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Academics, Ingenuity Mix At Science Fair

Klint Lowry/SUNCOAST NEWS

Sunlake High school freshman Ashley Furman created a powerful visual aid for the Pasco Schools Regional Science Fair that shows in graphic detail what smoking does to smokers and passive smokers.

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By KLINT LOWRY | The Suncoast News

Published: February 8, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - Academics and ingenuity were in ample supply and on display Saturday at the annual Pasco District Regional Science Fair.

The collection of projects by middle school and high school students showed what some of the county's best and brightest have on their minds and what those minds can produce.

"The dedication of these students is just incredible," Laura Hill, supervisor of science for the Pasco School District, said as she presided over the science fair's awards ceremony.

Granted, some projects didn't exactly blaze new scientific trails. They included comparative studies of the melting rates of popular candy bars and which microwave popcorn leaves the fewest unpopped kernels.

One student built a device to see how much electrical energy could be extracted from raw fruits and vegetables. For the record, Granny Smith apples pack the most punch; onions the least.

Another student conducted tests showing that foot odor is at least in part related to a person's choice in shoes.

Then there was Branden Anglin's experiment, "Ascorbic Acid's Role in protecting Spinacia Oleracia Chloroplasts from Sulfuric Acid."

In layman's terms, he wanted to see if the introduction of Vitamin C into the diet of spinach plants can help them fend off the effects of acid rain. It was a follow-up to last year's project, which studied the introduction of vitamins and the effects they had on photosynthesis.

A senior at J.W. Mitchell High School, in Trinity, Branden's project yielded the same result as last year's in one regard: an invitation to the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, to take place in Atlanta May 11-18.

The Intel-sponsored event is the Super Bowl of science fairs, drawing some of the most promising scientific young talent from around the world, along with university and corporate recruiters eager to pave the way for that talent.

Joshua Hammer, a student at Zephyrhills High School, was also selected to be a nominee for the international fair. His project was titled "Expansion on the Effects of Magnetism on Cell Stimulation and T-Cell Development."

Other students tackled topics that included:

• The effects of coal-burning and fluorides on plant life.

• The comparative efficiency of alternative fuels.

• The effects of insecticides on worms.

• Fire resistant roofing materials.

A host of other topics in chemistry, biology, physics and physical science were explored as well in the science fair projects.

Even the projects that didn't have "save the world" gravity still showed a serious application of scientific standards in research and experimentation, as well as some plain old creativity. While some students excelled in sophisticated experiments, others showed a valuable and equally rare talent for presenting science in creative ways.

"Besides the knowledge they gain from the projects, this event provides them with experience in writing and presentation," Hill said.

Joe Nurrenbrock and R.J. DeKinder-Smith, students at Genesis Preparatory School, in New Port Richey, created their own Rube Goldberg machine. Named for cartoonist and sculptor Reuben "Rube" Goldberg, the term refers to any comically overcomplicated device, usually involving pulleys, ramps, and ridiculous chain reactions, made to perform a simple task.

Designed to be more entertaining than practical, Joe and R.J.'s device required over a month of engineering refinement. It was one of the most popular displays in the fair.

So was Ashley Furman's "smoking machine." Using a pump, tubing and a chambered glass case filled with cotton, the device created by the ninth-grader from Sunlake High School, in Land O' Lakes, provided a graphic representation of cigarettes' effects on smokers and passive smokers. It brought home the anti-smoking message in a way no litany of raw statistics ever could.

As Hill, the district science supervisor, explained, for those who participated in the science fair, it is as much about the science as it is learning about one's own interests and abilities, of developing the tools they can use all through their lives.

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