Newton Country Day sophomores C. Aslett ’22 and E. Lesher ’22 received Honorable Mentions at the 2020 Massachusetts State Science & Engineering Virtual Fair. The two students advanced to the state fair with their projects in scientific research.
Originally scheduled for the weekend of May 1, this year's fair made adjustments so that it could be done virtually. “Traditionally, students can clarify their thinking through extensive question and answer sessions with each judge,” explained science teacher Dr. Sarah Webster. “This year, the students submitted videos of their poster presentations for the judges. In less than five minutes, they had to convey all the expertise acquired through months of work.”
Lesher, who placed first at the 2020 Massachusetts Region V Science & Engineering fair as well as at the 2020 Newton Country Day Science and Engineering Fair, focused her research on “What Factors Increase the Risk of Contracting the Common Cold?” Through analysis of patterns in the data she collected, Lesher sought to identify risk and protective factors for the common cold. She collected data from 241 participants about their lifestyle, demographic, and genetic information. That data was then examined through four statistical tests; a chi-square test for independence, Cramer’s V strength test, a two-sample z-test for the difference between two proportions, and a t-test for the slope in least-squares regression. Lesher discovered that increased hours of exercise per day, more servings of fermented foods, and increasing age have the protective effects that decrease the risk of contracting the common cold.
Aslett placed third at the NCDS Fair with her project “Testing the Effects of Sucrose on a Drosophila Model of Alzheimer’s.” Aslett examined how an increase in sugar consumption, as a model for type II diabetes, could potentially increase a person’s chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease. She tested the response of four genotypes of fruit flies to sucrose and water and examined the size of a Drosophila’s (fruit fly) eyes as a measure of the effects on the neurons of the eye. Aslett discovered that elevated sucrose levels increased the severity of the Alzheimer’s disease model.