Students Compete for Two-Million Dollars in Prizes and Awards

    DETROIT--May 10, 2000--The City of Detroit plays host to what some consider to be the Olympics of brain power -- the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF), May 7-12 at Cobo Center.
    The fair gives students age 14-20 the opportunity to compete for scholarships, tuition grants, internships, scientific field trips and the grand prize: a trip to attend the Nobel Prize Ceremonies in Stockholm, Sweden.
    ISEF, which also has been nicknamed as the "World Cup" or "World Series" of science competitions, is bringing hundreds of students, teachers, student observers, chaperones and mentors to downtown Detroit. The students come from 48 of the 50 United States, as well as more than 40 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Brazil, Chile, England, India, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Norway, the Peoples Republic of China, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine and Venezuela.
    More than 150 interpreters, including more than 80 Spanish speakers, are on hand to help international students communicate with their ISEF judges. In addition to Spanish, languages spoken at this year's competition include French, Turkish, German, Farsi, Portuguese, Mandarin, Japanese, Hungarian, Czech, Vietnamese, Swedish, Russian, Italian, American Sign Language, Samoan, Cantonese, Telegu, Taiwanese, Korean, Bahasa (Malaysia), Kreol, Danish, Begali (Cambodia), Persian and Filipino.
    ISEF 2000 projects are grouped into the following categories: Behavioral and Social Sciences, Biochemistry, Botany, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth and Space Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Science, Gerontology, Mathematics, Medicine and Health, Microbiology, Physics, and Zoology. Team Projects also will be judged in a separate category. The student competitors are, for the most part, high schoolers who were winners in regional science fairs.
    ISEF 2000 finalists by category are as follows:

    Behavioral and Social Sciences (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    Some examples of the student finalists' projects are: "Family vs. Social Interaction in Moral Development", by Mehmet Zahid Cangul, 17, Junior, Pensacola High School, Florida; "Impact of Sleep Deprivation on Mood and Cognitive Performance in Three Age Groups", Elsperth Chase Montgomery, 15, sophomore, Tom Clark High School, San Antonio, Texas; "Testing an Idea -- Archaeological Interpretation and Dating of Waianae Valley House Site", KeKai Kaleleiki, 17, senior, Waianae High School, Waianae, Hawaii; "The Mold We Are Pressed to Fit -- Influence of Societal Perceptions on Financial Status and Race", Laura Elizabeth Smith, 15, freshman, Renaissance High School, Detroit, Michigan; and "At the Beginning of the New Millennium a Warning Sign -- Depression in Adolescents", Federico Emmanuel Losa, 16, sophomore, Ese. De Comercie, Republica de Panama, Concepcion, Tucuman, Argentina.

    Biochemistry (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    Some finalist projects are: "Screening for Protease Inhibitors to Block HIV Maturation and Infectivity", Shalini Therese Low-Nam, 17, senior, Boulder High School, Boulder, Colorado; "Role of Reactive Oxygen in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells", Sanket Nayyar, 17, junior, Martin Luther King Jr. Magnet High School, Nashville, Tennessee; "Food for the New Millennium -- Bacterial, No Beef Protein: Phase II", Jessica Marie Lopez, 17, senior, Florencia Garcia High School, Las Piedras, Puerto Rico; "Cancer Killer", Michael Zhen-Yu Tong, 17, senior, Marianopolis College, Montreal, Canada; and "Method of Cancer Detection--Upregulation of Cyclin D1 in Cancer Cells", a team project by Sohail Reza Ahmed, 18, senior, and Hans Orejuela, 17, senior, Midwood High School at Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York.

    Botany (Grand Awards presented by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.)
    Botany science projects include: "Anti-microbial Effectiveness of Folk Medicines", Bryant Barber Cannon, 16, sophomore, The Altramont School, Birmingham, Alabama; "Helping Hay Fever Suffers with Plant Growth Regulators", Aimee Celeste Lagarde, 17, junior, Terrebonne High School, Houma, Louisiana; "UV Radiation on Corn: Phase V", Aaron D. Ulland, 18, senior, Austin High School, Austin, Minnesota; "Irrigation Scheduling -- Efficiency in Water Use", John Lee Rowton, 19, senior, Arkansas School of Mathematics & Sciences, Hot Springs, Arkansas; "Our Forests -- Our Future", Tanisha Terry-Ann Lamont, 19, senior, Knox Community College, Clarendon, Jamaica; "Effect of Electromagnetic Fields on Algae Cells", Shanterra Dominique Anderson, 14, freshman, Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, Detroit, Michigan; and "Effect of Salt on Different Varieties of Carrots", Andrew McLeod, 14, freshman, North Sydney Boys High School, Crows Nest, New South Wales, Australia.

    Chemistry (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    Some of the chemistry finalists are: "Fundamental Charge of an Electron", Lori Ann McDonald, 19, senior, Pequot Lakes High School, Pequot Lakes, Minnesota; "Echinacea--Natural Antibiotic? Two Year Study", Dianna Blair Spence, 16, sophomore, Jasper High School, Plano, Texas; "Chemical Composition of School Water--Is the Drinking Water Up to EPA Standards? Two Year Study", Shannon Nicole Snyder, 18, Crestview High School, Crestview, Florida; "Up in Smoke--Chromium in Cigarette Smoke", Priscilla Michelle Van Dyke, 17, junior, Burkburnett High School, Burkburnett, Texas; "Gems--Genetically-Evolved Molecular Structures", Lauren Beth Sendek, 18, senior, McKeesport Area Senior High School, McKeesport, Pennsylvania; "Methane Output Differences in Nutrient-Altered Anaerobic Digestive Systems: Two Year Study", Joseph A. Mictus, 17, junior, Macomb High School, Macomb, Illinois; and "Origin of Life--Simulation of Amino Acid Formation in the Test Tube", Naoko Senda, 18, senior, Shibuya Makuhari High School, Chiba, Japan.

    Computer Science (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    Some of the topics covered by the finalists in the computer science category are: "Modeling a Dynamic Transportation Network", Benjamin J. Lachman, 17, junior, Lachman Home School, Athens, Ohio; "System for Gathering, Sorting, Digitalizing and Displaying Local Weather Conditions Via the Internet", James D. Rollason, 16, sophomore, Isabel High School, Isabel, South Dakota; "Secure Encryption--How Safe Is Your Data?", Kalim Farooq Moghul, 17, junior, McNair Academic High School, Jersey City, New Jersey; "Spectral Peaks and Shape in Speech Recognition", Dominik Roman Rabiej, 16, junior, Kalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center, Kalamazoo, Michigan; "System Visual Gene for Research and Usage of Genetic Algorithms", Maxim Kuzmich, 16, junior, GEE School-Laboratory N51, Gomel, Belarus; "Evolving a Faster Commute", Christopher Jason Cunningham, 15, sophomore, Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy, Saginaw, Michigan; "X-Ray which, Searches and Cures the Unknown Computer Viruses", Ju-Hyun Yoon, 15, sophomore, Kyongnam Science High School, Jinju, Kyongsangnam-do, South Korea; and "Lucifer Hammer--Computer Simulation of Asteroid Trajectories", team project by Derek Thomas Mehlhorn, 17, senior, Adrienne Renee Upah, 18, senior, and William Harding Pearl, 18, senior, Albuquerque Academy, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

    Earth and Space Sciences (Grand Awards presented by Scientific American.)
    The finalists with the Earth and space sciences competition include: "Supernova SN1999GI and Nuclear Reactions as They Take Place During a Supernova", Aaron Patrick Ray Starkey, 17, senior, Dekalb High School, Waterloo, Indiana; "Sailing into Space--Reflecting on a Solution", Ulyana N. Horodyskyj, 14, freshman, Padua Franciscan High School, Parma, Ohio; "Hurricane Activity in Conjunction with Global Changes", Regina Dorothy Schommer, 18, senior, Poplarville High School, Poplarville, Mississippi; "Solar Activity Tracking in the Visible Spectrum", Eder Milton Schneider, 18, senior, Fundacao Escola Tecnica Liberato Salzano Vieira da Cunha, Novo Hambugo, RS, Brazil; "SolarNet--Space Weather Monitoring and Forecasting System", Ashley Elizabeth Wall, 16, junior, Atholton High School, Columbia, Maryland; "Which Soil Holds the Most Water?", Shelly McKinney, 14, freshman, Crockett Technical High School, Detroit, Michigan; and "Determination of Distance to Dwarf Galaxy by Three Brightest Stars", team project by Vyacheslav S. Zhabin, 17, junior, Dmitry N. Solovyov, 15, sophomore, of School No. 34, Ryazan, Russia.

    Engineering (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    The finalists in the engineering competition include: "How Would a Professionally-Made Violin Sound Compared to One that I Built?", Antoine Niguel Perry, 17, sophomore, MacArthur Senior High School, Lawton, Oklahoma; "Earthquake Engineering: Two Year Study", Joshua Michael Girvin, 17, senior, Bloomington High School North, Bloomington, Indiana; "Aluminum-Powered Fuel Cell", Venkatasubrammanian Muralidhara, 15, sophomore, Little Lillys English School, Bangalore, Karnataka, India; "Electronic Traction Control", Steven Forrest Dodson, 18, senior, Northview High School, Brazil, Indiana; "Plausibility of a Hydrogen Ion Drive: Two Year Study", Andrew Stuart Bugg, 18, senior, duPont Manual Magnet High School, Louisville, Kentucky; "Innovative Laser Bonding Technique for Aluminum/Carbon Fiber Composites: Phase II", William Nicholas Heltsley, 18, senior, Tullahoma High School, Tullahoma, Tennessee; "Perishable Food Preservation via Nuclear Irradiation", Joshua Daniel Towns, 16, Navasota High School, Navasota, Texas; "Development and Construction of a Robotic Insect", Harold S. Barnard, 15, sophomore, Bethlehem Central High School, Delmar, New York; and "Electronic Sound Analysis", Lauren Elizabeth Drouillard, 16, sophomore, Divine Child High School, Dearborn, Michigan.

    Environmental Science (Grand Awards by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.)
    Some of the finalists for environmental science are: "Effects of High Phosphorous Levels in the Everglades--Implications for Restoration: Three Year Study", Natalie Elisse Bentolila, 17, junior, Cooper City High School, Cooper City, Florida; "Pesticide Presence in Lost River--Surface, Underground Streams and Organochlorides within Sediment Corings", Morgan Danielle Dusch, 17, senior, Paoli Junior-Senior High School, Paoli, Indiana; "Plants to the Rescue--Bioremediation of Lead Contaminated Soil", Eric D. Shah, 14, freshman, Dunbar High School, Fort Worth, Texas; "From Alien Weed to Gourmet Dish", Jandri Elizabeth Barnard, 16, junior, New Castle High School, Newcastle, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa; "Catalytic Innovation in Diesel Engines for Biofuel Applications", Fernando Yaninello, 20, senior, E.E.T. No. 2 Quilmes Paula A. de Sarmiento, Don Bosco, Buenos Aires, Argentina; "Metal Analysis of the St. Clair River Using Tissue of Dreissena polymorpha as a Bioindicator for Cr, Pb and Hg", Elizabeth Kathleen Schreiner, 16, sophomore, Marine City High School, Marine City, Michigan; "How Should Students Use Correction Pens Correctly?", Chang Liu, 16, sophomore, Beijing Jingshan School, Beijing, China; and "Automobile Oil Spills on the Marine Ecosystem", team project by Leny Virginia Bolivar, 15, sophomore, and Zully Viviana Moreno, 14, sophomore, Instituto Educacational Juan XXIII, Valencia, Carabobo, Venezuela.

    Gerontology (Grand Awards presented by AARP Andrus Foundation.)
    Finalists include: "With Age Comes Wisdom? Selected Diets of Senior Citizens vs. Younger Adults in Laramie, WY: Three Year Study", Heather Jo Dixon, 15, freshman, Rock River High School, Rock River, Wyoming; "Influence of Sex Hormones on Development of Bone Cancer", Benjamin Charles Beranek, 16, sophomore, Jefferson High School, Lafayette, Indiana; "Alzheimer and its Variability by Sex and Age in Yauco", Wilfredo Mercado, 14, freshman, Yauco, Puerto Rico; and "Osteoporosis Medication--Help or Hindrance?", Francie E. Blasingame, 18, senior, Alma High School, Alma, Arkansas.

    Mathematics (Grand Awards presented by Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company.)
    Finalists include: "Lottery...Is it Really Random?", Sara Gayle Alvarez, 16, sophomore, Wildwood High School, Wildwood, Florida; "Questioning Stonehenge True Purpose", Christopher Michael Hrdlicka, 16, junior, Wentzville High School, Wentzville, Missouri; "C-Transformation--Introduction of a New Geometric Transformation", Ching Tang Chen, 15, sophomore, Taipei Municipal Chien-Kuo Senior High School, Taipei, Taiwan; "Computer Algorithm--Nonlinear Modeling and Chaotic Dynamics to Analyze the Difference Between Sick and Healthy Cardiac Output", Shannon Leigh McNulty, 18, senior, Park View High School, Sterling, Virginia; "Equation of the Golden Spiral", Sandhya B. Murti, 15, junior, Communication and Media Arts High School, Detroit, Michigan; "Order and Chaos in a Dripping Water Faucet", Aditya P. Khargonekar, 15, sophomore, Ann Arbor-Huron High School, Ann Arbor, Michigan; "Investigations into Pascals Triangle", team project by Peter Taylor, 15, sophomore, and Shane Michael Browne, 15, freshman, Saint Kilians Community School, Co. Wicklow, Ireland; and "Fun with Binary Numbers", team project by Janet Soltero-Lugo, 17, senior, and Angel Jose Olivera-Torro, 17, senior, University Gardens High School, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

    Medicine and Health (Grand Awards presented by Merck Research Laboratories.)
    The finalists in this competition include: "Who Is Your Main Squeeze? Effectiveness of Different Toothpastes on Prohibiting Plaque Growth: Two Year Study", Sarah Melissa Zoller, 15, sophomore, Academic Magnet High School, Charleston, South Carolina; "Combating Resistance to Penicillin in Staphylococcus Epidermis", Benjamin Irving Staub, 16, sophomore, Greeley West Senior High School, Greeley, Colorado; "Fresh Garlic vs. its Commercial Preparations as an Antibacterial, Antifungal and Antiviral Agent", Christopher Clair Cottingham, 17, junior, Victory Christian School, Tulsa, Oklahoma; "Tooth Decay Caused by Common Beverages", Brandon Michael Schmandt, 16, sophomore, Detroit Catholic Central High School, Redford, Michigan; "Effects of Fatigue on Cardiovascular Fitness", Nicola Ann Revely, 19, senior, Durham 6th Form Centre, Durham, England, United Kingdom; "How Safe is Your Salsa? Adaptive Acidification Tolerance in Enteric Bacteria and its Prevention: Phase II", team project by Nicole Marie Merkord, 17, senior, and Jessica Lyn VanAntwerp, 17, senior, West Potomac High School, Alexandria, Virginia; and "Cornsilk as an Alternative Medicine for Curing Diabetes Mellitus", team project by Ahmad Syaifuddin, 19, senior, Melissa Gracia, 16, junior, and Bastian Wiandany, 16, junior, SMU 1 Kudus J1., Kudus, Kudas Jawa Tengah, Indonesia.

    Microbiology (Grand Awards Presented by Intel.)
    The finalists in microbiology include: "Biological Control of Kudzu: Three Year Study", Jeremy Daniel Farris, 18, senior, Houston County High School, Warner Robins, Georgia; "Should Your Cat Come with a Bio-Hazard Warning?", William Zachary Alexander, 17, junior, Grants High School, Grants, New Mexico; "Tropical-Flavored Fungi", Tyler Lee Jorgenson, 14, freshman, Buena High School, Sierra Vista, Arizona; "Transfer of Antibiotic Resistance in E. coli", Nadia Shakoor, 17, junior, Glenwood High School, Chatham, Illinois; "George Washington's Dirty Side--Bacteria on Circulated Money", Karl David Bringhurst, 15, freshman, Mount Harman Jr. High School, Prince, Utah; "Effect of a Disinfectant on Bacteria Over Time in a Day Care Center", Tiffany Anne Markyvech, 16, sophomore, Divine Child High School, Dearborn, Michigan; "Is This Biocide Biosafe? Two Year Study", team project by Sarah May Charlton, 18, senior, and Katherine Bo Gunst, 17, senior, University of Toronto Schools, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and "What Is In Your Bottled Water?", team project by Rebecca Ann Taylor, 15, sophomore, and Shelly Kate Collins, 15, sophomore, John S. Davidson Fine Arts School, Augusta, Georgia.

    Physics (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    The finalists for the physics competition include: "Violin Bridge--Will the Stradivarius Legend Continue?", Michael T. Hasper, 17, junior, Maclay High School, Tallahassee, Florida; "Electromagnetic Cannon: Three Year Study", Mathew Jacks Beck, 17, junior, Wayne High School, Huber Heights, Ohio; "How Does Bounce Relate to Distance in Golf Balls?", Justin Thomas Scott, 16, sophomore, Whitehouse High School, Whitehouse, Texas; "High-Energy Particle Effects in a Plasma Media", Steffen Brice Caston, 18, senior, Murray-Wright High School, Detroit, Michigan; "Defects in Thin Film Solar Cells", Martin Dienstbier, 19, senior, Gymnasium Christiana Dopplera, Prague, Czech Republic; and "Transmission of UVA/UVB Light Through Sunscreens with the Same Sun-Protection Factor", Henrik Sahlin Pettersen, 20, freshman, Trondheim Katedralskole, Trondheim, Norway.

    Zoology (Grand Awards presented by Intel.)
    Finalists in the zoology competition include: "Fecal Egg Output of Parasites in Equine: Phase II", Andrew P. Soucie, 16, sophomore, Hildreth Public High School, Hildreth, Nebraska; "Prognosis for Survival of Panthera tigris tigris at Nandan Kanan, Biological Park", Swati Mishra, 15, freshman, Dehli Public School, Rourkela, Orissa, India; "Habitat Suitability of the Delmarva Fox Squirrel: Three Year Study", Amelia Beth Wolflin, 18, senior, Queen Annes County High School, Centreville, Maryland; "Antarctic Krill and a Highland Microcrustacean from Peru in Their Ecological Niche", Juan Carlos Ramirez Tapia, 16, junior, Salesiano Santa Rosa, Huancayo, Junin, Peru; and "Where Have All the Frogs Gone? Investigation into the Effects of UV Radiation on Xenopus laevis: Three Year Study", Adrienne Danielle Howse, 17, junior, Mississippi School for Mathematics & Science, Columbus, Mississippi.

    Team Projects (Groups all team projects together. Grand Awards by Science News.)
    Some of the team finalists, not previously listed above, include: Behavioral Science -- "Personality by Birth", Amanda Leigh McGregor, 15, sophomore, and Ashley Mae Hall, 15, sophomore, Henrietta High School, Henrietta, Texas; Biochemistry - "Determinants of Soggy Cereal", Crystal Rose Hostetter, 16, sophomore, and Jessica Lynn Cordingly, 16, sophomore, Hot Springs County High School, Thermopolis, Wyoming; Botany - "Used the Best or Less--Turn Garbage Into Composed Fertilizer", Theresa Kerry-Ann Williamson, 17, junior, Barrington George Sinclair, 18, junior, and Omar Oneil Orridge, 19, senior, Knox Community College, Clarendon, Jamaica; Chemistry -- "Vitamin C--Here Today, Gone Tomorrow, Or Is It?", Kristi B. Meaders, 15, freshman, Kathleen Dawn Wilkes, 14, and freshman, North Ogden Jr. High School, Ogden, Utah; Computer Science -- "Cyber 2000", Carlos Roisenuit Esquivel, 16, sophomore, and Christian Febres, 16, sophomore, Club of Science Albert Einstein, Lima, Peru; Earth and Space Sciences -- "Comparing Small Volcanic Edifices on Venus and Undersea Volcanoes", Chandler Elizabeth Hatton, 16, sophomore, and Jordan E. Wirfs-Brock, 15, sophomore, Oregon Episcopal School, Portland, Oregon; Engineering - "Design and Development of Temporary Shelter for Use in a Disaster Situation", Mark D. Gebel, 17, junior, David Strauss, 15, sophomore, and Prameet H. Shah, 17, junior, Smithtown High School, Smithtown, New York; Environmental Science -- "It's Not Easy Being Green", Lazaro Gonzales, Jr., 18, senior, and Sarah Beth Miller, 18, senior, Muskogee High School, Muskogee, Oklahoma; Gerontology -- "Knowledge and Possible Behavior of Elderly People Toward HIV", Ramon Esteban Martinez-Rossari, 17, senior, Jose M. Del Valle-De Jesus, 19, senior, and Dolaida Rivera, 17, senior, Carlos Escobar Lopez, Loiza, Puerto Rico; Mathematics - "Mathematics of Art", Yousuf Z. Abbasi, 18, senior, Soroush H. Morshedi, 17, senior, and Payam Rashidi, 18, senior, Little Rock Hall High School, Little Rock, Arkansas; Medicine and Health -- "Ultrasound Today--Accuracy of Real-Time Ultrasound Machine", Misty Dawn Martin, 17, junior, and Ashley Brooke McQueen, 18, senior, Mason High School, Mason, Texas; Microbiology -- "Toxicity in Potato Salad", Icha Marie Benitaz, 17, senior, and Loumet Martinez, 17, senior, Dr. Juan J. Osuna, Caguas, Puerto Rico; Physics -- "Reality vs. Virtuality", Alan Jerry Huang, 15, sophomore, and Darius C. Wu, 15, sophomore, Shepton Freshman High School, Plano, Texas; Zoology --"Gorillas in the Concrete Jungle--Captive and Wild Gorilla Behaviors in Relation to Social and Physical Environmental Variance", Yonah Raama Cohen, 17, senior, and Laurel Elizabeth Stephens, 17, senior, Nederland Junior/Senior High School, Nederland, Colorado.

    Guest Exhibitors include: "Recycling of Wastes in the Process of Papermaking into Masses for Ceramic Tile", Edilene Souza Cunha, 21, senior, Escola Senai Mario Amato, Sao Paulo, Brazil; and "Secrets of Alzheimer", Bente Helene Laustsen, 21, senior, Ringkobing Amts Gymnasium, Ringkobing, Denmark.