Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair Media Advisory (PDF Version)
Contact: Rebecca Meyer, media@ctsciencefair.org
2018 Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair Announces Winners at 70th Awards Ceremony
Top Prizes Given to Students from Bethany, Danbury, East Lyme, Greenwich, New Haven, West Hartford, Wilton, and Windsor
HAMDEN, Conn., Mar. 17, 2018 – Students from across Connecticut won awards at the 70th Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair (CSEF) during Saturday’s ceremonies at Quinnipiac University. The individual high school physical and life science first and second place winners, as well as the Alexion Biotechnology, CASE Urban School Challenge, and UTC Aerospace Engineering winners (listed below) are packing their project boards to compete at the prestigious Intel International Science & Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF), to be held May 13-18 in Pittsburgh, Penn.
Other CSEF winners will represent Connecticut and compete for thousands more in cash and scholarships at other competitions, including the 2018 GENIUS Olympiad and the 2018 Broadcom MASTERS competition. Click here for all CSEF results, including Special Award winners.
See and download photos
PHYSICAL SCIENCE WINNERS (Sponsor: Lockheed Martin)
Grades 9-12
1st Place: Maya Geradi, Wilbur Cross High School, New Haven (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Synthesis and Separation of a Chiral Compound in Preparation of a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Radiotracer
2nd Place: Raina Jain, Greenwich High School, Greenwich (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Magnetically-Induced, Visual Detection of Trace Arsenic Contaminants in Water Using Fe3O4 Photonic Crystal Structure
Grades 9-12 Team
1st Place: Jean Pasato, Chris Rinaldi and Vishakh Talanki, CREC Academy of Aerospace & Engineering High School, Windsor. Project: The Effects of Positioning of Micro Vertical Axis Wind Turbines in a Network on Efficiency and Power Output
Grade 8
1st Place: Khushi Parikh, Westside Middle School Academy, Danbury. Project: Image Recognition to Diagnose Lyme Disease
Grade 7
1st Place: Varun Vadhera, Middlebrook School, Wilton. Project: The Buzzing Eye – Helping the Blind
Grades 7-8 Team
1st Place: Audrey Marin and Ellina Medovnikov, Amity Regional Middle School, Bethany. Project: Preventing SIDS from Suffocation
LIFE SCIENCE WINNERS
Grades 9-12
1st Place: Emily Philippides, Greenwich High School, Greenwich (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Controlled-Release Delivery of Ovarian Anticancer Paclitaxel via Vortex Ring, Donut-shaped Hydrogels
2nd Place: Hiba Hussain, Greenwich High School, Greenwich (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Non-Invasive, Low Cost Diagnosis of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) via Smartphone Breath Analysis
Grades 9-12 Team
1st Place: Mingfei Duan, Alexa Stewart, and Andrew Zhang, East Lyme High School, East Lyme. Project: Investigation of Spatial Learning in Apteros Drosophila Melanogaster Using a Novel Behavioral Assay
Grade 8
1st Place: Grace Flynn, St. Timothy Middle School, West Hartford. Project: Saving Crops from Cold Snaps – The Effect of Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) on Freeze Tolerance in Wheatgrass
Grade 7
1st Place: Athena Brown, Worthington Hooker Middle School, New Haven. Project: Underwater Battle: The Effect of Pollution on Brine Shrimp
Grades 7-8 Team
1st Place: Amer Kabatilo, Zain Kabatilo, and Ahmad Zoghol, Madina Academy, Windsor. Project: Investigating Short-Term Effect of Different Video Games on the Body
URBAN SCHOOL CHALLENGE WINNERS ( Sponsor: CT Academy of Science & Engineering)
Grades 9-12 (headed to Intel ISEF)
1st Place: Srikar Godilla and Cristian Rodriguez, CREC Academy of Aerospace & Engineering High School, Windsor. Project: Effect of Experimental Parameters on Forming Prince Rupert’s Drops for Maximum Strength and Toughness
Grades 7-8
1st Place: Khushi Parikh, Westside Middle School Academy, Danbury. Project: Image Recognition to Diagnose Lyme Disease
BIOTECHNOLOGY WINNERS (Sponsor: Alexion)
Grades 9-12
1st Place: Shobhita Sundaram, Greenwich High School, Greenwich (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Detection of Early-Stage Alzheimer’s Disease via Hierarchical Classification of Proteomic and Clinical Profiles
Grades 7-8
1st Place: Paloma Lenz, Westside Middle School Academy, Danbury. Project: Stormwater Pollution: The Effectiveness of Zeolites in Decreasing Levels of Nitrate in Runoff
ENGINEERING WINNERS (Sponsor: UTC Aerospace)
Grades 9-12
1st Place: Keshav Vedula, CREC Academy of Aerospace & Engineering High School, Windsor (headed to Intel ISEF). Project: Undulated Leading-Edge Airfoils in Low to Medium Reynolds Number Regime
Grades 7-8
1st Place: Timothy Chen, Westside Middle School Academy, Danbury. Project: Effect of Spiral Spacing on Conversion Efficiency of Horizontal Axis Spiral Wind Turbine
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About the Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair: The Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair is a yearly, statewide science and engineering fair open to all students in grades 7-12 residing, or enrolled, in Connecticut and Fishers Island schools. The primary objective of the fair is to attract young people to careers in mathematics, science, and engineering while developing critical thinking and public speaking skills. Through their participation in the fair, students are encouraged to pursue independent work using proper research methods. The fair is supported by academic and industrial organizations through the state. The non-profit Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair is a volunteer organization fund that directs funds toward student awards, educational presentations, fair operations, and workshops. For more information, visit: www.ctsciencefair.org.–
Rebecca Meyer
Media Director
2018 Connecticut Science & Engineering Fair
860-754-7838