ABSTRACTS

2020 Arizona Junior Science and Humanities Symposium

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February 29, 2020 The Arizona Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (AZJSHS) is a regional component of the National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium that is sponsored by the Department of Defense. The Junior Science and Humanities Symposia (JSHS) program promotes original research and experimentation in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics at the high school level and publicly recognizes students for outstanding achievement. By connecting talented students, their teachers, and research professionals at affiliated symposia and by rewarding research excellence, JSHS aims to widen the pool of trained talent prepared to conduct research and development vital to our nation. The JSHS mission is:

§ promote research and experimentation in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics at the high school level

§ recognize the significance of research in human affairs and the importance of humane and ethical principles in the application of research results

§ search out talented youth and their teachers, recognize their accomplishments at symposia, and encourage their continued interest and participation in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering

§ expand the horizons of research-oriented students by exposing them to opportunities in the academic, industrial, and government communities increase the number of future adults capable of conducting research and development

This event is to celebrate the achievements of our young investigators, to provide them an opportunity to share their research as well as their enthusiasm for science, and to make new friends from across the state. We thank all the participants and volunteers who have made the 2020 AZJSHS a successful event. We all thank Arizona State University for hosting our event. Please share this abstract booklet with your friends and colleagues and help us promote AZJSHS. Sincerely, AZJSHS Co-Directors Laura Hobson & Dr. Shawn Jordan Arizona State University at the Polytechnic campus

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Aguirre, Alexis Harder to Read, Easier to Remember? Studying the effects of font style on comprehension and retention (Medicine & Health/Behavioral Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

Sans forgetica was a font created by a team of designers and behavioral scientists from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. These research scientists “drew upon the psychological theory of “desirable difficulty”. Desirable difficulty essentially means we learn better once we overcome obstacles. They created this font to see if Sans Forgetica truly does aid in memory, as well as text comprehension and retention. When we read any body of text, our brain is using various parts of itself to not only interpret and understand what you’re reading, but retain that information. This information is then stored in our short term memory, which if not repeated or viewed multiple times, will fade. In addition, if the text is easily read, we may retain less of it because our brains aren’t required to work as hard to interpret, understand, and retain what we’re reading. This is where Sans Forgetica implements its psychological theory of “Desirable Difficulty”. Our question is: “Does font matter when it comes to comprehension and retention?”. We hypothesize that teenagers between the ages of 14 to 18 will read an article with the font Sans Forgetica, then they will have better comprehension and retention, then those who read the article with the font Arial. Currently, our data has shown that contrary to our hypothesis, students are performing worse when presented with text in the “Sans Forgetica” font. Students who responded to the articles in the Arial font performed nearly two times better than the articles in Sans Forgetica; additionally, shorter texts have better average test scores. As we analyze students responses, we can make a few deductions as to why our results so strongly oppose our hypothesis. Initially we believe that students performed worse with the Sans Foregetica articles due to the length of the text they were reading. In addition, we observed a trend crossing both articles where, when switching fonts, proficiency (in average points) decreased by 25% with the “Loopy Loops” articles, and by over 33% with our “Human Microbiome” articles. This may be due to students aversion to dutifully reading the passage, or that the theory of “Desired Difficulty” is not working for the selected age group.

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Basu, Neha Computational Design of an Al/CO2 Battery (Physical Sciences) BASIS Scottsdale

Climate change is a significant issue facing humanity, causing advancements in carbon utilization and sequestration technologies. One such technology is the Al/CO2 battery, which not only sequesters, or removes, CO2 from the atmosphere but also generates energy. An Al/CO2 battery reduces CO2 and oxidizes Al to generate energy, and the final product of this reaction may be stored underground or utilized for other purposes, depending on what that product is. Hence, the objective of my work was to determine this final product, which I hypothesized to be either aluminum oxalate, Al2( C2O4)3, or aluminum carbonate, Al2(CO3)3. To determine the final product, I utilized Vienna Ab-initio Simulation Package (VASP) to conduct quantum mechanical calculations based on density functional theory. I used VASP to calculate the energy of the reactants (Al and CO2) and the energy of the possible products in an Al/CO2 battery. I then calculated the difference between these energies for each reaction, as the lowest energy difference would signify the most stable product. The energy difference in the reaction 2Al + 6CO2 → Al2(C2O4)3 was -3.86 eV, while it was -20.83 eV in the reaction 4Al + 9CO2 → 2Al2(CO3)3 + 3C. I concluded that Al2(CO3)3 is the dominant product based on energy difference. In the future, I plan to use the Nudge-Elastic Band feature of VASP to calculate the energy barrier to determine intermediate reactions, which will further the Al/CO2 battery design.

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Briker, Yaniv Gestype: A Novel Solution to Ergonomically Inefficient Keyboards using Real-Time Deep Learning Based Gesture Recognition (Math and Computer Sciences/Computer Engineering) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

In the modern workplace, physical keyboards are both an ergonomically and physiologically inefficient solution to typing, yet they are still a crucial piece of technology. Constant typing can lead to wrist problems like Repeated Strain Injuries (RSIs) or degrade lower-back strength by forcing harmful posture (Scott, 2020). Moreover, keyboards can reduce sanitation in offices as they are one of the first places that viruses begin to spread (Miller, Krennhrubec, Zuckerman, n.d.). However, keyboards have been around since 1868 and still pose significant risks due to little changes. Addressing the various health issues associated with keyboards, this project proposes an alternative method to the traditional keyboard by implementing a convolutional neural network model that recognizes hand gestures to reduce these risks. These hand gestures are determined using a binary-based counting system where each finger represents a binary state, allowing for 32 possible combinations. By using a camera, input is processed in real time through a background reduction algorithm (Figure 3); then, the processed image is input into a convolutional neural network in order to recognize the intended symbol made by the user. The symbol is customizable from user to user. The convolutional neural network predicted the correct letter 99.7% of the time. The only hardware required is a camera, making this solution versatile and easily accessible by any computer and can be run without a strong CPU or GPU.

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Chakravadhanula, Kasyap An Inexpensive Smartphone-Based Device for Rapid, Non-Invasive, and Point-of-Care Diagnosis of Diabetic Retinopathy and Related Cardiovascular Risk (Biomedical Sciences) BASIS Scottsdale

Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness among working class adults, and cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the world. However, diagnosis is often too late to prevent irreversible damage caused by these linked conditions. The goal of this project was to create an integrated test, automated and not requiring laboratory blood analysis, for diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy and cardiovascular risk. First, a random forest model was developed by retrospectively analyzing the influence of various risk factors (which do not require a blood test to measure) on cardiovascular risk. The relative importance of these risk factors for the model after training were also graphed to improve model understandability. Next, a deep-learning model was developed for prediction of diabetic retinopathy from retinal fundus images by using transfer learning on the InceptionV3 model and pre-processing the images via automatic vessel segmentation. Finally, the models were integrated into a smartphone-based device, combined with an inexpensive 3D-printed retinal imaging attachment. Model accuracy scores, as well as the receiver operating characteristic curve, the learning curve, and other gauges, were promising. This test is much cheaper and much faster, and does not require a blood test while maintaining similar or higher accuracy levels compared to current methods. It has the potential to replace the manual method of diagnosing diabetic retinopathy, which is a time consuming and costly process only done by medical professionals, and to remove the need for a blood test to determine cardiovascular risk with accuracy and rapidity.

Charley, Kiera Synthesis of 3-D Printable Plastic from Banana Peel Waste (Physical Sciences) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this project is to design and create a plastic suitable for testing but also one that is environmentally friendly. An ingredient necessary to the creation of bio-plastic is starch. Starch is found in plants such as potatoes, bananas, plantains, etc. In this investigation though, bananas were used. As such, other materials are needed which consist of sodium hydroxide, sodium metabisulfite, and hydrochloric acid. My hypothesis is: If bioplastic can be created using bananas, then it should be just as durable or stronger than PLA and ABS plastic. Throughout the use of my extensive research, I was able to devise a procedure which was carried out in order to produce the plastic and the testing that followed. At the end of experimentation, it was found that bioplastic made from bananas can be made and that they appear just to be as durable as the PLA and ABS plastics which were also tested under the same conditions as the banana bioplastic. In future investigations, this project will be continued yet with different variables such as the use of different materials containing starch.

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Chief, Sykora Salvia apiana: Antibacterial properties of a promising perennial shrub against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus (Biomedical Sciences) Greyhills Academy High School (Teacher: Ms. Reny Mathew)

Sagebrush or Salvia apiana reserves a lot of importance in traditional medicine worldwide and this has been reported since ancient times. Folks use it for cleaning wounds, skin irritations, as a digestive medicine, for headache, and cold, etc. This research is focused on exploring the antimicrobial activity of active sagebrush components derived from sagebrush leaves and stem. The extract was tested for their antibacterial activity against two non- pathogenic bacteria of ESKAPE group ie, E.coli and S. aureus. The wild sage was gathered around the Tuba city area in Arizona. Leaves and stem were washed with distilled water and dried in fume hood to avoid any environmental contamination. These leaves were crushed and used to make the water, methanol and acetone based extracts. Antibacterial activity of these extracts was determined using agar well diffusion method. The zone of inhibition was measured around the wells by measuring the diameter. We tested the antibacterial activity of controls i.e., distilled water, methanol and acetone simultaneously to check if there is the presence of any activity. Out of all tested extracts, acetone-based extract gave the more prominent results i.e. >32 mm of a zone of inhibition against both groups of organisms, ethanol-based extract gave zone of inhibition only against E. coli strains, while water-based extracts were completely inactive.

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Chintala, Sai The Effect of Different Types of Plastics on the Consumption of Plastic by Galleria Mellonella (Wax Worms) (Environmental Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Cristi Sims)

Though the demand and utilization of plastic are constantly increasing due to its various uses, like using them as disposable containers or plastic bags, these plastics have become a huge problem for the environment due to its non-degradable nature. All these plastics have toxic substances that cause water, land and air pollution, when left to accumulate in nature. The plastics accumulating on the land and in the seas, oceans or rivers is not only affecting the habitat but also the organisms that live in that habitat, especially the marine species that tend to ingest plastic assuming that it is food, which poisons the animals. This indirectly affects the human population as people might consume these fish or other marine animals which ingested these toxins. Some plastics might be degradable but only with the use of harmful chemicals-which have a negative impact on the environment as these chemical gases cause air pollution. Therefore, the use of living organisms, like wax worms, as natural decomposers for plastic, is very essential to balance the amount of pollution using natural biodegradation. This experiment tested how effectively wax worms would consume various plastics in an average span of 24 hours. The plastics that were provided to the wax worms were Styrofoam (Polystyrene), plastic bags (High-Density Polyethylene-HDPE) and Coca-Cola Bottle (PET-Polyethylene Terephthalate). These plastics are some of the most commonly used in the form of containers, cups, disposable plates, bags and many other forms, resulting in most of the human population massively depending on these plastics on a daily basis. Determining a natural way to decompose these plastics is very essential in order to protect the environment from the negative effects of chemical degradation or plastic usage alone. This would also help in eliminating plastic that has been accumulating on land and in water bodies for a long period of time. Organisms like wax worms are one of the best ways to approach this plastic pollution issue as they can be used in large scale quantities to decompose various plastics without any sort of toxicity returning to the environment. This experiment paves the way for further research focusing on the best suitable environment for these worms in order to degrade plastic, to test whether it is feasible to handle this in a large- scale production.

Clancy, Erin Mathematically Modeling and Predicting Mosquito Population Characteristics (Environmental Sciences) Red Mountain High School

The purpose of this project is to describe mosquito populations mathematically, and with the fewest initial conditions required. This serves as a tool for ecologists and eliminates the need for intensive field studies. This aids the goal of integrating genetically modified mosquitoes into current mosquito populations, as the methods for proper integration are based upon the targeted population’s characteristics, such as the overall birth rate and the growth rate of parous female mosquitoes.

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Connolly, Sean The Effect of Added Circuit Resistance on Heat allowed to the Outlet Side in Non-Transfer Orientation (Engineering and Technology) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Cristi Sims)

The purpose of this project was to discover how the Added Circuit Resistance affected the Heat allowed to the Outlet Side in Non-Transfer Orientation. This has relevance to engineers and scientists. If the added circuit resistance effects the heat on the outlet side and the machine is heated in non-transfer orientation and varying resistance is added to the circuit then 0 ohms will be more efficient than 8, 16, and 24 ohms. This will happen because the less resistance in a circuit, the faster the cooling agent (fan) will run, cooling it down faster. “When you turn up the resistance, the electric current flowing through the circuit is reduced. With less current, there's less energy” (Woodford). The effect of Added Circuit Resistance on Heat allowed to the Outlet Side in Non-Transfer Orientation was determined by heating a machine acting as a thermal diode. The results showed a temperature drop of 12.3° Celsius for 0 ohms, 11.2° Celsius for 8 ohms, 11.1° Celsius for 16 ohms, and 9.5° Celsius for 24 ohms. The results showed that the hypothesis was supported. Possible errors were touching of wires to other metal components causing false activations, misplacement of the thermometer, and the shorting out of the power supply. Future research could be The Effect of Added Voltage on Fan Activation Time.

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Das, Amit Digital Image Analysis (DIA) of Ultrasound Images Using Machine Learning to Diagnose Pediatric Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) Brophy College Preparatory (Teacher: Patricia Mazier)

Introduction: Prevalence of NAFLD (a medical condition where excess fat accumulates in the liver and may eventually lead to scarring and cirrhosis) in children is rising in parallel with the epidemic of childhood obesity. NAFLD is diagnosed with an ultrasound examination and calculating indices such as hepatic-renal index and the hepatic echo-intensity attenuation index based on mean pixel intensity. Although sonographic examination can be easily done by non- radiologists, these ultrasound images need to be read by a radiologist, and children cannot be currently screened for NAFLD at the time of clinical care. An accurate and automated machine learning-based digital tool will be useful to detect NAFLD in ambulatory settings in children, particularly if they are more reliable than the pixel intensity-based indices. Objective: To perform DIA of ultrasound images of the liver to develop a machine learning- based classification model capable of differentiating NAFLD from healthy liver tissue in pediatric subjects and compare its performance with pixel intensity-based indices. Methods: De-identified ultrasound images of the liver obtained as part of an IRB approved research study of pediatric subjects to study prevalence of NAFLD were used to build an image database Representative regions of interest (ROIs) were digitally selected from US images of subjects with healthy liver, and subjects with NAFLD as diagnosed by a pediatric radiologist and images were analyzed with ImageJ software. Texture analyses were performed using histogram, run-length matrix, co-occurrence matrix, gradient analysis, auto-regressive model and Haar wavelet energy co-efficient indices. An ensemble of machine learning classification models was tested using the SPSS flow of IBM Watson studio software. The hepatic -renal and hepatic echo- attenuation indices were also calculated for these images. Results: 484 ROIs from images in 93 healthy subjects and 260 ROIs from images in 39 subjects with NAFLD with 30 texture features extracted from each ROI were used to develop, train and internally validate the model. Support Vector Machine, Neural Net, and Extreme Gradient Boost were the best classifiers based on the area under the curve (AUC) of ROC curves. In an external validation cohort of 211 images from 42 children, the model was accurate in differentiating NAFLD from normal with an AUC of 0.92 and was superior to the intensity-based indices (hepatic-renal index, AUC 0.74 (95% CI, 0.60-0.88), p < 0.001 and the hepatic echo-intensity attenuation index, AUC 0.66 (95% CI, 0.51-0.82), p < 0.001.) Conclusion: DIA of POC ultrasound images is more accurate in differentiating healthy liver from NAFLD in pediatric subjects compared to commonly used pixel-intensity based indices. Automated deployment of this model may serve as a practical and point-of-care screening tool for NAFLD without the need for an immediate reading by a radiologist.

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Gray, Justyna Navajo Nation Watershed Water Quality Monitoring and Removal of Heavy Metals (Engineering and Technology) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this research was to analyze the water quality of the lakes and river of the Navajo Nation’s Watershed and to build an electrochemical cell that would remove heavy metals from them. Water samples from 6 lakes around the Navajo Nation watershed were collected. Samples were tested for levels of pH, nitrates, phosphates, Coliform bacteria, dissolved oxygen, biological oxygen demand, turbidity, and salinity. Heavy metals were removed and identified using carbon rods in an electrochemical cell and analyzed using a Hitachi-Regulus 8220 Cold Field Emission (CFE) Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The hypothesis was, If I do a chemical analysis on the lakes and rivers in the Navajo Nation's watershed, then the water quality would be extremely poor and filled with heavy metals. The hypothesis was accepted because three of the lakes, Tsaile lake, Morgan Lake and Many Farms Lake were extremely compromised and poor water quality with heavy metals, including lead (Pb), as detected on the graphite rods, via a Hitachi-Regulus 8220 Cold Field Emission (CFE) Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The electro chemical cell was able to remove the heavy metals from the lakes to make them for suitable for use by farmers for better quality water for livestock and agriculture.

Guerra, Sofia Potential Protection of Native Seeds Against Pathogens via Beneficial Microbes (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

The decline of plant yields around the world is most notably due to pathogens, which is a broad term for any bacteria, fungi, nematode, or other parasite infecting a plant. The field of plant pathology is driven by the massive amount of crops lost each year to disease (almost twenty to forty 40 percent of crops a year, costing the economy 220 billion). The field’s goal is to develop successful and efficient methods of diagnosis, improve a plant’s genomic resistance to disease, and find ways to treat disease once it occurs, without using unnatural or harmful remedies. So far, this has been accomplished using DNA analysis, introduction of insects to kill harmful pests, and, most interestingly, microbiome transplants. In my research, I have investigated the use of microbial transplants on two types of native crop plants- wheat and pinto beans. I used both species to ensure more definitive results, as well as to compare the results of the same microbiome transplant on two species. For my donor plant, I chose mesquite- a native plant related to pinto beans. In doing this, I was able to decide whether or not the donor plant being a relative had any effect on the transplant process. The goal of this project was to determine how microbial transplants affect/benefit plant health and growth and increase resistance against soil pathogens. Previous research1,2,3 suggests that microbe transplants can aid in disease resistance, because of this I thought that the slurry treatment will produce the healthiest plants.

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Hanford, Nevan The Degradation of Polystyrene (Styrofoam) By Tenebrio Beetles and Their Larvae (Environmental Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

To reduce styrofoam pollution, Tenebrio beetles and their larvae, mealworms, are very effective. They can digest and biodegrade polystyrene plastic, or styrofoam, into released carbon dioxide, feces, and biomass. This project aims to investigate the best temperature and food condition for these mealworms to degrade the styrofoam. Also, another goal is to image the gut bacteria to see how Tenebrio beetles can digest it, and the differences in imaging between experimental groups. With these images, the changes in gut walls or bacterial colonies can be seen based on their diet. To obtain this information, three aquariums were set up at each of these temperatures: 15 °C, 20 °C, and 30 °C. One aquarium at each temperature had a 5 kg bag of bran, another had 5g of bran and 40 g of styrofoam, and a third has just 40 g of styrofoam. After periodically taking the mass of the styrofoam, the worms eating just styrofoam, compared to bran and styrofoam, consumed the most mass. Worms stored at 20°C were most effective at breaking down styrofoam as this is the ideal temperature for mealworms. The higher temperature (30 °C) broke down more styrofoam than those at the lower temperature (15 °C). The lengths of each mealworm (5 per aquarium) were also measured and averaged to identify any differences. Styrofoam seemed to negatively affect growth as the mealworms based on a sole styrofoam diet were much shorter in length than those that had bran available as a food source. Comparing this data to the imaging data, it was concluded that the smaller actin coils in the gut of the bacteria had a direct correlation to smaller length. In conclusion, degradation of styrofoam occured at the highest rate with mealworms stored at 20 °C and fed a styrofoam diet. However, the styrofoam did seem to have an effect on the mealworms growth.

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Harper, Sky Primordial Soup: Testing the Catalytic Properties Of Clays On The Synthesis Of Different Biomolecules (Chemistry) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this investigation was to find the catalytic abilities of different clays, and to determine if clay could have served as a catalyst for the synthesis of biomolecules during the prebiotic-primordial Earth period. Thus, reinforcing the Spontaneous Generation Theory and Physical-Chemical Theory, and giving a basis as to which non-organic chemical compounds gave rise to organic life. This investigation utilized six different clay types: bentonite (Al2H2Na2O13Si4P4 S3), kaolin (Al2H4O9Si2), illite (KAl2H3Mg2Fe2Al4O11Si4), sepiolite (Mg4H4O15Si6), and moroccan (NaCa3Al2O10Si4) and Talc (Mg₃H2Si₄O₁2). These six-clay specimens were autoclaved for sterilization, and were separately combined with equal parts ammonia water, sodium carbonate, sodium phosphate, and hydrogen peroxide. These reactants were placed in a 15mL sealed test tube and were given a water bath at 100 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes. The resulting product(s) were then analyzed via UNICO Spectrophotometer model S2150UV from a 190nm to 1100nm wavelengths to determine the absorbance. The spectrophotometric data was then analyzed and compared against lab-grade biomolecules: carbohydrates, lipids, and amino acids. This investigation is beneficial, when researchers look to analyzing foreign planets. If these specific clays are found with the other reactants utilized in the experiment, then spontaneous generation could have occurred and given rise to biomolecules. Furthermore, a better understanding as to the origin of life can be attained.

Haskie, Miauaxochitl Clay-Dyed Wool for Natural Sun Blocking Fabric (Chemistry) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The sun’s ultraviolet radiation has become a very dangerous threat to human skin causing cancers which can include deadly melanoma. Research has shown that clay is a natural sunscreen. By creating a sun blocking fabric with clay-dyed wool, the risks of skin cancer may be decreased. First dye the wool with mordant then dye it with a mixture of each clay (red, bentonite, and kaolin) and soy milk. Knit each clay-dyed wool and undyed wool (the control) into fabric and measure the amount of UVB rays passing through each. Additionally, the UVB of direct sunlight was measured. Using Oxford ED-2000 X-Ray Fluorescence and Hitachi S-4700 FE-SEM on each material used, I discovered the metal oxides common to each clay that made the fabric sun blocking: Al2O3, SiO2, Fe2O3, and TiO2.

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Hemstreet, Tori Removal of Particulate Matter Using Carbon-Based Charcoal from Simulated Emissions of Smoke by Burning Organic Materials (Engineering and Technology) Greyhills Academy High School (Teacher: Ms. Reny Mathew)

The purpose of this experiment was to determine whether natural wood-based charcoals such as pine and juniper are just as effective at air filtration as activated charcoal. For our experiment, we had a controlled environment that consisted of a metal box, a plywood box, and a 3-foot stove pipe that connected the two boxes. We built an air filter that uses charcoal. Once everything was built, we tested the pine, juniper, and activated charcoal by having them filtrate smoke. A fire is made in the metal box and the stove pipe allows the smoke produced by the fire to transfer to the plywood box. Inside the plywood box is the air filter that contains one of the three charcoals and a Purple Air Sensor that measures the particulate matter (PM) in the air due to the smoke. As the smoke is being filtrated by the air filter, the sensor collects the data of the PM levels as they decrease. After all of the charcoals were tested, we studied the data collected by the Purple Air Sensor. The data showed that juniper filtrated the most smoke in a less amount of time compared to pine and activated charcoal. Pine filtrated the second-most amount of smoke from the air while activated charcoal filtrated the least amount of smoke.

Hosteen, Keona Particulates and Toxic Gases: The Hidden Harm in Wood Fires Used in Traditional Hogans And Their Correlation with Asthma and Lung Cancer (Biomedical Sciences) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this project is to identify which of the four types of firewood (pine, pinon, oak, and cedar) produce the most carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, with the addition of particulate matter. The hypothesis was that if different types of firewood (pinon, pine, oak, and cedar) were burned in a Hogan, then these four woods could be ranked from best to worst based on the carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide levels, ranked by radon levels measured, and ranked by particulate matter measured. First, the researcher obtained two to three regular size logs of each type of firewood. The firewood was burned and tested in the Hogan one day at a time and carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and particulate matter were collected. Relative humidity, temperature, and radon were also collected to see the relationship with other gases. The researcher repeated the same process for each log type, after refreshing the air within the Hogan. Cedar was the worst wood to burn, based on high carbon monoxide. Oak was the second worst, also based on carbon monoxide. Pine was the best, based on lowest carbon monoxide and lowest radon. Pinon was the second best, based on low carbon monoxide and lowest carbon dioxide. Pine was the best, with carbon monoxide lower than both the US Health Exposure (NIOSH) permissible and recommended limits pinon, oak, and cedar failed the carbon monoxide both the permissible and recommended limits of the US Health Exposure Limits (NIOSH). Pine had the worst particulate matter, and oak the best. The hypothesis is accepted, that the four woods could be ranked from best to worst based on levels of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, radon, and particulate matter.

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Huffman, Gabriel The Effect of Temperature on Porpoise Whale Presence (Life Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Cristi Sims)

The project is meant to determine if temperature has an effect on the presence of porpoise whales in a given area. If temperature is related to the presence of harbour porpoise and harbour porpoise density is measured year-round along the coast of Maryland, then porpoise whale density will be less at lower temperatures: 1.9C, 3.6C, 8C, 13.6C, 4.1C; and be higher at higher temperatures: 18.8C, 24.4C, 27.2C, 26.1C, 22.2C, 15.5C, 10.2C. The density of harbour porpoise whales on the coast of Maryland was collected year-round at two different sites by Duke University. Each month of the year had the density averaged out so there is one density for each month. Then, the average temperature of each month in Maryland was found. Linear regression analysis was then used to find how much of an effect temperature had on the presence, or density, of harbour porpoise on the coast of Maryland. The linear regression analysis found that site one had a correlation coefficient of 0.6247 and site 2 had a correlation coefficient of 0.5944. This concludes that there is a semi-strong correlation between temperature and harbour porpoise presence because the correlation coefficient is over 0.5. The hypothesis was supported because the data shows that harbour porpoises prefer to live in warmer temperatures of water.

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Karnik, Mihira The Effect of The Internal Temperature of Vegetables on its Cellulose Breakdown, Enzyme Activity, and Vitamin C Content (Biomedical Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus

The purpose of this project was to discover how the internal temperature of vegetables affected the cellulose breakdown, enzyme activity, and vitamin c content. This has relevance to vegetarians and those with sensitive stomachs. If the steaming time of the vegetable increases, then the internal temperature would increase and cellulose would breakdown, enzymes would denature, and the vitamin C content would decrease. This is because the vegetable is heated when steamed, causing the breakdown of cellulose (Wang, 2003, p.1), unfolding of proteins, and breakdown of Vitamin C. This was determined by steaming vegetables at varying times and collecting their internal temperature. Cellulose breakdown was viewed under the microscope and chemical reactions involving the enzyme catalase and vitamin C were observed. The results collected during this investigation were that an increase of 20°C can breakdown cellulose, but still retain the structure of the enzymes and vitamin C. The hypothesis was supported. Possible errors were a delay of a few seconds in taking the vegetable samples out of the steaming wok and an up to 0.1 g error in the weighing scale measurement. A future experiment could include measuring other nutrient parameters, altitude at which food is cooked on the internal temperature of vegetables, and impact of pH of the water on nutritional content, enzyme activity, and cellulose breakdown in vegetables. Currently, a device is being built (in collaboration with Yantra LLC) with smart technology to monitor the internal temperature of vegetables while cooking to engage the health benefits of vegetables.

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Liu, Abby Identifying Key Pathways/Mechanisms for the Generation of Pancreatic Beta Cells by Trans-differentiation of Acinar Cells (Biomedical Sciences) Hamilton High School (Teacher: Raxha Bhagdev)

Insulin is produced in the 𝛽 cells of the pancreas. Individuals with diabetes either lack insulin (T1D) or have a reduced insulin secretion or action (T2D). Therefore, preservation of 𝛽 cell mass is crucial for treatment. Pancreatic 𝛽 cell mass is maintained by several mechanisms, which include self-replication, trans-differentiation from stem cells, and trans-differentiation from non-𝛽 cells, for example, pancreatic acinar cells. Since acinar cells are by-products of islet transplantation, their utilization will be an interesting approach to supplement the current limited availability of islet cells. Trans-differentiation, however, requires extensive knowledge about the key regulators that control 𝛽 cell development/growth, and maintain 𝛽 cell function. Furthermore, to improve the overall efficiency of the generation of 𝛽 cells from acinar cells, it is imperative to understand the underlying mechanism for such trans-differentiation. Here, we investigated transcription factors critical for 𝛽 cell generation, and determined the combination of transcription factors that resulted in a more efficient generation of 𝛽 cells from acinar cells. Results show that when compared to basal, Rbpjl and Ptf1a knockdown in 266-6 mouse acinar cells increased the overall expression of essential 𝛽 cell genes. Additional overexpression of Ngn3, Mafb, and Nkx6.1 further increased the expression of essential 𝛽 cell genes including insulin. This is the first study, to our knowledge, to show that inhibiting Rbpjl and Ptf1a and therefore disrupting acinar cell characteristics may aid in the conversion of acinar cells to pancreatic 𝛽 cells.

Manetta, Mason Ising Model Application and Varying Conditions (Physical Sciences) Mountain High School

The Ising model was first proposed in the early 19th century and has since become one of the most widely studied models in Statistical Mechanics. In this paper, various applications of the Ising Model are discussed, such as magnetization, and arctic ice melt ponds. In addition, the Ising Model is subjected to varying conditions such as lattice holes, and non-changeable spin sites with the intention to quantify the effects upon per site magnetization. Overall, this research utilizes the Metropolis algorithm for the Ising model on a square lattice.

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Mathur, Aryan A Novel Approach to Predict the Band Gap of Newly Synthesized Compounds Using Machine Learning Algorithms (Math and Computer Sciences/Computer Engineering) Chandler High School

Bandgap is a highly valuable property of electronic materials which allows scientists to classify materials as either metals, semiconductors, or insulators (Metals 0ev, Semiconductors 0-9ev, insulators 9+ev). Previously, bandgap was experimentally determined through extensive material synthesis and lab analysis. This paper outlines an alternative approach in which steps taken are to predict the bandgap of materials solely based on the chemical formula using machine learning methods and data provided by the materials project, an open-source materials database. Python libraries matminer and pymatgen were used to access the Materials Project REST API, allowing for the extraction of over 120,000 unique non-organic compounds with over 20 properties each. Formulas were converted into pymatgen composition objects which allowed for further extraction of features such as molecular geometry, oxidation states, average electron energies, and other stoichiometric properties. The data was processed (i.e. data reduction, transformation etc.), standardized and used in regression-based non-linear machine learning models, such as Random Forest, K-Nearest Neighbor, and Artificial Neural Networks. R^2, RMSE, RAE, and other techniques were used to verify the accuracy of the output data. Further improvements can be made to improve the accuracy of the models, but an algorithm has been laid out that allows the user to input a chemical formula, and without any prior synthesis or lab work, determine roughly it’s bandgap. Scientists can use this algorithm to begin investigating new forms of semiconductors or metals with enhanced properties, allowing for better and smaller electronic devices without hardware limitations.

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Mauga, Filisi The Effect of Academic Performance on Self-Esteem (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this experiment is to determine if academic performance affects a person’s self-esteem and if there is a gender difference in self-esteem. My hypothesis is “If I give two chemistry classes a quiz and lower the quiz scores of one class, then the class with the lowered results will display a lower drop in self-esteem and females will display a lower drop in self-esteem.” A teacher was asked to allow me to test their classes. Both classes tested were told they would take a quiz in a few days, and they filled out the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Then, the students took their quiz and the quizzes were scored, but one class would their scores lowered. After letting students view their scores, they would fill out the scale again. The scales from both times were scored and a difference was calculated to see if the students’ self-esteem changed. The results show that the experimental group had a decrease of 3.8 in their scores on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and the control group who had an increase of 1.3 in their scores on the scale. The males had a decrease of 3.5 in their scores on the scale whereas the females had an increase of 1.2 in their scores on the scale. The results supported half of my hypothesis, as the experimental group had displayed a lower drop in self-esteem but the females displayed an overall increase in self-esteem and the males displayed a drop in self-esteem.

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Mehta, Viraj GLIA-Deep: Glioblastoma Image Analysis using a Deep Learning Convolutional Neural Network to Accurately Classify Gene Methylation and Predict Drug Effectiveness (Medicine & Health/Behavioral Sciences) BASIS Scottsdale

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is the most common and most deadly primary brain tumor, with a patient’s median survival time limited to 18-24 months despite aggressive treatments. This limited success is due to a combination of aggressive tumor behavior, genetic heterogeneity of the disease within a single patients’ GBM, and resistance to therapy. Thus, a single specimen using a biopsy cannot be used for complete assessment of the tumor’s micro environment, making personalized care limited and challenging. Temozolomide (TMZ) is a commercially approved alkylating agent used to treat GBM, but at least 50% of temozolomide treated patients do not respond to it due to the over-expression of O6-methylguanine methyltransferase (MGMT). MGMT is a DNA repair enzyme, and rescues tumor cells from alkylating agent-induced damage, leading to resistance to chemotherapy with alkylating agents. Epigenetic silencing of the MGMT gene by promoter methylation results in decreased MGMT protein expression, reduced DNA repair activity, and potential increased sensitivity to TMZ. The author presents a novel approach of using a Convolutional Neural Network on brain MRI scans from TCIA and genomic data from TCGA to predict the methylation status of the MGMT gene in patient MRI scans. The methylation status allows neurologists and oncologists to assess the therapy options for the patient. Sufficiently high methylated MGMT has been associated with higher sensitivity to the drug Temozolomide and hence longer survival in patients receiving chemotherapy with TMZ. The author developed a webapp www.glia-deep.com to show the segmented outputs of brain scans highlighting the tumor area, and predict methylation status in seconds, eliminating huge time and cost investments in invasive biopsies. Using computational modelling, the analysis further recommends microRNAs that modulate MGMT gene expression by translational repression or mRNA degradation to make glioma cells TMZ sensitive, thereby improving the survival of glioma patients with “unmethylated MGMT”.

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Nanda, Hersh Investigation of Unknown Causes of Uveal Melanoma Uncovers Seven Recurrent Genetic Mutations (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) BASIS Chandler

The purpose of this research was to investigate which genetic mutations are responsible for Uveal Melanoma (UM), a rare subtype of melanoma but the most frequent primary cancer of the eye. Genome data of UM patients was obtained from U.S. National Institute of Health's (NIH) National Library of Medicine. Data was obtained from samples that were surgically collected from eye enucleations or resected from liver metastases. The DNA sequence from the cancerous cells was compared to a reference DNA sequence (from normal tissue pairs) to identify any nucleotide base pair mismatches. The locus of each mutation was noted to determine what genes were mutated. Pareto analysis of cross-patient data was performed to identify chromosomes with most genetic mutations and recurrent genetic mutations across patients. Gene functions of mutated genes were studied to investigate possible causal links to cancer, such as anomalies in genes that coded for proteins with a known role in tumor repression. A total of 130 genetic mutations were discovered (seven recurrent and 123 non-recurrent), with most mutations occurring in chromosomes 3 and 23. Recurrent mutations varied from 8.7% to 17.39% occurrence in the UM patient sample. The recurring genetic mutations were observed as missense mutations in the following genes: ALG1L2, DMD, IL1RAPL2, KIAA0825, LOC440040, NXF2, and PHYHD1. The research revealed UM is a heterogenous disease with homozygous mutations and is a recessive disorder. These genetic mutations are newly discovered and not reported in published literature. The research has wider significance because the seven recurrent mutations discovered may cause other cancers (as same genetic mutations are often known to cause multiple cancers), but future research is needed. Furthermore, this study also indicates that immunotherapy would be the most promising approach for treatment of Uveal Melanoma due to the disease’s heterogenous nature.

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Nematova, Omina The Effect of Social Isolation of Honey Bees on Caffeine Addiction (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Ms. Rachna Nath)

The purpose of this project was to see how social isolation affected one’s vulnerability to become addicted to caffeine, a common stimulant taken daily and may lead to a caffeine substance use disorder (Meredith et. al., 2013). The honey bee (Apis mellifera) was used as a model system to test for caffeine addiction between isolated and grouped bees. It’s hypothesized that socially isolated bees will learn the sucrose reward containing caffeine better than the grouped bees, because social isolation may cause an organism to be more prone to caffeine addiction and caffeine enhances a bee’s memory (Whitaker, Degoulet & Morikawa, 2013; Wright et al., 2013). The hypothesis was partially supported, because the isolated bees learned better overall than the grouped bees, but there was no relationship between learning and the caffeine treatment. The isolated bees may have learned better over time because they were put into a stressed environment, and stress may induce learning. Learning during a stressful situation may enhance a memory as that learned information is now related to the context of the stressful scenario. So, when that same stressful situation occurs again, the memory including that novel information is enhanced (Vogel & Schwabe, 2016). Possibly, the isolated bees were already in a stressful situation, being separate from the hive, and the memory of the stimulus with the odor and specific reward may be enhanced with the stressful situation therefore improving learning in general. The results give insight to stress induced learning and memory of PTSD patients.

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Nez, Alesia Establishing A Radon Region on the Navajo Nation’s Abandon Uranium Mines (Environmental Sciences) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

This experiment was conducted to provide awareness to the residents living on the Navajo Nation to understand that the abandon uranium mines that are located within the borders of the Navajo Nation are still lethal to many residents. Few mines are covered with gravel and the state procedures to covering these mines. However, much of the toxicities are still escaping and are roaming within the areas of those mines. This is important because many of the Navajo residents and families live not too far from these mines. The long-term effects or uranium and radon can lead to cancer and health effects for the residents living on the Navajo Nation. Uranium decays and one of the by-products is Radon. Therefore, this important issue developed this research project. The environmental issue tackled was on the average and maximum concentrations of Radon as an air pollutant. A gas easily inhaled; Radon is often the single largest contributor to an individual’s background radiation dose. If I test the radon concentration of the different abandon uranium mines on the Navajo Nation, then I will be able to establish a radon region based on average and maximum radon concentrations. Therefore, do the different abandon uranium mines on the Navajo Nation indicate certain levels of radon concentration?

Northway-Smith, Sadie Biodegrading styrofoam using the gut biome of Zophobos morio and Tenibrio molitor (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

As the human population grows, more and more waste is created, most of which is non-recyclable and non-biodegradable. Styrofoam, a derivative form of the plastic polystyrene, is one such example. It cannot be recycled into other products, is not known to biodegrade, and is prone to form microplastics, posing a damage to organisms everywhere, particularly those inhabiting marine environments. Making the switch to a more sustainable material is important, but so is eliminating the styrofoam already present in a sustainable and safe manner. Recently, it was discovered that mealworms are capable of metabolizing and mineralizing styrofoam, opening the door to potential methods of degrading styrofoam on an industrial level. The goal of this research project is to create a new method of degrading styrofoam, by mimicking the process utilized by these worms. Furthermore, the potential and safety of the fecula produced’s ability to be used as a fertilizer will be investigated. So far, a rate of consumption has been established for two species of mealworm, Tenebrio molitor and Zophobos morio. It is too early in the data collection process to report any further data.

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Patel, Vahini Creating an Object Recognition App (Math and Computer Sciences/Computer Engineering) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus

Object Recognition is a system that identifies objects and classifies what they are. They are trained using annotated images stores in an online database and then applies what it learned to identify real-life objects. The objective is to have objects presented to an object recognition application and to have it correctly identify the object. To test if it works, it will be trained to identify between three fruit: an apple, orange, and pear; then it will be tested to see if it can identify them correctly with twenty trials per fruit. The application was created using Cloud Annotations CLI to annotate images and store them into a file, which was downloaded into an app made in XCode. In the end, the object were identified with some errors that caused some incorrect identifications. Possible errors might of included improper training of the program, not enough images in the database, or incorrect image annotations. Future research could address possible solutions to increase correct identification rates, as well as the effect of different styles of image training.

Pillai, Roshan SAVR- Stroke And Cardio-Vascular Risk Assessment: A Novel Machine Learning-Based Approach for an Interoperable Screening System via Wearable Technology (Biomedical Sciences) BASIS Scottsdale

Cardiovascular risk is the risk of a person developing cardiovascular diseases, often sudden. Additionally, Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Most of the current warning tools utilize threshold level warnings. Unfortunately, this threshold method does not take into account other signs and symptoms, demographics, or wearable data. Wearable technology is rapidly on the rise with many companies including Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Fitbit developing products to track health data. The novel design incorporated integration with Wearable Technology, the ability to integrate live data and allow user input, as well as the ability to access health records. The project involved a combination of machine learning (XGBoost) and statistical analysis via a novel approach called ensembling models to create an accurate and viable structure for prediction. The goal was to create an app that utilizes an interoperable based approach where a patient/user can take their everyday data from a wearable, integrate the information available on their health app, health records and with user input including their reported medical symptoms, screen and find out their relative risk for stroke/cardiovascular disease.

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Prakash, Shefali Memory, Mazes, and Menopause, Oh My! Examining the Impact of Gonadal Hormone Deprivation on Spatial Accuracy Using a Rodent Model of Alzheimer’s Disease (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) BASIS Phoenix (Teacher: Amy Anderson)

According to 2019 estimates by the Alzheimer’s Association, 5.8 million individuals currently live with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in the US alone, with approximately two-thirds of these individuals being women. As our population ages, it is crucial that we make developments in understanding AD progression and potential treatments, while simultaneously tackling the question of why women have an increased likelihood of developing AD. We used the TgF344-AD transgenic rat model with the mutant human amyloid precursor protein (APPSW) and presenilin 1 (PS1DE9) genes to induce an AD-like pathology. Our laboratory performed gonadectomy (GDX, surgical removal of gonads) in female and male rats, leading to an abrupt cessation of gonadal hormones. Rats were systematically assessed for spatial accuracy on the water-radial arm maze (WRAM), and were split by sex (male and female) into TG GDX, TG Sham, WT GDX, and WT Sham groups. This specific current project utilized a novel analysis of spatial accuracy on the WRAM, to decipher how hormone deprivation affects spatial accuracy with and without an AD-like genotype. We found that for females, TG rats were impaired regardless of treatment type, but for males, the effects of transgenic status on spatial accuracy were dependent upon treatment. Additionally, TG rats of both sexes made more errors when working memory load was highly taxed. Further analyses of brain pathology are underway to elucidate relationships between gonadal hormone loss, AD pathology, and cognition.

Quintero, Esai In-Vivo Growth of Metal Organic Frameworks Inside Native Sonoran Grasses (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

Before looking at articles I knew I wanted to study plants and do something with them. I'm more interested in how plants adapt to certain conditions like Climate change and space flight. Plants are important to our species on earth and will be necessary spaceflight missions. Scientists are actively researching Microgravity stress, cold stress, and plant engineering. Astrobiology is a combination of interests for me. I wanted to study plants and the reactions that occur due to extreme environments. And because the study of life on other planets is a fairly new subject scientists are researching, I figured it to be my topic of interest. Because astrobiology and agriculture engineering is becoming more and more prevalent in the studies conducted in space. More studies are needed to fully understand the effects on life in outer space and on different planets. Because of this I want to study agricultural engineering ways to support plants with metal organic frameworks to withstand extreme UV light and harsh weather cold and hot.

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Rios, J’Hrenara Malae Insect Delights: A Pathway Towards Sustainable Farming (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

The focus of my project is to not only research on finding a less costly feed for effectively raising mealworms, but to overall provide a nutrient-rich protein for humans, livestock, and other animals to consume in their diet. The history behind using insects as a food source is nothing new for most countries, but in America there have been few considerations of adding edible insects to the average American citizen’s diet. As the population is dramatically increasing, discovering a new sustainable food is becoming highly more critical. Therefore, I created my experiment by setting up a miniature mealworm farm, where I had two byproduct substrates tested against each other, one more costly than the other. My hypothesis was that if the spent byproduct is higher in calcium, then it will increase overall larval growth in the mealworms compared to that of the normal Bran substrate, but my results showed that mealworms prefer a well-mixed nutrient filled diet in order to fully mature to a healthy larva. Further research could ask how insects as food can be used for specific health benefits, testing other inexpensive byproducts as feed, and how will mealworms can be incorporated into people's diets. Finally, the future of entomophagy provides proof that insects are heavily rich in nutrients, and if globally infused in people’s diets, has the potential to contribute substantially to reducing malnutrition among a global population and massive farming industries, that are destroying massive acres of land.

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Sandhu, Sohani Nutrients in Your Plastic? A Novel Approach Towards Reaping the Benefits of Flavonoids from Fruit Peel Infused Bioplastics (Biomedical Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory - Erie Campus (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

The purpose of this project was to discover whether or not flavonoids could transfer from the fruit peels in bioplastics to water kept in bioplastic bowls over five days. This has relevance to scientists in the medical field, as well as the common population, as using fruit-infused bioplastics in daily lives could increase nutrient intake just by drinking water, which would ultimately accumulate into multiple health benefits. This also has relevance to ecologists since fruit peels allow bioplastics to break down faster, causing a decrease in ocean pollution and death. The hypothesis that if fruit peels were added to the bioplastics, then lemon peels would allow the most transfer of flavonoids, as their acidic properties would be ideal to break the bonds of the plastic, allowing extraction of flavonoids (Hirashima, Takahashi & Nishinari, 2005). The results collected revealed that each water group had absorbed more flavonoids than distilled water (0.105 Au for lemon, 0.349 for banana, 1.255 for apple, and -0.022 for orange). This means that the apple absorbed the most amount of light, meaning it had the most amount of flavonoids. The hypothesis was refuted. This is thought to have happened because the apple pulp added to bioplastics when being made had more juice, which could have contributed to more flavonoids being present. A possible error could be pushing the cuvette down too far in the machine, leading to inaccurate measurements. Future research will focus on identifying different types of flavonoids in the water.

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Schugardt, Emily Constructing a Brucella Vaccine Designed to Ensure the Safety of the Patient, Development of Adaptive Immunity, Minimization of Residual Virulence, and Differentiability of Vaccinated from Infected Patients (Biomedical Sciences, Molecular/Cellular) Arizona College Preparatory - Erie Campus (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease endemic to Asia and Africa that’s been largely ignored by global health initiatives, despite the havok it wreaks on deveoping nations reliant on cattle products, as the disease causes infertility, abortion, muscle loss, and declining milk production in animals. In addition to severe economical consequences, humans may contract Brucellosis from animal products and develop undulant fever, similar to chronic influenza. Successfully vaccinating animals will prevent humans from becoming ill and save struggling economies, yet current vaccines are unsafe, ineffective, cause prolonged residual virulence, and interfere with differentiating infected from vaccinated patients. To remedy this, the Brucella vaccine should be modified to be a live, attenuated vaccine with a recombinant Rev1 strain with wbdR genesand the O-chains extracted from the bacterial outer membrane lipopolysaccharide.Live vaccines effectively produce adaptive immunity, but require attenuation to reduce pathogenic virulence. Rev1, an attenuated strain, induces immunity against Brucellaspecies but interferes with serological tests attempting to differentiate infected from vaccinated animals. This consequence, due to antibodies created by O-chains in smooth LPS, can be avoided by O-chain removal. For instance, the Rev1 strain synthesized from Brucella ovishas naturally rough LPS (lacking O-chains), permitting serological differentiation. Rev1 strainswith wbdRgenes inserted have modified epitopic structures that reduce residual virulence and increase adaptive immunity. The proposed vaccine must undergo development and testing to ensure feasibility, efficacy, and safety in patients, but the results of this meta-analysis assert the proposed vaccine will be instrumental in Brucellosis prevention in animals.

Sensibar, Gabriel RUMBLE IN THE FUNGAL JUNGLE: Investigating the interactions between distantly and closely related fungi (Biomedical Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

This research will revolve around fungal isolates and their interactions with each other to potentially find secondary metabolites that could act as new antibacterial agents. Sir Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin in 1928 when he noticed that mold growing on a contaminated plate created a Z one of Inhibition (ZOI) that meant it was inhibiting the growth of the bacteria. The first antibiotic was then discovered. Now people use Mass spectrometry to determine the properties of secondary metabolites that occur in a ZOI.

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Sheikh, Michelle A Novel Approach to Healing Burn Wound Infections using Flavonoids (Medicine and Health/ Behavioral Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

The purpose of this experiment is to find a novel way to treat burn wound infections instead of using the standard antibiotics. 'Flavonoids' are naturally derived secondary metabolites which have the potential to treat burn wound infections as effectively as conventional antibiotics. The significance of this experiment lies in the fact that over 40% of burn wound deaths are due to infection. Antibiotic resistance has been causing serious complications for the healing of burn wounds. Therefore there has been substantial research exploring the use of an alternative to antibiotics such as flavonoids. The flavonoids, Quercetin, and any Quercetin combined compound, when compared to Rutin and Hesperidin alone, will be the most effective antibiotic alternative against E. coli and S. epidermidis, the two most common bacterial infections found in burn wound infections. The five hydroxyl groups present in Quercetin chemical structure enable it to possess enhanced antibacterial activity (Han, 2018). Therefore, Quercetin will have the highest success rate as an antibiotic alternative because of its strong antibacterial nature. Quercetin has also shown significant antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant S. aureus (Geoghegan & Wang, 2015). The effect of different flavonoids on wound infecting bacteria E. coli and S. epidermidis was determined by flooding Petri dishes with E.coli and S. epidermidis and placing an antibiotic disk made of either an isolated flavonoid or combinations of flavonoids.The results collected during this experiment concluded that the combination of all their flavonoids (Quercetin, Rutin, and Hesperidin) was the most effective at inhibiting bacterial growth at the 50% concentration for E.coli and the 25% concentration for S. epidermidis. Therefore the hypothesis was disproved because the QHR combination may have worked the best due to synergy occurring between the flavonoids. A study done by the University of Science and Technology of China tested synergistic action between Rutin, Morin, and Quercetin found that synergy occurs between the flavonoids resulting in a greater MIC (minimum inhibitory concentration). Possible errors include contamination due to use of ziploc bags and the use of distilled water to create the weight-based concentrations instead of ethanol. Future research could be based on observing the wound healing properties of flavonoids by using a flavonoid-based topical ointment on wound-induced starfish. Another area of research regarding the use of flavonoids is evaluating the possible synergistic relationship by combining flavonoids and synthetic antibiotics as a possible solution to antibiotic resistance. Lastly, the antiviral activities of flavonoids can be investigated for use against global health threats such as the Coronavirus.

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Shirley, Jaden Extraction and Isolation of Caffeine (Chemistry) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

This investigation’s purpose is to determine whether the caffeine percent recovery is greater in Navajo Tea when compared to other commercial teas. The hypothesis is: If we extract and isolate caffeine from Navajo tea and other tea, then the Organic Earl Grey tea will have the highest percent caffeine recovery. In order to test the hypothesis, the procedure will be to test the ethyl acetate that was separated from the liquid tea. After extracting the caffeine from the tea, the next procedure is to purify the caffeine. In order to purify the caffeine ethyl acetate was used to separate and extract the caffeine. The ethyl acetate must be crystallized and then sublimed in order to obtain the pure caffeine. The last procedure is to identify the amount of caffeine by using a Thin-Layer Chromatography paper. A Thin-Layer Chromatography paper is a filter paper that is used to detect sugars or amino acids. After collecting data the following equations were used:

(𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑎𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑)/(𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑎𝑣𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒)×100

𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑒𝑎 × (0.03 𝑔 𝑐𝑎𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑒)/(1𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑎) In conclusion, the results found in this investigation rejected the hypothesis. This shows that organic tea compared to commercial teas have more caffeine in them. Organic Earl Tea, another organic tea has more percent caffeine recovered from this test (12%).

Silvka, Griffin Bioremediation of Cow Dung (Environmental Sciences) Arizona College Preparatory – Erie Campus (Teacher: Rachna Nath)

The purpose of this project was to find an efficient way to extract and purify water from fecal matter. This has relevance to Bill Gates. If feces is heated, then the water contained within can be extracted and purified. The effect was determined by two POC trials, which boiled water out of a sugar solution, dehydrating bread in a toaster, and incinerating feces using sunlight to extract water. The results collected from the final experiment of extraction from real feces were an average of 0.62 L for the young cow, and 0.53 L for the old cow. The results showed that the hypothesis was supported. Possible errors could be a lack of diversity of feces, time of day and season, difference of the health of the cattle, and a lack of testing time. Future research could be electricity production, absolute maximums of the machine, and more tests to determine how long it can run before needing replacements.

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Suresh, Nikhil A Novel Elemental Composition Technology for Microliter-size Blood Droplets via Solid State Techniques (Chemistry) BASIS Scottsdale

Liquid phase analysis dominates the field of blood diagnostics and requires repeatedly drawing 7 milliliters per blood test. To reduce the risk of Hospital-Acquired Anemia, low volume blood testing methods are critical. Theranos claimed to have developed novel methods requiring a few nanoliters of liquid blood but maintained error greater than 10%. This work investigates solid-state blood analysis as an efficient alternative that returns accurate results within minutes using low μL volumes. This work analyzes the formation of Homogeneous Thin Solid Films (HTSFs) from ~5 microliter blood drops rapidly solidified on novel HemaDrop hyper-hydrophilic coatings, for solid-state analysis. The solidification is studied with two goals: achieve reproducible films optimized for producing accurate analysis, and gauge the potential accuracy of measurements made on HTSFs for blood electrolytes Na, K, Mg, Ca, and Cl and heavy metals such as Fe - the same electrolytes, iron, and heavy metals measured in all standard analysis. Two solid-state analytical methods, Ion Beam Analysis and X-ray Fluorescence are investigated in parallel for comprehensive interpretation with respect to depth, accuracy, and reproducibility. Balanced Saline Solution (BSS), a calibration liquid for uniformity, and human blood solidifications are compared on surfaces both coated and uncoated with hyper-hydrophilic HemaDrop solution. Statistical analysis yields errors for each technique and element detected. Measurements are repeated and taken at multiple locations and on different HTSFs. Measurements for elemental composition in these thin solid films are accurate, to within 1% error, and reproducible, to within 10% error, using IBA and XRF.

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Szabo, Kyra Finding Ways to Feed the Future: Evaluating Beneficial Microbes Role in Wheat Germination (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

Global warming is putting our food supplies at risk. Wheat crops are declining as thermometers rise. Can we engineer microbiomes to improve seed germination in this important crop plant? The hypothesis presented for experimentation was ‘engineered microbiomes consisting of multiple microbes will promote seed germination and positive seedling phenotypes in wheat relative to (A) untreated wheat and (B) wheat treated with individual microbes’. This research project screened the effects of individual microbes on seed germination and seedling phenotypes in wheat. Pairs of microbes were combined to evaluate whether the ‘engineered microbiomes’ were more beneficial for plant growth. The control group consisted of two plates with 10 wheat seeds each grown in water agar only. The treatment groups consisted of wheat seeds exposed to either fungi or bacterial microbes in various combinations with 2 replicates of each. The independent variable was the fungi or bacteria grouping that the wheat seed was exposed to during seed growth. The dependent variable was the germination rate of the wheatseed. Observations regarding seed germination were documented for each group. My data showed that the wheat seeds grown under the ‘engineered’ conditions did not benefit from the additional microbial combinations. In fact, the controls outperformed all of the ‘engineered’ conditions in regards to germination rates. The wheat seeds treated with individual microbes showed varied results with two of the microbes producing the best germination rates overall, indicating that specific microbes may play a part in improving wheat seed germination rates but further study is needed.

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Wang, Ella A Novel Approach to Improving Crop Yields: Analyzing Effects of Soybean Curd Residue on Soil Productivity (Environmental Sciences) BASIS Chandler (Teacher: Jesse Nims)

This project explores the potential of utilizing soybean curd residue (SCR) to increase soil productivity and drought resistance by analyzing its effects on the nitrogen and potassium concentrations, water-holding capacity, and permeability of soil. A few hundred million tons of SCR are generated annually from the manufacturing of soybean products. Currently, this waste material is dumped into landfills, which poses environmental problems because it is highly susceptible to putrefaction and releases greenhouse gases. In this study, different concentrations of SCR and two types of SCR, wet and dry, were analyzed to determine effects on soil productivity. Experiments revealed that adding SCR to soil raises nitrogen and potassium levels from Depleted to Sufficient, with an estimated five to six times higher concentration of each nutrient than the control. SCR lowers soil permeability and significantly increases water-holding capacity. Compared to the control, soils with SCR retained over triple the amount of water for up to ten times longer. Higher water-holding capacity assists in relieving drought and prevents leaching; lower permeability inhibits rapid water drainage, giving plants more time to absorb moisture. The elevated levels of nitrogen and potassium, which are limiting nutrients, in soils with SCR substantially enhance soil fertility and allow for greater productivity. SCR presents a practical, cost-effective method to increase crop productivity and resistance to drought while reducing wastes that negatively impact the environment. This novel application method redefines the potential of waste and finds a synergistic solution in the complex waste-food-environment- energy nexus.

Wangeman, M. Elijah Galactic variables and their correlations to hosted super massive black holes (Physical Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

The goal of this research project was to examine the relationships between the observable variables of a galaxy and the mass of the super massive black hole (SMBH) at its core. This was achieved through the use of Google co.lab to run python scripts that plotted and compared data using matplotlib and pandas. Based on what this analysis has provided, I plan on building an equation to describe expected SMBH mass based upon the independent variables (physical variables of a given galaxy). Data analysis thus far has shown strong correlations that may shed light on the effects an SMBH has upon its host galaxy and vice-versa. Further research could expand upon this into the possible origins of these super massive black holes and what determines whether or not a galaxy possesses one.

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Wilford, Lia Peltier Heating and Cooling of a Navajo Hogan: Arduino Uno Controlled Temperature Sensing (Engineering and Technology) Navajo Preparatory School (Teacher: Ms. Yolanda Flores)

The purpose of this project is to create a Peltier - Solar-powered heating and cooling system for rural communities off the grid. The hypothesis was a Peltier – Solar Powered Heating and Cooling Device will heat and cool a Traditional Navajo Hogan in rural communities that are off the grid. The procedure to this is assemble and wire the Arduino Uno board with the bread board then code the temperature sensor. Next is to assemble the Thermoelectric Cooler Peltier and the Fan to the solar panel. Then start the experimentation at the Hogan with the Peltier – Solar Powered Heater and Cooler and then document the data. My hypothesis states that the Solar Peltier heating and cooling device will heat and cool the Hogan and it was accepted. The data from the heating temperature have similar numbers and they are almost constant. While the cooling temperature has more of a change. The Solar Powered Peltier Heater and Cooler will have a more effective usage on the reservation with the heating and cooling of the home.

Yockey, Eve The Batmobile: A Non-Motorized Survey of Bat Diversity Along Tucson River Paths (Environmental Sciences) Tucson Magnet High School (Teacher: Jeremy Jonas)

Last summer I became interested in bats though a research program organized though my school. As an avid bike rider I wanted to find the diversity of bats in Tucson on my bike, instead of in a car. I built an apparatus onto the back of my bike with a device at the top that was able to listen and identify bats sound and species. Tucson is one of the best places to go to watch and study bats in the United States, and the research I found was able to support that.

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Zhao, Xenia Modeling Plastic Pollution: a system dynamics approach to understand and control macroscopic plastic flow dynamics (Environmental Sciences) Hamilton High School

Human activities have led to many unintended consequences in the world of plastic pollution that cannot be understood from the outset. Modeling can help researchers to study individual and collective agent behavior in complex systems. For plastic pollution, modeling allows researchers to identify and explain those unintended consequences, and accordingly to change public policy to optimize management strategies. However, there is a critical need for more comprehensive methods to monitor the flow of plastic from source to sink. The current lack of detailed data could make finer-resolution models somewhat inaccurate. This gap in knowledge is important to address in order to control mismanagement and pollution of plastics into the environment. We propose a queueing framework called QODIC to monitor rates of plastic flow into and out of a designated system, which utilizes simple differential equations and plots them graphically. By taking the area between the two curves, we can find accumulation of plastic and cleanup times (when no plastic remains in the system). Using our model, we predict that there is 37.5 million tons of plastic floating in the ocean as of 2015 and that it will take 42.2 years to clean up plastics in the ocean if action is taken. Models like QODIC are integral to understanding the current state of plastic pollution.

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Zhu, Aris Characterization of a Novel Antimicrobial Agent for Endodontic Applications (Biomedical Sciences) Hamilton High School

Recurrent endodontic infections are primarily caused by Enterococcus faecalis and are more challenging to treat, compared to primary infection of the root canal system. Currently, calcium hydroxide (CaOH) is used as an inter-visit medication in endodontic procedures despite its inefficacy against E. faecalis and other pathogens of the root canal system such as Candida albicans. Additionally, its high pH contributes to dental pulp cell necrosis. To improve antimicrobial properties and limit cytotoxicity, a new, hybrid composite material named “CASA” was developed to disinfect the canal. This study determines CASA’s antimicrobial activity and its cytotoxicity and differentiation potential for dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) on the cellular interface. CASA was tested against common endodontic pathogens to determine its antimicrobial activity using a modified disk diffusion antibiotic sensitivity test. Agar plates, with 6mm wells containing CASA or CaOH, and inoculated with E. faecalis, Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus gordonii, Lactobacillus salivarius or Actinomyces viscosus were incubated at 37°C for 24 hrs then zones of inhibition were measured. CASA produced larger zones of inhibition than CaOH for all species tested. Cytotoxicity studies indicated a high tolerance for DPSCs for CASA, with a measured IC50 of 0.25 mg/ml, a higher dose than tissue would be exposed to during standard treatment. The anti-pathogenic and DPSC compatibility characteristics distinguish CASA as a potential medicament on the host-pathogen interface of endodontic infections.