By Miya Mese-Jones and Maya Molina

On February 24th, four Poly seniors journeyed to California, Maryland to present their research at the Department of Defense’s annual Maryland Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS), four of twenty selected students in the state. 

Three students exhibited their research through a twelve minute oral presentation: Camille Coffey, on abnormal production of lipoproteins that can lead to heart disease; Louis Lapp, on using machine learning to predict arctic sea ice melt; and Maya Molina, on plant reactions to extreme drought. Miya Mese-Jones presented her research on novel treatments of coarctation of the aorta through a poster.  

Louis Lapp and Camille Coffey placed 1st and 2nd respectively in the competition, winning scholarships. They will advance to the National JSHS in May in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

The first place winner, Louis Lapp, notes that “in recent decades, the arctic has undergone a lot of warming, with consequential declines in arctic sea ice. As the first step to understanding is modeling, my research integrated various mathematical formulas with machine learning to forecast arctic sea ice extent with improved accuracy to current models.” In regard to his win, Lapp states that he is “excited to go to Albuquerque because it is a completely different landscape from what I’ve seen.”

I am excited to go to Albuquerque because it is a completely different landscape from what I’ve seen.
Louis Lapp
Designer

Coffey and Mese-Jones presenting their research

Camille Coffey, who won 2nd place, uses “zebrafish as models to understand how humans might respond to genetic mutations that would cause heart disease.” Coffey praises the JSHS experience, saying she “was really excited to learn about all the fascinating different STEM fields that are out there.” 

Ava Pevsner, a fellow research student, says “Camille’s come a long way from when she killed all the fish embryos in our seventh grade BioEyes project.”

I was really excited to learn about all the fascinating different STEM fields that are out there.
Camille Coffey
Designer

JSHS is funded through the Department of Defense (DoD) and gives students an opportunity to showcase research they’ve done in STEM fields. Dr. Nicole Rosen, the students’ research mentor, says “I love it…I really like the regional competitions because students, one, get to meet students in the area, you know, see what other schools are doing, and then if they’re acknowledged at the regional level, they get to go on to the national level. Just the fact that they got to the regional level is awesome-sauce.” Rosen says the competition is “another opportunity for students to work on their science communication, public speaking, and hopefully some networking.”

“One of the best parts of my job is that I get to meet students sophomore year and see them shine senior year as they get recognized for their years of research.”

One of the best parts of my job is that I get to meet students sophomore year and see them shine senior year as they get recognized for their years of research.
Dr. Nicole Rosen
Designer