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By Angelo Cantera And James
Konstantin Galvez, Reporter
To the four Filipino youth who
took home awards from the Intel International Science and
Engineering Fair held in Reno, Nevada, age and economic standing is
not a hindrance to success. Besting 1,563 students from 56
countries, Angeli Yap-Dy, 14, of Capiz National High School; Jovani
Tomale, 16, of Davao City National High School; and the team of
Kevin Jer David, 16, and Orven Jules Dumaoang, 16, of the Philippine
Science High School Diliman Campus took home three awards and a
collective cash prize of $2000 for research projects that exhibited
the youths’ commitment to science and technology innovation.
“We salute our young
scientists who again made the country proud in winning in the most
prestigious international science fair. Congratulations too to Intel
for being a strong partner of DepEd [Department of Education] in
helping develop a culture of science, math and engineering research
in our schools,” Education Secretary Jesli Lapus said.
Fish bile
Yap-Dy received a 2nd Special
Award from the American Association for Clinical Chemistry, taking
home a $1000 cash prize.
Her research, Study of the
Cytotoxicity Against Human Lung (A549) and Colon (HCT116)
Carcinomas, Antioxidant and Anti-Bacterial Properties of Milkfish (Chanos
chanos Forsskal) Bile, looked into the properties of milkfish bile
as a potential anti-cancer drug.
“I was inspired to do this
study since cancer is the number one killer disease that the whole
world is experiencing today,” Yap-Dy told The Manila Times, adding
that it took her one month to finish the project. “The best way to
cure cancer is through chemotherapy. But, that is very expensive.
So, it prompted me to conduct this study, which used small fish bile
because it is considered as waste and it’s abundant.”
An incoming junior, Yap-Dy said
that it took her about a month to complete her entire project. She
also stated that she plans to continue this research because the
judges from the Intel fair said that it is “very promising” and
just needs to be furthered.
Sexing of RP eagles
Tomale, an incoming freshman
scholar of Ateneo de Davao who will take up BS Accounting, also won
a 2nd Special Award, this time from the American Statistical
Association. He also won a cash prize of $500.
Tomale’s “Mathematical Models
for the Gender Determination of Philippine Eagles [Pithecophaga
jefferyi]” demonstrated a mathematical algorithm by which the
gender of the Philippine Eagle could be determined. His study is
expected to prove useful in the breeding of the endangered national
bird.
“Actually, this study was out
of a simple experience,” Tomale told The Times. “We had a field
trip at the Philippine Eagle Foundation. I found out that they were
having problems determining the genders of the eagles. That
triggered me to find an effective and practical method of
determining their gender because it is alarming that the Philippine
eagles are endangered and people are having trouble breeding
them.”
Tomale said it took him an
entire year to finish the project because of financial hardship and
lack of resources. He added, however, that these challenges
persuaded him to continue as his findings would eventually benefit
the endangered birds.
Sea weeds vs. disease
David and Dumaoang’s study,
“Screening for Quorum Sensing Inhibitors from Surface-Associated
Bacteria of Halymenia durvillaei,” looked into the process by
which disease-causing bacteria communicate and how this
communication process can be disrupted so that the bacteria becomes
less resistant to antibiotics and cannot cause diseases.
Their study, which focused on the
usefulness of red seaweeds in disrupting the method of communication
of disease causing bacteria (quorum sensing), won for David and
Dumaoang, both incoming freshmen at the University of the
Philippines Manila, a Grand Award for the category of Plant Sciences
and $500 for their team.
“There is a big problem right
now regarding anti-biotic resistant bacteria,” Dumaoang told The
Times. “Through our study, we found out that compounds that could
isolate bacteria that actually renders them no longer resistant to
antibiotics. The purpose of this study was to determine those
compounds and maybe develop them into drugs.”
Questions, experiments
The Intel International Science
and Engineering Fair is a prestigious pre-college science
competition that annually brings together an estimated 1,600 young
scientists from approximately 50 countries to share and reward their
independent research, showcase cutting-edge science, and compete for
nearly $4 million in awards and scholarships. More than 1,000
experts from all fields of science and engineering are selected to
judge the exhibits and interact with the students. This year, nine
Filipino delegates were sent to the said competition.
“The usual paradigm of students
right now is that science is something that can only be learned from
the classroom,” David told The Times. “That’s not true. We
learned that the bulk of science is something that can be learned
when you ask your own questions and design your experiments to find
the answers. We really enjoyed these things.”
Inspiration for youth
Yap-Dy said, “I want this to be
an inspiration for other Filipino youths because right now we need a
lot of scientists and researchers. And it doesn’t even matter how
young you are. All you have to do is work hard and keep learning.”
According to Intel Chairman Craig
Barrett, “The real end point of the Intel International Science
and Engineering Fair is to elevate the recognition of achievement of
the younger generation in academic and learning exercises. I hope
that more young people will look at these students and realize they
can be recognized for using their brains. You don’t have to be a
quarterback, a basketball player or a baseball player to be
recognized by your peers and the public.”
Travel grant
Now in its 59th year, the Intel
ISEF is the world’s only science project competition for students
in the ninth through twelfth grades. Society for Science & the
Public, a nonprofit organization dedicated to public engagement in
scientific research and education, owns and has administered the
International Science and Engineering Fair since its inception in
1950. In 1997, Intel became the title sponsor of the ISEF, providing
heightened visibility to the fair, transforming the Intel ISEF into
a world-renowned program with true international flavor and
participation.
The embassy of the United States
of America in Manila supported this year’s activity with a travel
grant for one of the Philippine delegates to Intel ISEF.
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