CRMC rewards RI students for science fair projects

April 6, 2016, WAKEFIELD – The RI Coastal Resources Management Council has awarded gift cards to six Rhode Island junior, middle and high school students for their winning projects in the 2016 Rhode Island Science and Engineering Fair.

This year’s science and engineering fair took place on April 3 at the Community College of Rhode Island’s Knight Campus in Warwick, and showcased engineering, science and environmental projects from 34 schools and more than 250 students from grades 6 through 12. This year students showed a total of 225 projects, and the CRMC awarded VISA gift cards for projects ranging from manmade aquifers for filtering runoff, and biospheres for growing edible crops, to turbine blade shape and carbon dioxide sequestration in ferric oxide.

The six students were winners of the individual science fairs at their schools; teachers are allowed to send as many as 15 winners per school. The CRMC awarded prizes in the special awards category, which allows organizations and groups to set their own criteria and choose their own winners.
           
In the Senior Division, for students in grades 9-12, the first place prize of a $100 gift card from the CRMC was awarded to Morgan Kane of Mount Hope High School for her project, “Using Manmade Aquifers to Filter Run-off in Sensitive Environments,” which examined practical uses of these, such as filters for rainspouts and rain gardens. Nicolar Berg of Bishop Henricken High School was awarded the second place prize of a $50 gift card for his project, “Investigating the Death of an Ecosystem,” which looked at causes of cyanobacteria blooms in Warwick Pond. Third place and a $25 gift card went to Sree Dasari of LaSalle Academy for the project, “Fe III Sequestration of CO2.” Meg O’Brien of Mount Hope High School received Honorable Mention for her project, “Designing and Constructing a Working Turbine for Mill Pond Inlet.”
           
The CRMC also awarded three gift cards in the Junior Division for students in grades 6-8. The winner of the first place $100 gift card was K.J. Gallison of Saint Philomena School for the project, “The Use of Underwater Biospheres to Grow Edible Crops,” in which the student designed planters to be put in aquariums, to determine if wheatgrass could be grown successfully. A second place gift card for $50 went to Zakir Girach of the Islamic School of RI for his project, “Lead It Out!,” which tested soil samples taken at an old gas station, a highway rest stop, a playground, a park, and his house for lead. Joshua Gurtler of Barrington Middle School received third place and a $25 gift card for his project, “Solar Hydrogen Fuel Cell.” Jenna Cassiere of Saint Rocco School was awarded an Honorable Mention for her project, “Effects of Blade Shape Design on Wind Turbine Efficiency.”

The Council has been giving out special awards for the science fair for more than a decade. This is the 68th year of the science fair. Special awards were established as a way for local businesses and organizations to promote what they do and get students interested in science and engineering-related research. The top two winners of the Rhode Island fair’s general awards category will go on to compete in the international science fair later this year.