From High School to the Lab

If not for the backpacks and student audience members still wearing shoulder pads and lacrosse uniforms, one never would have known Dobbs Ferry's annual Science Symposium featured students still in high school.

Five students in Dobbs Ferry High School's Science Research Program, ranging from sophomore through senior year, presented their projects in an annual symposium May 19 on topics such as psychical therapy for breast cancer patients and how sound waves may potentially be used to combat tumors.

Although the Science Research Program launched only four years ago using a grant from the Dobbs Ferry's School Foundation, they have already had two Intel Science Competition semi-finalists and next year expect 32 students to participate in the course.

"We are very excited about the growth of the program," high school principal Keith Yi said to introduce the students. "We need engineers, scientists and mathematicians to solve the world's problems."

Natasha Mathur, only a sophomore, got the evening started by presenting her research on the effects of Vitamin D on kidney morphology.  Without faltering once, Mathur wove together the process and results of months worth of research she conducted this year at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Next, sophomore Krishna Pandya, both an aspiring scientist and competitive lacrosse player, expounded upon the effects of physical therapy on breast cancer patients.  Even during her practice season, Pandya worked 70 hours at Phelps Hospital in Tarrytown with therapists specializing in post-surgical cancer rehabilitation.

"I gained a lot of insight into breast cancer patients while volunteering at Phelps," Pandya said. "Now I have a great interest in pursuing a career in oncological surgery."

George Epstein, the first junior to present, took to the stage with composure as he described the path he took to arrive at his final research question.

"I spent most of last year reading any journal articles I could get my hands on," Epstein said. 

Epstein ultimately chose to combine his interests in biology and physics and focused on the effects of sound waves on cells.

"Most cancer treatments now have terrible side-effects," he said. "But by focusing on cells' resonance frequencies, we may be able to target just the malignant cells."

Harry Lipson, another junior, came to the symposium already with a wealth of experience, after having presented his project to local environmental organizations.

"My research focused on the effects of exotic earth worm invasions at the nearby Mianus River Gorge," he said.  

Lipson showed a variety of charts and photographs, all which represented the devastating effect these insects have on natural vegetation. 

Senior Mehaka Hashmi was the final student to present.  Although she had been with the program only one year, Hashmi conducted her research  last summer at Suny Purchase.

"My research objective was to synthesize natural male sex pheromones in the lab," Hashmi said.

Though she and her lab team were unsuccessful, Hashmi expressed a wealth of knowledge on the subject and a desire to continue working toward similar goals. 

Once all the students had presented, Dobbs Ferry resident and author of the book Healthcare Excellence: Improving Healthcare Quality and Cost Through Six Sigma Brett Trusko delivered an unexpectedly comical and down-to-earth speech on all the less-than-scientific truisms he learned during his many years conducting research.

"I want to show the kids what research is really about and have a little fun," Trusko told Patch before the symposium. 

Dobbs Ferry Science research teacher Tom Callahan expressed great pride in his students' knowledge and composure, later commenting that watching his students grow and develop gratifies him more than any number of contest winners or high scores on exams ever could.

"Every teacher in my department takes a vested interest in the students," Callahan said. "Our goal in Dobbs Ferry is to get kids to realize how important science is to success in the twenty-first century."

Hired specifically to start and oversee the science research program, Callahan hopes to improve the course by recruiting accomplished members of the community as student mentors.

"We also hope to get some fund-raising support for materials and costs associated with contests so that we can excel without being a burden to the district," he said.   

Members of the school board—still glowing from the good news in last week's elections—and district superintendent Debra Kaplan also came to show their support.

"Each year the students seem to be more and more composed," Kaplan said. "It's really wonderful how far the research program has come in Dobbs Ferry."