Florida students make semifinalists cut in science competition

The 2007 Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge has narrowed their search down to 400 students for their annual science fair competition. Essentially, students nationwide apply for the Challenge through their local science fairs. Judges review the entries and pick semifinalists based on the entrants’ use and understanding of sound science, and their communication skills. The 400 are then further whittled down to 40 finalists who get to take a trip to Washington D.C. for the real excitement of live science competition. Sounds fun!

Here is the list of Florida students who made the semifinalist 400:

Gainesville — Abraham Lincoln Middle School
Jennifer Frances Kizza (Grade 7)
The Lime Requirements of Soils from the Sub-tropics (Florida)
and the Tropics (Brazil and Uganda)

Gainesville — Howard Bishop Middle School
Kim Cynthia Belanger-Giguere (Grade 6)
The Comparison of Five Types of Cat Litter

Cocoa — McNair Magnet Middle School
Joseph Michael VerValin (Grade 8 )
The Effects of Ginger on Escherichia coli Bacteria

Cocoa Beach — Cocoa Beach Junior/Senior High School
Collin Northcott McAliley (Grade 8 )
Red Tide Triggers, Year Three: Do Land-based Nutrients, Introduced by Humans Play a Role in Stimulating a Karenia brevis Bloom?

Satellite Beach — DeLaura Middle School
Jenna Lynne Pappalardo (Grade 8 )
Helioplex in Sunscreen: Does It Work?

Satellite Beach — DeLaura Middle School
Kayla Nicole Zappone (Grade 8 )
Can Beta-carotene Prevent Agrobacterium Tumefaciens in Helianthus annuus?

Rockledge — Kennedy Middle School
Anthony James Laiuppa (Grade 8 )
Can a Model Rocket’s Aerodynamic Form Be Improved Upon?

Rockledge — Kennedy Middle School
David Alan Sotelo (Grade 8 )
Can the “Bell” Curve of Normal Distribution Be Produced by Plotting the Mass in Grams of Granny Smith Apples?

Titusville — Jackson Middle School
Molli Elizabeth Forbes (Grade 8 )
Is the E. coli in the Indian River Lagoon Antibiotic Resistant?

Lecanto — Lecanto Primary School
Jacqueline Jeanette Dixon (Grade 8 )
Tsunami: Could It Happen Here?

Lecanto — Pope John Paul II School
Bryce Edward De Vine Uzzolino (Grade 7)
Voracious Vermicomposting: Does Nutritive Profile and/or Bedding Temperature Affect Food Preference and/or Rate of Food Consumption for Elsenia foetida?

Parkland — Westglades Middle School
Joshua Michael Feinzig (Grade 7)
Which Bioremediation Agent or Chemical Dispersant Biodegrades the Most Crude During an Oil Spill?

Plantation — American Heritage Middle School
Lindsey L. Precht (Grade 8 )
Feeding Preferences of Echinometra virdis Using Seagrass and Algal Assays

Panama City — Jinks Middle School
Sarah Victoria Warkander (Grade 7)
A Study of Environmental Factors on the Tropic Responses of Acer rubrum (Red Maple)

Okeechobee — Yearling Middle School
Kelsey Kay Burnham (Grade 8 )
How Does the Silicon-Rich Soil Amendment, Enviro-Cal CS, Compare to Lime and Dolomite? A Third Year Study

Tampa — Benito Middle School
Kyle Dennis Brackman (Grade 6)
R.A.I.L.–Regression Analysis in Launch

Tampa — Stewart Middle Magnet School
Michael William Goodman (Grade 7)
Which Bridge Would You Truss(t)?

Vero Beach — Dodgertown Elementary School
Matthew Alexander Ten Eyck (Grade 5)
Stain Zapper

Vero Beach — St. Edwards Lower School
Mitchelson Ivar Brooks (Grade 5)
Minor Miners

Stuart — Murray Middle School
Zachery James Egerton (Grade 8 )
Going Barnacles

Stuart — The Pine School
Spencer McNeel Ballantyne (Grade 5)
Oysters and Clams – Not Just for Dinner

Jacksonville — Arlington Country Day School
Anna Irena Pawlowicz (Grade 6)
Are Tenebrio Larvae Friends of the Dark?

Jacksonville — Episcopal High School
Morgan McKay Monroe (Grade 8 )
Essential Oils as an Alternate Energy Source: Comparing the Oil Yield vs. the Heat Value of Plant Oils

Fort Walton Beach — Liza Jackson Preparatory School
Katherine Marie Stone (Grade 7)
Harvesting Light Two: A Study of the Effects of Ascorbic Acid and Tocopheryl Acetate on Free Radical Formation on Genetically Identical Pothos Subjected to Ultra-Violet Light

St. Cloud — St. Thomas Aquinas School
Erin Nicole Lewis (Grade 8 )
Can the Speed of Sound Waves Be Used to Detect Changes in Water Temperature?

Dade City — Centennial Middle School
Joshua Wayne Hammer (Grade 8 )
Effect of Magnetism on T-cell Development

Clearwater — St. Paul’s School
Colleen Siobahn Cambier (Grade 7)
Energy Drinks in Teenagers: Performance, Peril or Placebo? A Blinded, Crossover Clinical Study

Safety Harbor — Espiritu Santo Catholic School
Brendan Patrick Klovekorn (Grade 7)
Friction: “Fact or Fiction”

Oviedo — Jackson Heights Middle School
Neel Sanjay Patel (Grade 7)
ESSAI – Expert Software System Assisted Improvement for FCAT Essays

Winter Springs — Indian Trails Middle School
Danielle Elizabeth Hugh Sam (Grade 6)
String Zing

Melbourne — Ascension Catholic School
Robert Andrew Batista (Grade 8 )
Pykrete: An Analysis of Its Ballistic Integrity

Jacksonville — James Weldon Johnson Middle School
Rick Schinco Schaffer (Grade 8 )
A Comparison of the Activity Levels of Different Age Cohorts of the Asian Giant Tortoise, Manouria emys by Photoperiod

Alva — Alva Middle School
Sarah Catharine Clewell (Grade 8 )
Shock Therapy for Plants 3.0, A Third Year Study

Ft. Myers — Ft. Myers Christian School
Andrew Lee Newman and Bradley James Schneider (Grade 8 )
Natural Methane

Ft. Myers — St. Michael Lutheran School
Samantha Renee Prabakaran (Grade 6)
The “NOISE” About Noise: Effect of MP3 Players on Hearing

Holley-Navarre — Holley-Navarre Middle School
Amber Louise Contant (Grade 7)
Speed of Light in Different Materials

About Brandon Haught

Communications Director for Florida Citizens for Science.
This entry was posted in In the Classroom, In the News. Bookmark the permalink.