3 JFK Students Named Intel Semifinalists

Three students at John F. Kennedy High School, and one student who recently moved out of the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, were named semifinalists in the 2015 Intel Science Talent Search contest.

Seniors Beatrice Brown, Samuel Epstein and Justin Shapiro represent Kennedy, along with Jayson Chojar, who completed the bulk of his winning project during his three years at Kennedy before moving to Greenwich, Connecticut.

Only 300 students were designated semifinalists out of more than 1,800 entrants.

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“I am so proud of the accomplishments of all our Advanced Science Research Students; most especially, those four who have been named Intel semifinalists,” said Robert Soel, the district’s science chairman.

Kennedy High School Principal Lorraine Poppe said Chojar traveled down from Connecticut to celebrate with his fellow semifinalists and other Advanced Science Research students that entered the contest.

After Brown’s family lost their home during Superstorm Sandy, she dedicated her scientific inquiry to develop more effective means of predicting violent weather patterns on Long Island. Her project was titled “Forecasting Hurricane Hazards for the Long Island Area.” She worked with science mentors from the University of North Florida and Ocean Weather Inc. in Coscob, Connecticut.

Epstein’s research project, “The Effects of the Modulation of TOR Signaling and Microbial Exposure on Feeding Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster,” observed the dietary patterns of fruit flies in an attempt to research how caloric intake can be controlled to reduce risk of disease and potentially slow the aging process. Epstein worked with mentors out of Long Island University.

Shapiro worked with researchers at Harvard University for his project, entitled “An Analysis of Corporate Response to Climate Change.” The project focused on whether or not corporations experience any revenue benefits from their efforts to mitigate climate change.

Chojar focused on the criminal justice system for his project, titled “Effects of Evidence Evaluation Placement on Juror Sensitization to Non Case-Specific New Jersey Henderson Instructions.” The study, conducted with mentors at CUNY John Jay College, found that changing the instructions jurors receive when asked to render a verdict could decrease the rate of false convictions based on mistaken identities and eyewitness testimony.

Each semifinalist receives a $1,000 award from the Intel Foundation with an additional $1,000 going to the district. The 40 finalists in the Intel talent search will be announced on Jan. 21. Finalists will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington D.C. in March, where they will compete for more than $1 million in awards.

Submitted by Bellmore-Merrick Schools

Photo: Justin Shapiro|Beatrice Brown|Samuel Epstein

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