Barrington students wow judges at science fair
Whether testing the effects of spices as preservatives, harmful bacteria in ice machines or the effects of subliminal messaging, St Anne School seventh- and eighth-graders wowed community members.
“I was so impressed with our young scientists, “ said judge Pat Schiller, “they all exhibited an understanding of the scientific method. They also possessed a level of sophistication, curiosity and enthusiasm that will certainly fuel their future endeavors in the area of science.”
Seventh-grader Grace Duffy tested the effects of music on plant growth. She had three test cells, classical music, rap music and no music.
“Classical music plants grew the most,” said Duffy. “There was some growth from plants that weren’t exposed to music. But the plants exposed to rap music didn’t grow at all.”
Students began their experiments back in September when they picked their topics. They then began working on their research papers and collecting months of data. All students needed to formulate a scientific paper, an abstract, a safety report and have a presentation for the fair.
“I’ve been judging the Science Fair for 11 years,” said Marianne Jagmin, “Mrs. Konie has made science legendary at St. Anne’s and this year Mrs. Parks has successfully carried on that tradition. Kudos to the students and the faculty.”
Seventh-grader Vanessa Vlasak, went to six area fast food restaurants and tested the ice for harmful bacteria. Four of the six restaurants failed, with ecoli present in the ice. “I was amazed and shocked,” said Vlasak, “I think I’m going to order my drinks without ice from now on.”
If you are a soccer player, you may want to warm up the soccer balls before your game. As students Michael Fitzpatrick and Jackson Laterza found out, warm soccer balls travel statistically further than cold soccer balls. “The cold soccer ball’s elasticity is less, which means it absorbs energy rather than transferring it, “ said Laterza.
Many corporate marketing campaigns were tested and failed according to St. Anne students.
Erik Doersching tested balance wristbands and found they proved no statistical difference in increasing balance. Kimmy Darch and Abbie Schutter found you run faster in bare feet than in expensive running sneakers and Sarina Remiasz found that while subjects could taste a difference between private label and branded cereal, they didn’t know which was which in the study.
“The students did an amazing job at this year’s Science Fair, “ said teacher Amy Parks, “I am really proud of them.”
There were 28 judges that awarded gold, silver and bronze medals to the student’s experiments. The judges were a combination of school parents, former students and people within the community.
Twelve of St Anne school student teams were selected to participate in regionals on March 18 at Christian Liberty in Arlington Heights. The students advancing to regionals are: Lauren McAndrews and Max McCaulley, Erik Doersching, Jessica Nelson and Pascale Daou, Annie Rolecek and Grace Rolecek, Ryan Schiller, Bobby Seibt, Josh Kasch, Sarina Remiasz, Vanessa Vlasak, Nick Horcher, Ryan Lauderback and Mark Perkowski.
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