The 25th Annual High School Research Poster Session

Saturday, February 4, 2023

This annual poster competition for high school students, sponsored jointly by the American Chemical Society and St. Joseph’s University, took place Feb. 4, 2023, at SJNY Brooklyn Campus. With 100 poster presentations and 130 participants from seven area high schools attended, the quality of the research on display at the event was better than ever. Each student received a certificate. Twelve projects earned honorable mentions and received additional certificates. Four winners garnered additional certificates and gift cards from Amazon.

WINNERS

FIRST PLACE

1. Krystinna Arevalo, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Characterization of the Actin Cytoskeleton via Fluorescence Cytochemistry in Epithelial Cells with Mislocalized β-Actin mRNA
    
2. Fiona Cen, Zulegha Hayderi and Sophia Khalikova, Francis Lewis High School
   The Effect of Different Concentrations of Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12 on the Cognitive Functions and Head Regeneration of Dugesia Tigrina

SECOND PLACE

1. Aidan Fields, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Developing an Algorithm That Identifies Neutron Stars Through Light Curve Analysis
    
2. Rhia Kumar, Nicole Ma and Alana Wolfson, Francis Lewis High School
   A Eugenius Way of Anesthesia: The Effects of Different Forms of Clove Oil Anesthesia on Earthworm Physiology and Behavior

HONORABLE MENTION

1. Esthella Rojas, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   The Chemical Reactions of Glycans: Halogenated Pyridines as a Free Radical Precursor for Glycan Analysis
    
2. Angelina Melgar, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Understanding the Effects of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Caffeinated Drinks on Teenagers by Using Planaria
    
3. Luis Munoz, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Development of Novel Organoboron Building Blocks for Synthesis of Medicinally important Compounds
    
4. Reem Abughan Maggie Lin, Isabel Yang and Isabelle Yung, Francis Lewis High School
   The Effect of Ghost Shrimp (Palaemonetes paludosus) Aquaponics on the Cultivation of Watercress (Nasturtium officinale)
    
5. Nikki Lin, Yunqing Alison Zhu and Michelle Zuniga, Francis Lewis High School
   The Effect of Noise Pollution on Lumbricidae Behavior
    
6. Emily Mathew, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Scientific Research Teacher
    
7. Steffani Rajapaksha, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   The Cultivation of Decellularized Extracellular Matrix Hydrogels Through Porcine Tissue
    
8. Nitya Shah, Jose Marti STEM Academy
   Synthesis of 2D Batteries: Titanium Carbo Oxides
    
9. Anne Barshay, Midwood High School
   The Association of Dietary Whole Grains with Coronary Heart Disease
    
10. Samia Farid, Midwood High School
    The Effect of COVID-19 PPE Masks on Acne Vulgaris and Atopic Dermatitis
     
11. Edward Chok, Midwood High School
    Patterns in Monk Parakeet Nest Construction
     
12. Angel Torres, Jose Marti STEM Academy
    The Regulation of LC3-GFP and GABARAP-RFP Proteins Within HEK 293 Cells During Autophagy

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

“In Silico Modeling of Gas-Phase Reactions and Ligand-Protein Dissociations”

João Marcelo Ribeiro, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
Department of Physical Sciences, St. Joseph’s University

With the advances in both computational algorithms as well as hardware seen over the last two decades, the use of computational approaches for tackling complex chemical questions continues to increase. Amongst its various applications and uses, computational methods have become ever more suitable for measuring the thermodynamics and kinetics of chemical reactions in silico, with applications to atmospheric and combustion reactions, as well as to ligand-protein dissociations, becoming ever more routine. One of the strengths of such computational predictions is that, in addition to the determination of reaction enthalpies and reaction rates, it can simultaneously reveal the mechanism associated with these reactions. In this talk, the general approach towards in silico prediction of reaction thermodynamics and kinetics will be discussed, with specific focus on the gas-phase oxidation of isoprene by the nitrate radical, as well as on opioid dissociation from opioid-receptors.

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge those who worked to make this event a success:

Chairperson

Jill K. Rehmann, Ph.D.

Event Coordinator

Jeonghee Kang, Ph.D.

Photographer

Jasmina Turdieva and Mohammed Qasem

Judges

Daniel Mace	Jong Lee	Gail Moran
Jill Rehmann	Jeonghee Kang	Michael Magee
Dave Siegel	Anjala Tamang	Yuki Wong
Sunwoo Lee	Sharisa Pearce	Richard Rommeney
Reilly Finch	Christine Johnson	Nuria Delgado Gonzalez
Ramal Yaqoob	Christopher Saad	Ahmad Tamara
Jane Beckwith	Navita Naipaul	Danielle Bouchard
Bor-Shuen Wang	Albina Haque	Edwin Castillo
Buket Usta	Aine Sismondo	Kareem Bagato
Yarim Lee	Melissa Guercio	Victoria Westenberg
Luisa Bianco	Obay Saidee	Ekaterina Lyakhova
Colin Erickson	Lumnie Velovic	Jacobo Cardona
LeQwan Wilson	Ashley Roman	Shelsy Fils-Aime
Nelsy Pierre	Karla Salas

Volunteers

• Rachel Y. Tsou    
• Maya O'Neal-Davis
• Gounir Khalil        
• Kaela Collazo
• Laurianne Raymond
• Maquesha Charles
• Flaure Duinie Duplessy
• Sofia Stefankiv
• Noor Nasr
• Massimo Bianco
• Joell McKeon
• Jahin Sadique
• Neph Deravin

With support from

• Office of Institutional Advancement
• Office of Admissions