2015 Young Naturalist Awards Winners, Finalists and Semifinalists
Part of the Young Naturalist Awards Curriculum Collection.
2015 YNA Winners
7th Grade
- Jonathan S. “The Effect of Water Temperature, Water Acidity, and Animal Age/Body Size on the Opercular Respiratory Rate of Brown Bullhead Catfish”
- Manashree P. “Greening Under the Evergreens: A Biochar Soil Amendment Study”
8th Grade
- Ashley A. “Harboring a Problem with Dissolved Oxygen Levels”
- Kacey M. “Mango Skins: An Effective Organic Pest Deterrent”
9th Grade
- Catherine S. “Goldfish as a Model for Understanding Learning and Memory: More Complex than you Think”
- William B. “Dripping with Life: Investigating Bacteria in Speleothem Carbonates from Natural and Artificial Surfaces”
10th Grade
- Katherine H. “Temporal Changes in the Vertebrate Scavenger Community in Association with Wildebeest Carcasses”
- Zachary W. “Digging in the Dark: Broad-Scale Sea Turtle Nesting Patterns vis-á-vis Satellite-Derived Measures of Artificial Lighting”
11th Grade
- Anne D. “The Effects of Varying Conductivity on Phytoplankton Concentration and Species Composition in the Presence of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Lake Mattamuskeet”
- Soon il H. “The Identification of Cutaneous Bacteria on Salamanders that Inhibit the Chytrid Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis”
12th Grade
- Beatrice B. “Forecasting Hurricane Hazards for the Long Island Area”
- Lilith S. “Chytrid Treatments and Their Compatibility with Amphibian Tissue”
2015 YNA Finalists
7th Grade
- Bryce B. “White Tail Deer: Feeding Habits and Preferences”
- Caroline R. “A Study of Food Preference of Winter Birds in Western Pennsylvania”
- Cassidy H. “Tree Asymmetry: Investigating the Relationship Between Access to Sunlight and Tree Morphology”
- Spencer M. “Testing the Waters: The Rio Grande”
- William T. “What Are You Swimming In?”
8th Grade
- Colby B. “A Comparison of Animal Species Near Different Urban Water Environments”
- Elijah M. “The Effect of a Research-based Redesign of a Bird Feeding Area on the Number and Variety of Birds Visiting the Area”
- Emily A. “Certification of New Jersey’s Vernal Pools”
- Gauri G. “What Material Best Absorbs Oil?”
- Isabella N. “A Pisaster Disaster: A Study of the Sea Star Wasting Disease at Lighthouse Field State Beach”
- Lexi E. “Preferred Autumn Browse of Rocky Mountain Mule Deer “
- Nicholas B. “Tolerance of Daphnia to Varying Water pH Levels”
9th Grade
- Andy K. “Salinity Impact on the Growth of Marine Nannochloropsis and Freshwater Haematococcus Algae”
- Dustin B. “Cleaning Up Copper: Investigating Mycoremediation of Copper in Water”
- James T. “Aquatic Aliens : Examining the Effects of the Invasive Asian Shore Crab (Hemigrapsus sanguineus) on the Crustacean Biodiversity of Narragansett Bay’s Rocky Shores”
- Shreyas S. “An Investigation into the Effects of Air Pollution on Lichens”
10th Grade
- Emma F. “Sustainable Future for Endangered Species? Predicting the Impacts of the Wilmar Policy on Bornean Orangutan Populations”
- Jessica Y. “The Effects of Magnesium Chloride on Florida Apple Snails’ Shell Development”
- Samarah R. “The Effect of Magnesium and Selenium on the Biomass, Growth Rate and Structure of Anabaena”
- Truth M. “Crustacean Custodians: Combating Eutrophication and Red Tide with Sustainable Population Increase of Native Crayfish and Lobsters via Aquaculture”
11th Grade
- Benjamin S. “Using Geochemical Mapping of Marsh Foraminifera Tests to Analyze Cytoplasmic Deposition of Trace Elements”
- Helen L. “A Step Toward Reducing Air Pollution: Understanding Soot Formation in Diesel Surrogate Fuels”
- Kimberly B. “Struggling to Coexist: The Effects of Urbanization on Woodpecker Diversity and Foraging Site Availability”
- Rebecca N. “Regenerating Oak Trees: The Effect of Percent Canopy Thinning on the Percent Canopy Openness and Primary and Secondary Growth of Quercus alba and Quercus rubra Seedlings”
- Stephen B. “Two-year Study of Daily Development of Tree Swallows and Eastern Bluebirds”
- Sterling F. “Metal Menace: An Analysis of water Quality and Biota in Birds Creek”
12th Grade
- Alison B. “Aqui-S®20E: optimizing dosage and analyzing behavioral responses for a possible zero-withdrawal sedative in several marine species: Common Snook (Centropomus undecimalis), Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus), and Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus)”
- Alta D. “Conclusions from a IV Year Research Study; Ocean Acidification in Prince William Sound, Alaska”
- Chase L. “Wolf Spiders (Tigrosa georgicola) as Indicators of Contaminant Subsidies from Aquatic to Terrestrial Food Webs”
- Emma M. “Orangutan Interaction and Exhibit Use Study”
- Gerrit Y. “Astronomy - New Space Travel”
- Meagan B. “Non-invasive Analysis of Genetic Diversity Using Microsatellites and Mitochondrial DNA to identify individuals, Diet, and Minimum Number of Pumas (Puma concolor) In Sonora, Mexico”
2015 Semifinalists
7th Grade
- Aaryamik V. “Muddy Microbes”
- Abigail J. "Temperatures' Effect on air Molecule Movement"
- Alex R. “The Relation Between Water Temperatures and Bush Bean Growth”
- Alyssa P. “Fruit Ripening”
- Anahi C. “Investigating Plant Pigments”
- Andrew M. “A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Various Materials to Repair Damaged Plants”
- Anjali P. “Comparison of Different Plant Soils used to Grow a Plant”
- Arjun P. “The Effect of Different Polluntants on the Growth and Harvest of Lima Beans”
- Benjamin V. “Alternative Light Sources and Their Effect on Clover Growth”
- Charles B. "Comparison of Salt and Acid on the Growth of Peas"
- Clay P. “Study of Which Light Color Causes Maximum Photosynthesis”
- Conner C. “What Grows Grass the Tallest, Manure or Commercial Fertilizer?”
- Dalton H. “The Myth About Moss”
- David M. “Worms’ Preference of Light and Darkness”
- Din J. “A Comparison of Mold Growth Development”
- Egypt C. “Do Ladybugs Affect the Growth of Basil Plants?”
- Emmett B. “The Effects of Saltwater on Snapdragon Flowers”
- Ethan I. “Composition of Soil and its Effects on the Growth of Tomato Plant Seeds”
- Hannah K. “The Effects of Air Quality on Plants in Southern California”
- Isaiah Y. “Avocado Ailments”
- Jack C. “What Sugars or Sugar Substitutes Feed Yeast?”
- Jacqueline P. “How Does a Sunflower’s Position Affect its Growth?”
- Jennifer M. “Comparison of Different Antacid Strengths”
- Jirote J. “Neutralizing Stomach Acids”
- Jose Maria R. “Pansies in Variable Atmospheres”
- Kaelin A. “The Firmer the Berry... The Effect of Cow's Whey and Goat's Whey on the Decomposition of Strawberries and Blueberries – Year II”
- Kale H. “Tree Habitats”
- Levi C. “How Does the Type of Liquid Affect the Growth of Beans?”
- MaddyLee A. "Do Temperature Drops Affect the Speed of Fish?"
- Max M. “Treatment to Stop Mold Growth on Raspberries”
- Nicole C. "Is organic Really Better?"
- Rebekah B. “Environmental Stress and the Susceptibility of Maple Trees to Sooty Mold and Powdery Mildew”
- Sabrina C. “Sunflowers’ Growth with Different Amounts of Sunlight”
- Samira E: “Which Has a Higher Boiling Point?”
- Scott S. “Food Preference of Red Harvest Ants”
8th Grade
- Abdel R. “Does SPF Protect Skin and DNA from UV Radiation?”
- Amaya S. “The Weathered Monarch”
- Ameya T. “Avian City”
- Angela C. “De-icing the Problem”
- Annora M. “The Real Fish Experience”
- Anupama J. “Utilizing Sodium Polyacrylate as a Soil Additive to Promote Plant Growth under Varying Patterns of Precipitation”
- Arturo M. “Drought Effects on Salmon”
- Benjamin G. “Relationship Between Temperature and Bacteria Growth in Environmental Waters”
- Brandon K. “The State of Prior Lake”
- Brian A. “Environmental Sustainability for Eastern Bluebirds in New Jersey”
- Carolyn F. “Using Natural Scents as Squirrel Repellent”
- Collette H. “Fun Fishing”
- Eeshan T. “Breathe Easy and Carry On: Continuous Monitoring System for Indoor Air Quality and Development of a Responsive Air Cleaning System
- Elijah S. “The Effect of Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) Nanoparticles on the Growth and MicroRNA Expression of the Cellulosic Biofuel Crop Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum)”
- Elise A. “How Do Paperwhites Grow Best?”
- Gabrielah P. “How Does The Type Of Day Affect The Number Of Bald Eagles?”
- Jack B. “Sustaining Ideal Backyard Environments for Red-bellied Woodpeckers”
- Julia P. “Which Types of Moss Works Best for Absorbency”
- Lupine C. “Timing of Waterfowl Migration at the Bear River Bird Refuge”
- Owen N. “What’s Under the Mulch?”
- Tony M. “How does Compost Affect the Growth of Pea Plants?”
- Vinit M. “Mathematical Analysis of an Asteroid Impacting the Moon”
- Zachary W. “The Decline of Chinook Salmon”
9th Grade
- Ahn T. C. “Effects of Different Soils on Zucchini Plants' Height”
- Alexander H. “Comparing Ponds in and Around Plainsboro, New Jersey”
- Alexander K. “Testing the Water Quality of the Delaware and Raritan Canal”
- Anita G. “Pathogen Detection in Southern California Water Using a Particle Counter”
- Ashley P. “Is My Local Hazardous Waste Site Safe?”
- Brian B. “An Analysis of Fish Activities and Human Interference”
- Brian S. “Wetlands: A Natural Solution to Purify Waterways Polluted by Urbanization”
- Benjamin W. “Finding Fascinating Fungi”
- Caroline N. “Filtering Agricultural Effluent with Fungal Mycelia, Year 2
- Catherine K. “Pollutants From Road Runoff Found in the Delaware-Raritan Canal”
- Chelsea C. “A Study of the Antifouling Efficacy of Select Products in Dissuading Dreissena polymorpha from Attaching to Boat Docks in the Great Lakes Area”
- Elizabeth P. “The Effects of Street Runoff on the Health of a Neighborhood Stream”
- Esther C. “The Factors in the Growth and Quality of a Lichen.”
- Liana H. “Investigation of the Delaware and Raritan Canal”
- Michael R. "Microorganisms in Canal Water"
- Navaya M. "Seasons Change, So do Leaves"
- Sahar K. “Early Warning System Using Computer Science”
- Shiv P. “Identification of Ferns in the Plainsboro Preserve”
- Varnita P. “Birds in Plainsboro”
- Varun S. "Comparing Man-made and Natural Aquatic Ecosystems in Fairfax County, Virginia"
10th Grade
- Asma B. “The Effect of Different Selenium and Zinc Ratios On The Mortality and Reproduction of Brachionus plicatilis”
- Ayisha S. “The Effect of Nutrient Fertilzers on the Growth and Development of Brissica hirta, grown Hydroponically”
- Carla C. “The Phytoremediation of Copper ions (Cu 2+) and Iron ions (Fe3+) using the macrophyte Lemna minor”
- Diana K. "The Effect of UVB Radiation and Sulphur Dioxide Gas on the Growth, Vitamin C and Chlorophyll Content of Komatsuna"
- Emily L. “The Effect of UVB radiation and Sulphur Dioxide Gas on the Growth, Vitamin C and Chlorophyll Content of Komatsuna”
- Julieta H-S: "The Effect of Chromium Concentrations on the Avoidance Behavior of Lumbricus terrestris"
- Juliet S. "The Effect of Iron Ions (Fe3+) and pH on the Behavior, Mobility, and Mortality of Coenobita clypeatus"
- Lee Ann B. " The Assessment of Water Quality from the Gowanus Canal and the Effects of Nitrates and Phosphates on the Mortality of Daphnia magna"
- Marya M-W. “The Assessment of Water Quality from the Gowanus Canal and the Effects of Nitrates and Phosphates on the Mortality of Daphnia magna”
- Nirja S. “Particle Sizes of Saturn's Rings”
- Sabreen M. “Algal Biofuel: Investigating the Effect of Different Fertilizers on the Cell Count and Lipid Extraction of Nannochloropsis”
- Stephanie T. “The Effect of Varying Wavelength Light on Carbon Dioxide Uptake of Spinach Plant in Stimulated Photosynthesis”
- Theresa S. “The Effect of Boat Paint on Marine Zinc Levels”
- Uttkarshni T. “Profitable Phytoremediation Process: Combating Eutrophication by Utilizing Excess Nutrient Pollution for Hydroponic Farming of Vetiver Grass”
- Zachary A. “Lead Levels in Vehicular and Non-vehicular Areas”
11th Grade
- Amy D. “The Effect of Spices on E. coli”
- Amy P. “The Effect of Water Temperature on the Mussel's Byssal Thread Protein Composition”
- Anna H. “Coquerel’sSifaka Behavior Study”
- Annabelle S. “The Effect of Triclosan, a Personal Care Product, on Fresh Water Algae in Different Types of Lakes”
- Blandon S. “Assessing The Influence of Swamp Areas on Rangeland Stream Flow Rate at Blair Wallis, Wyoming”
- Brian O. “Spatial Variability and Contributions Affecting Relative Sea Level Change Along the North American East Coast”
- Hyungjun Y. “Differences in Shell Strengths of Eastern Mud Snails (Ilyanassa obsoleta) May Determine the Diets of Jamaica Bay and Oyster Bay Diamondback Terrapins”
- Ivy L. “The Epigenetic Effect of Stimulants on Drosophila melanogaster”
- Jacqueline F. “The Fault in Our Sea Stars”
- Jen M. “Determining the Impact of Invasive Plants, Japanese Knotweed and Japanese Stiltgrass on the Eastern Redbacked Salamander”
- Jennifer A. “The Analysis of Environmentally Friendly Cleaning Agents in Comparison to Dawn Detergent in Removing Hazardous Oil from the Feathers of Four Species of Birds”
- Jeremy R. “Documenting the Abundance of Suburban Wildlife in the Irvington Woods Through Camera Traps”
- Jeremy S. “Quantifying the Spatial Variability of Trace Metals in Long Island, NY Barrier Beach Island Salt Marsh Sediments”
- Katelyn B. "Climate Change Threatens Marine Ecosystems- How Rising Sea Surface Temperature and Altered Nutrient Availability Impact the Abundance and Growth Behavior of Phytoplankton"
- Kiran G. “Tracing The Genetic Basis For Phenotypic Plasticity of Body Depth in Malaw Cichlids”
- Madison M. “The Nesting Preferences in Eastern Bluebirds”
- Neehar B. “An A-peel-ing New Water Filtration Method: Using Ground Orange Peels in the Biosorption of Iron (Fe 3+)”
- Pratima R. “The Effects of High Temperature on Symbiont Coral Densities”
- Robin P. “Batch Adsorption of Heavy Metals onto Chai Tea Residues for the Bioremediation of Industrial Runoffs”
- Samuel K. “Effects of Varying pH on Feeding Rates of Juvenile Mytilus edulis, the Blue Mussel”
- Shriya G. “Determining the Optimal Range of Light Intensity at which Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Maximizes its Carbon Concentrating Mechanism: Implications for the Global Carbon Cycle”
- Tristen W. “The Effect of PERC and TCE on Parkinson Rate in D. melanogaster”
12th Grade
- Abby W. “The Potential of Cellulosic Ethanol Production from Areas of Sorghum, Switch Grass, and Backyard Grass”
- Aisha A. “The Effect of the Deletion of the tklA Gene on the Normal Cell Signaling and Formation of Fruiting Bodies in D. discoideum”
- Angelica D. “The Behavioral Effects of Anthropogenic Noise in Goldfish (Carassius auratus) in Regard to Temporary Threshold Shift”
- Arthur I. “A Geological Analysis of the Depositional Environment of Beach Sand Deposits: Robert Moses State Park, Long Island, New York”
- Catherine C. “A Novel Approach to Sustainable Water Purification: Providing Safe Drinking Water to Developing Countries”
- Ciarra R. “Effects of Pollution on Plants”
- Daniel K. “Utilizing MATLAB to Implement a Predicted Zone to Detect Sun Oriented Celestial Bodies”
- Deborah A. “Comparing phenotypic variation in the social behavior of the spider Anelosimus studiosus at similar latitudes but different longitudes”
- Deepak S. “The Effect of Various Concentrations of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE) on the Growth of the Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae”
- Deepika K. “Novel Photocatalytic Pervious Composites for Purifying Water”
- Enrique G. “Physical and Geochemical Analyses of Beach Sands in an Attempt to Understand the Effects of Erosion by Super Storm Sandy: Robert Moses State Park, Fire Island, NY”
- Farrell L. “California Sea Lion Animal Behavior Study”
- Gabrielle M. "The Relationship Between Temperature and the Hatching Rate of Limulus polyphemus"
- Grant G. “Functional Regulation of Dendritic Cells by Estrogen”
- Grant T.B. “Effects of Early Mdewakanton Dakota settlement patterns on the Ecology of Mde Maka Ska (Lake Calhoun) in Minneapolis, MN”
- Hannah H. “Using Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as a Bioremediation Agent in Contaminated Water”
- Indira R. “Cranberry Extracts: A Quorum Sensing Inhibitor and the Novel Application of Cranberry Extracts as an Environmental Measure to Inhibit Pectobacterium carotovorum in Crops”
- Isabel A. “Can a Healthy Stream Thrive Without a Healthy Riparian Zone?”
- Janelle M. “Testing the Mislabeling of Fish Using DNA Barcoding”
- Jassmeen K. Metagenomic analysis of coelomic fluid and gut microbiomes of the sea star, Patiria miniata”
- Jennifer H. “Diverse Evolutionary Pathways of Osmo-heterotrophic Protists”
- Jett C. “Iontophoretic Inactivation of Freshwater Bacteria via Electric Current”
- Jihyun Lily L. “The Cleanliness of Water in Lafayette Hill”
- Kaitlin B. “What is the Desiccation Tolerance of Antarctica Fungi?”
- Kaitlin W. “A comparison of the populations of the endangered plant species Amaranthus pumilus on Sandy Hook from 2000 to 2014”
- Karsten S. “Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) Preference for Colonization on Macrophytes in Lake Minnetonka, MN”
- Kevin C. “A Comparison of Genetic Diversity Within Ex Situ Collections of Brighamia insignis To Aid Restoration Efforts”
- Kevin R. “Denitrification of Long Island's Drinking Water”
- Kylinn A. “Truly Vegetarian? Using DNA Barcoding to Detect the Possible Contamination of Vegetarian Products”
- Kyra J. “The Role of the Riparian Buffer on the Qualtiy of Water in Tookany Creek”
- Lauren O. “A Comparison of Various Natural Fertilizers on Soil Quality and Growth of Glycine max in a Stress-free Environment”
- Leilani G. “Urban Avifaunal Diversity: An Indicator of Anthropogenic Pressures in Northwestern Metropolitan Atlanta”
- Lucy L. “Degradation of TPH-Diesel in Soil through Mycoremediation”
- Luke O. “How safe are our water supplies? Impacts of Biomagnification of the Antibiotic Triclosan”
- Madelyn S. “The Effects of Temperature on Shortnose Sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum) and Atlantic Sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrhynchus)”
- Maluba M. “The Effect of Selected Spices Piper nigrum (black pepper), Allium sativum (garlic powder), Cinnamomum cassia (cinnamon), and Cuminum cyminum (cumin) on Bacterial Growth in Yogurt”
- Maria M. “Comparing Tuckermannopsis chrolophylla - A Proposed New Species for Southeastern Alaska”
- Matthew R. “The Effects of Contaminants on the Early Life Stages of Short Nose (Acipenser brevirostrum) and Atlantic (A. oxyrynchus) Sturgeon”
- Meredith A. “The Activity Levels of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs in the Morning and Afternoon”
- Michael R. “Microorganisms in Canal Water”
- Mirza A. “The Effect of Caffeinated Beverages on the Memory of Dugesia tigrina”
- Mohini J. “The Effect of Added Phosphate on the Biosynthesis of Vitamin C through the L-galactose Pathway in Inorganically and Organically Fertilized Hydroponic Spinach”
- Monique P. “Kinematics of the Monk Parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus) During Courtship Rituals”
- Muhammad A. “Chamber Analysis of Monk Parakeet Nests”
- Natalie G. “The Effect of an Experimental Oil Spill on Hudson River Microbes”
- Navaya M. “Seasons Change, So Do Leaves”
- Nicholas C. “Geospatial Modeling to Predict Potential Natural Range Expansion of the Eastern Coyote, Canis latrans, in Suffolk County, New York”
- Nicole G. “Is Methylcobalamin (B12) Responsible for Mutagenesis in Drosophila melanogaster?”
- Olivia K. “Analysis of Mitochondrial DNA of the Southern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys volans) to Assess the Frequency of Micro-mutations Related to Site Contamination”
- Olivia S. “A Population Study of Sterna hirundo on The Great Gull Island: A Comparison of Early and Late Hatching Chicks Versus Early and Late Nesting Adults
- Rachel M. “The Effect of Glyphosate, Atrazine, and 2,4-D on Dissolved Oxygen Levels in Nannochloropsis oculata”
- Sagar S. “The Effect of Atmospheric Conditions on the Amount of Insolation in Bethpage, NY”
- Sindhu A. “Determining the Optimal Parameters for the Efficiency and Stability of the Flavylium Ion in a Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell”
- Sita S. “How does Cigarette Butt Litter Impact Organisms in our Environment?”
- Sonam P. “Biodegradable Plastics”
- Susan H. “Analysis of the Pedal Morphology of the Early Primate Notharctus tenebrosus with Implications for Reconstruction of Locomotor Mode”
- Suzan E. “The Ratio of Males to Females Limulus polyphemus in the Sandy Hook Bay-Raritan Bay Complex in 2014”
- Tara E. “The Comparison of Winter Flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) Larval Otolith Microstructure to Biotic and Abiotic factors within Barnegat Bay Estuary”
- Theresa A. “The Correlation Between the Density of Visitor Traffic To Beaches per Day and Average Fledge Rates of Charadrius melodus in Gateway National Recreation Area, New Jersey”
- Tori H. “The Role of Thermoregulation and Sexual Selection on Secondary Sexual Characteristics in the Male Fiddler Crabs (Uca panacea and Uca pugilator)”
- Wen Li W. “Remediation of Contaminated Soil in Urban Environments with Pleurotus ostreatus and Microorganisms”
- Yukie W. “Seasonal Variation in Group Size of Monk Parakeets”