NATIONAL
2003-2004 EXPLORAVISION WINNERS Josh Cooper Katelyn Falk Evan Underwood
Over 13,800 students entered the ExploraVision competition this year, and the judges picked 20 projects in each age group for an Honorable Mention Award per region. Congratulations to the following students for receiving the ExploraVision Honorable Mention award for the 2004 regional competition: FIFTH GRADE
2004 National ExploraVision Winners: Josh Cooper with Laurie and Dan Cooper, Evan Underwood with Dr. Diane Wry and John Underwood, and Katelyn Falk with Joni Falk and George Wallace.
CHCS STUDENTS DO IT AGAIN–EXPLORAVISION
Lucas Breit Kayla Buchardt Jamie Burke Meghan Clark Kadija Corinaldi Lauren Devendorf Chandler Ettel Caroline Finley Spencer Hayden Tyler Holsinger Abbey Jones Grace Kanakaris Bria King Douglas Kellermeyer Robert Lowe Michael Maroon Owen McMillan Elizabeth McNamara Dale Midkiff Elli Mirenda Paul Murray Taryn Payne Charlie Richards
Douglas Ruetzel Shaun Russell Brigid Skorup Machiel van Gool Amanda Walker Alex Wine THIRD GRADE Natalie Caudle Abigail Clark Hunter Davlin Paull Dunn Dillon Goldberg Olivia Hajek John Hurley Emily Levin Kyle McKee Henry Richardson Kendall Tompkins Zach Tuckman Andrew Vakos Drew Wacker Ashley Warren
Cape Henry Collegiate School’s Fifth Grade ExploraVision team– Katelyn Falk, Josh Cooper, and Evan Underwood–led by Lower School science instructor Dr. Janet Holden–have once again won the national ExploraVision competition. This is Cape Henry’s second consecutive national title for ExploraVision. Sponsored each year by Toshiba and the National Science Teachers Association, ExploraVision is the largest science invention competition available to K-12 students in the United States and Canada. Cape Henry began entering ExploraVision competitions in 1996 and has had at least one regional winning team every year except for 1998. CHCS’s region includes eight states and the District of Columbia. Our regional winning teams have gone on to place second in the world competition in 1999 and 2002. In 2003, ExploraVision created separate competitions for Japan and Europe. The United States, its territories, and Canada still compete together in their own competition. In 2003, Cape Henry’s Upper School team won the National Championship, and two Cape Henry Lower School teams were selected as Regional Winners. ExploraVision competition is always very strong. This year, the Fifth Grade Team’s winning project was called the Plant Remover. Toshiba America presented their winning certificates and digital cameras at a Lower School special assembly in March. In addition, the students’ photo appeared in USA Today in April. The students will now travel to Washington D.C. from June 9-13 where they will meet with Congressional Representatives, will be televised with Bill Nye the Science Guy at the National Press Club, and will be honored at a private meeting with Toshiba America’s CEO, Mr. Hideo Ito. As the national winners, their stay in Washington will culminate with a dinner in their honor on June 12 where each team member will receive a $10,000 dollar savings bond. Here is the abstract description the students wrote explaining their project:
The Plant Remover model.
9 CAPE HENRY SOUNDINGS
“The Plant Remover removes non-native invasive aquatic plants. Over twenty foreign plants in the United States are taking over lakes, creeks, canals, rivers, wetlands, and ponds. These plants are clogging the waterways, killing native plants and animals, and making it difficult for boaters and travelers. The Plant Remover is a submersible controlled by a global positioning satellite with robotic arms and a microprocessor; it uses a laser holographic imager to identify plants. The submersible moves through a waterway, making an image of all the plants it comes across. The advanced memory microprocessor will identify a non-native plant, and then robotic arms will remove and vacuum the material into the Plant Remover. The Plant Remover quickly clears waterways without harming the environment.”