Downers Grove, Ill.; May, 2007 — For the third year in a row, PAMCANI sent a team of judges in early
May, 2007 to the Illinois Junior Academy of Science’s annual State Science Exhibition to choose and bestow awards on the
best projects that examine water conservation, recycling, piping and related topics. Held at the University of Illinois
at Urbana-Champaign, the fair exhibited student projects that had already been honored earlier in the year at elementary
and high schools across the state, as well as winning competitions at regional fairs.
This year’s volunteer judges included Dick and Cindy Browning (Arrow Plumbing & Heating — Aurora, IL); Dieter and Eva
Holz (Apex Plumbing, Inc — Wood Dale, IL); Cathryn Samson (Daugherty Sales Inc. — Arlington Heights, IL); retired PAMCANI
Executive Director Georgiana Kipp and her husband Leon; and PAMCANI Executive Director S.J. Peters. The judges worked in
teams of two as they evaluated over 1,000 projects in total, interviewing the fair participants about their projects, and
then gathering together to choose the first and second price winners, and those recognized in the Honorable Mention category.
“It’s reassuring and exciting to see young people so engaged in the discovery of science,” remarked PAMCANI contractor
and board member Dieter Holz. “We enjoyed listening to the students describe what they learned, and it was a positive experience
to take part.” Dick Browning, also a PAMCANI contractor and board member, commented on the ingenuity that many of the projects
demonstrated. “Our top winner created a pump device, which directed the flow of the liquid – water in this case – with no moving
parts,” he explained. “All of the judges were impressed with virtually all the projects that relate to our industry, and we
particularly liked the emphasis we saw on water quality issues.”
In all, eight projects were recognized by the PAMCANI delegation of judges. The top prize went to Dunlap High School
(Dunlap, Illinois) senior Yichi Zhang for his “Investigation of the Mechanics and Optimization of a Valveless Piezoelectric VR
Pump” project which applied pressure and geometry principles to examine the direction and guidance of liquid flow and thereby
received the admiration of our judging team to earn him the highest honors.
This year’s second prize winner in the
high school category turned out to be our top H.S. winner from 2006: Eva Feldman, a senior at Lincoln Park High School
(Chicago) presented a project entitled “A Biological Survey of the Chicago River,” which studied how populations of aquatic
macroinvertebrates vary along the North Branch of the Chicago River. This was a continuation of last year’s project, in which
Eva studied Aquatic Ecosystems and bank conditions and their effect on water quality.
The high school honorable mention
went to Halina Bednarz of Resurrection High School (Chicago) for “The Real Deal on Water,” which tested five water filtration
systems to determine which worked best.
In the elementary school category, the grand prize went to Kelly Kohler (St.
Paul of the Cross — Park Ridge) for “Water Works,” which asked whether the angle of turns in a pipe would affect the time it
takes for water to travel through a pipe (and concluded that “the larger angle you have, the slower the water will travel
through it because there is more turbulence in the flow and more obstacles to slow it down”).
Winning the elementary school second place spot was Alexandra Rojek (Beaubien School in Chicago) for “Do You Know What You’re
Drinking?” which studied pH level, total hardness, chlorine/iron/copper content while comparing drinking water samples
collected from 50 water sources (including Chicago and surrounding areas and villages in the country of Poland), and found
that overall, the quality of water was better in the U.S.
There were three projects tied for “Honorable Mention” in the elementary school category. These included Joseph Sydlowski
(Peru Catholic High School – Peru, IL) for “Corrosive Effects of Water / Galvanized Pipe;” Marilyn Garces (Christian Liberty
Academy – Arlington Heights, IL) for “Clean Water for the World;” and Radhe Patel (Aptakisic Junior High School – Buffalo Grove,
IL) for “But Don’t Drink It Yet,” which experimented with water purification methods of lake and river water, with applications
for third world countries in need of clean water.
Following the official judging and the determination in the special categories (including PAMCANI’s involvement on
behalf of the plumbing and mechanical industries), the students received their awards at the well-attended assembly. “We’re
very proud to be associated with this outstanding event,” emphasized PAMCANI Executive Director S.J. Peters. “Clean water,
properly installed piping and plumbing systems, conservation, and public health are the foremost concerns of our contractors,
and our presence here to honor these students for their achievements is one way of demonstrating that we take our
responsibility seriously, and that we want only the best for this and for future generations. Congratulations to the winners,
to all who participated, and to the leadership that presents this event each year. Keep up the great work.”
Wanted: Judges for the 2008 Illinois Academy of Science exhibition! Interested in serving as a judge next year? Watch for
dates (a weekend in early May) and contact S.J. Peters.
Our sincere thanks to Cindy and Dick Browning, Eva and Dieter Holz, Georgiana and Leon (“Kip”) Kipp, and Cathryn Samson for
volunteering as this year’s judges.
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Yichi Zhang - HS Grand Prize
Kelly Kohler 1st Place Jr. High
Eva Feldman HS 2nd Place Winner
Alexandra Rojek Jr High 2nd Place Winner
Marilyn Garces Jr. High Hon Mention
Radhe Patel Jr High Hon Mention
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