiments done on neglected and well cared for children. The neglected children experienced a much lower level of actual neutral development..., poor physical and academic performance, as well as a variety of mental, social and emotional issues."

     Third place winners Greg Beros and Mike Pacella considered the hypothesis: "If we combine different metals with copper sulfit..magnesium will emit the most energy." Their results stated, "Magnesium produced the higher change in temperature per mile with 217.117 degrees Celsius. Zinc was next with 111.441 degrees Celsius per mole. Aluminum was third with 37.156 degrees Celsius per mole and iron was last with 37.842 degrees Celsius per mole. Lead had no reaction." They titled their twelfth grade, group project, ‘Teenage Metal Ninja Reactions.’"

     SDHS Advanced Placement Biology teacher, James Krall concluded, "I make participation mandatory for AP Bio students because they are expected to have a desire for scientific experimentation-otherwise, why would they be interested in AP Bio? It is my duty to encourage students to investigate the various phenomenons of the living and nonliving world. Without scientific investigation, the scientific world would become stagnant."