Summer 2020
NATIONAL N A T I O N A L MERIT M E R I T SCHOLARSHIP S C H O L A R S H I P WINNERS WINNERS The National Merit® Scholarship Corporation named two Commack seniors, Michael Parrinello and Louis Viglietta, as 2020 National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners. These young scholars were chosen from a talent pool of more than 15,000 outstanding Finalists in the 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program. Winners in each state were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors and are judged on their academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation written by a high
school official. Scholars may use their awards at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university. Michael will be majoring in business at Fordham University and Louis will be attending Princeton, majoring in chemical and biological engineering. Both young men have excelled academically, and are active participants in many school and outside organizations, teams, and clubs. Paige Robinson received a College Sponsored National Merit Scholarship from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Officials of each college selected their scholarship winners from among the Finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program who plan to attend their institution. Paige will be majoring in Computer Science.
Louis Viglietta
Michael Parrinello
Paige Robinson
International Science & Engineering Fair Finalists & Semifinalists Two Commack High School science research students, Jordan Walsh and Ethan Sontarp, are finalists in the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), sponsored by Regeneron (formerly INTEL). Finalists were chosen regionally in this year’s virtual fair, and our student’s projects were among more than 450 submissions rated and analyzed by the judges. Our two finalists were among only 15 chosen in all of New York State. Commack High School also had five projects move on to the lightening round (semifinalists). Ethan and Jordan’s projects were included, and congratulations and semifinalist status goes to Kimberly Liao, Rohan Surana, and Candance Arneaud and Izza Maillik (team). Each student will receive a monetary award for his or her accomplishment. Only 40 projects moved on to the lightening round and these five young scientists represent 50% of our Commack projects that were entered into the fair. The students worked very hard and succeeded in winning at local and
state-wide competitions to earn a spot at ISEF. Ethan was also a finalist at last year’s ISEF. His project this year is titled, “Modeling Uranium Uptake in Fossilized Teeth and Bones: Insight into Potential for Long-Term Uranium Waste Storage in Phosphates.” Ethan developed a model based on examination of fossilized enamel to determine isotopic ratios which served two purposes. His work will help to predict the age of fossilization for samples whose origin is unknown and could also lead to a new method of remediation of high concentrations of uranium waste. There is the potential for the storage of uranium in porous materials that would hold the radioactive substance for millions of year and even be able to withstand destructive geological conditions. Jordan’s project was, “Human Activity Recognition using Wi-Fi Channel State Information (CSI).“ The purpose of Jordan’s project was to utilize Channel State Information to distinguish between three cases: (1) the absence of human activity within a room, (2) a
Ethan Sontarp
Jordan Walsh
stationary human standing in the middle of a room, and (3) a human continuously walking throughout a room. Presently used detection methods require specialized equipment to be installed but Jordan developed a methodology for detection using existing Wi-Fi infrastructure already present in homes, schools, and public areas. The accuracy of the data was very high for the first two cases and although lower for the third, has potential for great improvement with some adjustments. His research could revolutionize our ability to manage hostile situations within a building in the near future!