2011
Features
7
ISEF allows students to explore endless questions
M ary E arp _________________
How much bacteria do
water fountains have? Is
the boys' bathroom cleaner
than the girls'? How are
our feelings affected by
our environment? These
questions are among
the many that students
will explore through the
International Science and
Engineering Fair.
Ann Bernert, senior,
is pursuing a project
on a biological control
program for the Himalayan
Blackberry. She recently
received a very prestigious
award and was recognized
as a semi-finalist in the
Intel Science Talent Search
program. From the 1,744
entrants in this competition,
only three other Oregon
students stand with Bernert
as semi-finalists, and only
300 seniors received this
title across the country.
Bernert received $1,000
from the Intel Foundation
with an additional $1,000
going to West Linn High
School.
Bernert has been
working on this project
since freshman year.
This year, she is focused
on the endophytes, the
microscopic fungi that live
inside of plants.
Bernert has faced many
d iffic u ltie s w ith th is p ro je c t,
in c lu d in g th e a m o u n t o f
time it takes to experiment
and the range of the field in
which she is working.
"Conducting this
research takes a lot of
time and resources. It also
requires a lot of experience
in order to make sure
experiments run smoothly.
Making sure data will be
conclusive is sometimes
very difficult," Bernert said.
"The hardest part about
working in mycology and
working with endophytes
is that they are a very new
field of study so there isn't
very much known about
them at all."
Bernert's original
inspiration for this topic
was to find a way to control
invasive blackberries that
she had to remove from her
family's farm. Though this
drove her at the beginning,
she has now found
motivation in the fact that
not much is known about
her topic.
"After doing three years
of research about this,
I became intrigued by
how much was unknown
about plant pathology
and mycology and I was
inspired to find all this
unknown info out," Bernert
said.
Bernert recently began
experimenting, and her first
phase of experimentation
is to identify blackberry
endophytes, or fungi that
live inside and in between
plant cells that kill other
fungi.
"This experiment sets
up two species of fungi
so that the rate at which
one of them kills the other
can be observed," Bernert
affect the world around
me," Bernert said.
Bernert experiments
at the North Willamette
Research and Extension
Center. She cites her
mentor, Luisa Santamaria,
bacteria that oxidize
manganese to remove
arsenic from drinking
water. People have done
this before, but I'm
trying to improve it so
that it removes a higher
Photo by ¡Vfary Earp
Graham Frank, senior, sets up his filtration system for his project in order to remove arsenic from ground
water. Frank, along with many others students, have been working on their ISEF projects which will be
showcased on March 4.
said. "Then, I will select the
e n d o p y te s th a t are m o s t
a n ta g o n is tic , o r th a t c a n k ill
other fungi most efficiently,
and try to create a new way
to research them similar to
the method I developed to
research rust fungi."
According to Bernert,
depending on how far she
takes the project, she could
be pursuing it for eight to
20 years. Though this is a
long time, Bernert finds it
more than worthwhile.
"My project is applicable
to the real world. Not only
do I find mycology and
plant pathology fascinating,
I know it can positively
extension researcher for
Oregon State University
concentration," Frank said.
Frank's original
a t th e N o rth W illa m e tte
in s p ira tio n fo r th is p ro je c t
Research and Extension
Center, and Amy Schauer,
ISEF coordinator, as
providing essentials.
According to Graham
Frank, senior, Schauer has
also been a big help to him
with his ISEF experiment.
Frank is working on a
project about removing
arsenic from drinking
water. Though this project
has been attempted before,
he is working toward
creating a more efficient
process.
"I'm trying to use
was sparked by his summer
internship when he found
out that manganese oxides
can remove contaminants
like arsenic, chromium and
selenium. Although Frank
has been working diligently
on his project, he has faced
a few barriers along the
way.
"My difficulties so far
have been trying to keep
the costs down because
of budget cuts this year,"
Frank said. "Also, the
bacterium that I'm planning
on using isn't culturing the
way I had expected."
The experimenting
process often poses as the
main problem for ISEF
participants, whether it
be problems in the results
or in carrying out the
experiment. Spencer Chang,
junior, is among those who
have had troubles with
their experiments.
"The biggest difficulty
I am facing is finding the
right labs that can support
this type of research,"
Chang said. "The other
major difficulty is finding
the right methods to carry
out in my experimentation.
I've had to call many
professors around the
country to chat and give
feedback about my project."
Chang is conducting
experiments about
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
biofilms and is attempting
to find novel therapeutic
approaches to their
persistence in chronic
infection in cystic fibrosis
patients.
"Biofilms are a surface
attached community of
cells encased within a self
produced polysaccharide
matrix. They behave
much differently from the
usual planktonic bacterial
cell, and their complex
aggregation makes them
almost impossible to
eradicate," Chang said.
In simpler terms, Chang
is attempting to find a cure
to Pseudomonas aeruginosa
biofilm infections in cystic
fibrosis patients, the main
cause of their deaths.
There are currently few
cures for this, and Chang
is attempting to find
more reasonable ways of
approaching it.
Chang has faced
difficulties in finding labs
and information on this
topic.
continued on page 8