2019 Western Virginia Regional Science Fair Winners Announced

The fair’s Grand Award winners, from left to right: Erik Scarlatescu, Harrison Huang, Kevin Sheng, and Luke Suess. Not pictured: Luke Gardner

On Saturday, March 16, over 120 gifted and talented students from the school districts of Roanoke City and Roanoke County, plus the Roanoke Valley Governor’s School for Science and Technology, competed in the 2019 Western Virginia Regional Science Fair. The fair was held at Roanoke College and sponsored by Appalachian Power Company. This year, all of the fair’s Grand Award winners, Alternate Grand Award winners, and first-place category award winners were Governor’s School students.

Western Virginia Regional Science Fair Grand Award Winners, presented by Appalachian Power

Luke Gardner and Luke Suess (RVGS/Patrick Henry High School)

Harrison Huang and Erik Scarlatescu (RVGS/Hidden Valley High School)

Kevin Sheng (RVGS/Cave Spring High School)

Grand Award winners will receive an all-expense paid trip to compete in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, the world’s largest international pre-college science competition. The fair will be held May 12-17 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Western Virginia Regional Science Fair Alternate Grand Award Winners

Shayom Debopadhaya (RVGS/Salem High School)

Logan Dunkenberger (RVGS/Glenvar High School)

Adi Iyer (RVGS/William Byrd High School)

Alternate Grand Award winners serve as alternates in the event that a Grand Award winner is unable to attend the international fair.

Western Virginia Regional Science Fair First-Place Award Winners

Each of the following first-place projects will advance to the Virginia State Science and Engineering Fair, which will be held at the Berglund Special Events Center in Roanoke on April 6.

Animal Sciences (tie)

The Effect of Hemp Extract on Seizures in Drosophila

Hannah Largen, RVGS/Franklin County High School

Teacher Sponsor: Cindy Bohland

The Effect of Microplastic on the Vitality of Hypsibius dujardin

Ethan Johnson, RVGS/William Fleming High School

London Paige, RVGS/William Fleming High School

Teacher Sponsor: Joanne Villers

Biomedical & Health Sciences/ Behavioral & Social Sciences (tie)

Big Data Analytics: Identification of Novel Cancer Progression Gene Signatures for Precision/Personalized Medicine

Kevin Sheng, RVGS/Cave Spring High School

Teacher Sponsor: Steve Smith

Goal-oriented Episodic Future Thinking and Delay Discounting in an Obese Population

Elysia Lin, RVGS/Franklin County High School

Madison Stein, RVGS/Franklin County High School

Teacher Sponsor: Melissa Fisher

Chemistry (tie)

The Removal of Azo Dyes Using Chitosan-Based Materials

Carly Smith, RVGS/Franklin County High School

Teacher Sponsor: Steve Smith

The Investigation of Lead Corrosion Using Atomic Force Microscopy

Uyen Tran, RVGS/William Fleming High School

Teacher Sponsor: Steve Smith

Cellular and Molecular Biology

The role of QSOX1 in the formation and development of skeletal muscles and synapses

Shayom Debopadhaya, RVGS/Salem High School

Teacher Sponsor: Cindy Bohland

Environmental Engineering

A Colorimetric intI1 Gene Gold Nanosensor for Monitoring Environmental Wastewater Pollution

Adi Iyer, RVGS/William Byrd High School

Teacher Sponsor: Joanne Villers

Engineering Mechanics

Navigational Aid for the Blind Utilizing LIDAR Technology

Luke Gardner, RVGS/Patrick Henry High School

Luke Suess, RVGS/Patrick Henry High School

Teacher Sponsor: Brent Holt

 Earth and Environmental Sciences (tie)

Evaluating the Impact of Coal Ash Pollution though a C. elegans Developmental Model

Mary Grace Giles, RVGS/Patrick Henry High School

Teacher Sponsor: Cindy Bohland

The Impact of Aluminum and Silver Nanoparticles on Plants and Daphnia

Kunika Tiwari, RVGS/Patrick Henry High School

Teacher Sponsor: Steve Smith

Microbiology

Dynamic Roles of Epstein-Barr Virus Reactivation: Identifying novel mechanisms for EBV-positive lymphoma progression and treatment

Logan Dunkenberger, RVGS/Glenvar High School

Teacher Sponsor: Cindy Bohland

Materials Science/Physics & Astronomy

The Effect of Nanomaterial Addition on the Physical Properties of Kudzu Bioplastic

Ryan Rigatti, RVGS/Lord Botetourt High School

Teacher Sponsor: Steve Smith

Plant Sciences (tie)

The Allelopathic Effect of C. verum on the Germination of P. oleracea

Ryan Mollin, RVGS/Franklin County High School

Teacher Sponsor: Matthew Browning

The Effect of Martian Regolith on the Growth of Five Different Plant Species

Isaac Fix, RVGS/William Byrd High School

Teacher Sponsor: Joanne Villers

Systems Software and Embedded Systems (tie)

Examining the Effectiveness of Convolutional Neural Networks for Determining Visual Fixation using fMRI

Harrison Huang, RVGS/Hidden Valley High School

Erik Scarlatescu, RVGS/Hidden Valley High School

Teacher Sponsor: Doug Divers

Interactive Storyteller to Improve Student Engagement and Performance

Reid Tenzer, RVGS/Patrick Henry High School

Teacher Sponsor: Doug Divers

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