Mines Hosts 68th Annual High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair

March 17, 2023
Mines Hosts 68th Annual High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair
Here, a student stands in front of a posterboard during the 2022 High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair at South Dakota Mines. South Dakota Mines hosted its 68th annual High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair in the King Center on campus from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

South Dakota Mines hosted the 68th annual High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair in the King Center on campus from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

The fair included 6-12th grade students from schools across the region. This year, there were 359 total projects: 331 in the junior division and 28 in the senior division. A total of 433 students were in attendance with 400 in the junior division and 33 in the senior division. Ten schools were in attendance.

6th Grade Winners

Biological Sciences Category

1st Fluoride Yay or Nay?

By: Megan Markovetz from Spearfish Middle School

2nd Clean-ish Kitchen

By: Natalie Schutz from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Morning Glory

By: Rylee Greub from Spearfish Middle School

4th Better Batteries

By: Archer Bordewyk from St. Thomas More Middle School

5th Does Exercise Affect Blood Oxygen Levels in People?

By: Brooke Waseen from Spearfish Middle School

Engineering Category

1st Which design of bridge is the strongest?

By: Gracelyn Bordewyk from Spearfish Middle School

2nd The Quicker Picker Upper

By: Trinity Hourigan from Black Hills Christian Academy

3rd How does changing the weight of a rocket effect its time of flight

By: Jackson Sullivan from St. Thomas More Middle School

4th The Changing Wave

By: Drexel Pritchard from Spearfish Middle School

5th How does the shape and angle of an airplane wing affect lift?

By: Gabriel George from St. Thomas More Middle School

Physical Sciences Category

1st Air Pressure

By: Marley Mosset from Spearfish Middle School

2nd How does a rocks porosity and permeability affect the amount of oil a rock can hold

By: Mehcaid Carlson from Spearfish Middle School

3rd How does the use of soil impact the amount of moisture it keeps in

By: Regan Miller from Spearfish Middle School

4th The Rate of Crystallization from Liquid to Rock Candy

By: Drayton Lerew from Spearfish Middle School

5th How Far Can Beach Balls Go With Different Gases Inside?

By: Keagan Gerlick from St. Thomas More Middle School

Social Sciences Category

1st Does sight affect taste

By: Kinsley Hall from Spearfish Middle School

2nd Hot Sauce Obliterator

By: John Morris from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Stroop Effect: Will Words Warp your Mind?

By: Ryan Keller from Spearfish Middle School

4th I'm Feelin' Yellow

By: Mckenzie Rans from Newell Middle School

5th Does color affect memory

By: Hallie Millar from St. Thomas More Middle School

7th Grade Winners

Biological Sciences Category

1st Scent Tracking Behavior of Nuevo Leon Kingsnakes

By: Quan Harper from St. Thomas More Middle School

2nd Under Pressure

By: Tylee Tetrault from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Area Water Sampling

By: Henry Forstner and Dawson Obritsch from St. Thomas More Middle School

4th Lichen or Not

By: Brianne Katzenstein from St. Thomas More Middle School

5th Work Out Sugar Count

By: Ellen Palmer from St. Thomas More Middle School

Engineering Category

1st Solar Powered Water Desalination

By: Lava Coin and Rylee Bingham from Spearfish Middle School

2nd Tensegrity: The Principal Behind Our Success

By: Leila Riker-Acevedo and Viana Shahbazi from St. Thomas More Middle School

3rd How does welding work and what works best?

By: Parker Lee from Belle Fourche Middle School

4th Breaking Point

By: Gus Haivala from Spearfish Middle School
5th ...And The Tower Came Tumbling Down

By: Elijah Nies from Spearfish Middle School

Physical Sciences Category

1st Good Bye Eggs

By: Ailie Fischer from Spearfish Middle School

2nd I'm Melting!!!

By: Lauren Dagit from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Stop the Pain!!!

By: Abby Hach and Baely Bitterman from Spearfish Middle School

4th Pellet Penetration

By: Porter Evans from Spearfish Middle School

5th Wonder Fuel for Fire

By: Tanner Gottlob from Spearfish Middle School

Social Sciences Category

1st Reaction Time

By: Makayla Bensen from Spearfish Middle School

2nd Does The Color Of Food Affect Whether We Like It Or Not?

By: Charleigh Silvernagel from Belle Fourche Middle School

3rd Don't Be Like Dory

By: Kenadi Hayford and Taylor English from Spearfish Middle School

4th Does the color of food matter

By: Emme Johnson and Liv Johnson from Spearfish Middle School

5th Does Personality Influence Short-Term Memory?

By: Lauren Poeppel from St. Thomas More Middle School

8th Grade Winners

Biological Sciences Category

1st How Dose Age Affect Antler Growth?

By: Misty Drieling from Belle Fourche Middle School

2nd You Are What You Eat

By: River Doyle and Julianna Fast Dog from Todd County Middle School

3rd Composting Commotion

By: Keelie Whalen from St. Thomas More Middle School

4th What is the Best Remedy for Spice?

By: Paxton Luong from Belle Fourche Middle School

5th Dissolving Pills

By: Gladson Fernandes from Todd County Middle School

Engineering Category

1st The Spotlights on Ethylene

By: Riley Storm from Spearfish Middle School

2nd The Effects of Parachute Materials

By: Henry Burnitt from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Better Bridges

By: Hannah Sandgren from Spearfish Middle School

4th Can you make electricity at home?

By: Boe Rhoden from Spearfish Middle School

5th Bake the Potato

By: Vincent Van Liere and Brennen Weaver from St. Thomas More Middle School

Physical Sciences Category

1st Effects on size/shape of a parachutes

By: Esten Biegert from Spearfish Middle School

2nd Magnetic Metals

By: Caiden Nankivel from Spearfish Middle School

3rd Cell Phones & Electromagnetic Fields

By: Meadow Reinders, Wounsina Homer and Casandra Sharpfish from Todd County Middle School

4th Go Bananas

By: Olivia Purcell from Spearfish Middle School

5th Which Water Is Cleanest

By: Alayah Britton from Spearfish Middle School

Social Sciences Category

1st What Will Clean Blood Out of Cotton?

By: Weston Carlson from Spearfish Middle School

2nd The Trolley Problem Re-Revisited

By: Vinh Harper from St. Thomas More Middle School

3rd The Off-Brand

By: Audrina Gustafson from Spearfish Middle School

4th I Don't Believe My Eyes

By: Gabi Johnson and Ella Vallette from St. Thomas More Middle School

5th Sleep Debunked

By: Lydia Schutz from Spearfish Middle School

9th, 10th, 11th and 12 Grade Winners

Biological Sciences Category

1st Degeneration of Vitamin C in Fruits

By: Shay Kraft from Timber Lake High School

2nd Finding a Correlation Between Physical and Mental Health Phase 2

By: Natalie Gross from Timber Lake High School

3rd Heartrates of Horses

By: Kenlea Heck from Timber Lake High School

Engineering Category

1st Ultrasonic Haptic Awareness

By: Shawn Quinn from Timber Lake High School

2nd Stealthy Shapes

By: Louis Rancour from Rancour

Physical Sciences Category

1st "Clean Snow" for drinking water vs. water quality test

By: Kendyl Locken from Timber Lake High School

2nd the change of earth's motion

By: Francesco Barbini from Timber Lake High School

3rd Home Radiation Analysis

By: Molly Miller from Timber Lake High School

Social Sciences Category

1st How Color is Linked to Taste

By: Meredith Maciejewski and Natalie Lawrence from Timber Lake High School

2nd Enhancing Memory While Doodling

By: Gabe Keller and Jordan Jones from Timber Lake High School

Special Awards

The American Psychological Association Award recognizes outstanding research in psychology science under the category of behavior and social sciences or any category related to psychology sciences, biochemistry computer science, environmental science, mathematical science, medicine, and health.

Winner: Natalie Gross, Finding a Correlation Between Physical and Mental Health Phase 2, Timber Lake High School

The Association of Women Geoscientists Award is given to.a female student whose project exemplifies high standards of innovativeness and scientific excellence in the geosciences.

Winner: Rylee Bingham & Lava Coin, Solar Powered Water Desalination, Spearfish Middle School

The Environmental Protection Agency Award is presented to the project which best applies Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) to research and solutions that aim to protect the environment and human health.

 Winner: Chloe Crowser, Which Water Is The Safest To Drink?, Belle Fourche Middle School

The NASA Earth System Science Award is presented to the student who exhibited outstanding efforts with a project relating to earth systems.

Winner: Sophia Hatleli, Where Did All The Water Go?, Spearfish Middle School

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award goes to an individual whose research emphasizes NOAA's mission of science, service, and stewardship: to understand and predict change in climate, weather, oceans, and coasts; to share that knowledge and information with others; and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources.

Winner: Elle Anderson, What are Weather Fronts, Belle Fourche Middle School

The Office of Naval Research is committed to supporting science, technology, engineering, and math initiatives and programs for our nation's young people and recognizes one senior and one junior division winner.

Junior Division Winner: Leila Riker-Acevedo & Viana Shahbazi, Tensegrity: The Principal Behind Our Success, St. Thomas More Middle School

Senior Division Winner: Shawn Quinn, Ultrasonic Haptic Awareness, Timber Lake High School

The Regeneron Biomedical Science Award is presented to an exceptional student scientist who not only demonstrates an impressive command of biomedical sciences but also embodies Regeneron's core values.

Winner: Natalie Gross, Finding a Correlation Between Physical and Mental Health Phase 2, Timber Lake High School

Ricoh Americas Corporation recognizes outstanding efforts in addressing issues of environmental responsibility and sustainable development in their science and engineering project with the Sustainable Development Award.

Winner: Rylee Bingham & Lava Coin, Solar Powered Water Desalination, Spearfish Middle School

The NASA South Dakota Space Grant Award is given to the top space-related project.

Winner: Rylee Bingham & Lava Coin, Solar Powered Water Desalination, Spearfish Middle School
 
The Society for In Vitro Biology Award is given to the most outstanding 11th grade student exhibiting in the areas of plant or animal in vitro biology or tissue culture.

Winner: Gracen Hansen, How Does Using Different Boiling Methods to Make Box Elder Maple Syrup Affect the Characteristics of the Syrup?, Timber Lake High School

The South Dakota Science Teachers Association Award is presented for excellence in the field of scientific research.

Winner:  Esten Biegert, Effects  on size/shape  of a parachutes,  Spearfish Middle School ·

The United States Agency for International Development is presented to the student or team project that has the potential to make an impact on addressing international development challenges.

Winner: Rylee Bingham & Lava Coin, Solar Powered Water Desalination, Spearfish Middle School

The U.S. Metric Association sponsors the SI Metric Award for a project that involves scientific measurements, and expresses those measurements consistently and correctly in SI metric.

Winner: Sophia Hatleli, Where Did All The Water Go?, Spearfish Middle School

The United States Air Force Research Laboratory is proud to support science, technology, engineering, and math initiatives for our nation's youth and recognizes one senior division winner.

Winner: Kendyl Locken, "Clean Snow" for drinking water vs. water quality test, Timber Lake High School

The Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition recognizes outstanding water-related research at the high­ school level.

Winner: Kendyl Locken, "Clean Snow" for drinking water vs. water quality test, Timber Lake High School

The Yale Science & Engineering Association, Inc., Award recognizes the most outstanding 11th grade project exhibiting in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

Winner: Shawn Quinn, Ultrasonic Haptic Awareness, Timber Lake High School

The runner-up qualifier for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair was selected from the top-scoring projects in the senior division and will replace the first-place qualifier if for any reason the qualifier cannot attend the International Fair.

Runner-up qualifier: Shawn Quinn, Ultrasonic Haptic Awareness, Timber Lake High School

The first-place qualifier for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair is the student was chosen from the top-scoring projects in the senior division and will represent the High Plains Region on an all-expense paid trip to the international fair in Dallas, Texas in May.

First place qualifier: Louis Rancour, Stealthy Shapes, Wasta, SD