2021 California Science and Engineering Fair Winners Announced

News provided by

California Science Center Foundation

May 26, 2021, 17:48 ET

LOS ANGELES, May 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Winners have been announced for the 70^th annual California Science and Engineering Fair, which took place virtually, for the first time, on April 12 and 13, 2021. This year's fair drew 811 students, with finalists selected by a volunteer pool of scientists and engineers from higher education and private industry. Students took home a combined total of almost $65,000 in cash prizes.

Jeffrey N. Rudolph, president of the California Science Center commented, "Science is a valuable tool for understanding our world. Students use science, technology, engineering and math to reach evidence-based conclusions about their research and also develop critical thinking skills that will serve them in the future."

The California Science Center's involvement with the annual event dates back more than 60 years and is in keeping with its mission to stimulate curiosity and inspire science learning.

"In the midst of these difficult times, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of the 2020 California Science and Engineering Fair and an entirely virtual Fair in 2021, we are especially grateful to Broadcom Foundation and The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation for supporting the realization of the 70th Annual California Science and Engineering Fair to recognize the achievements of our state's brightest young scholars in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math," said Barbara Henderson, the California Science and Engineering Fair Board Chair.

The following is a brief summary of the top winners:

Jacqueline Prawira, 11^th grade, Mountain House High School, Mountain House (San Joaquin County), was selected for Senior Division Project of the Year and received a $5,000 cash prize, for the project titled "Cyclo.Plas 2: A Dual Focus Development as Alternative Materials to Plastic by Upcycling Fish Scale Waste Components." Ava Bhowmik, 7^th grade, The Harker School, San Jose (Santa Clara County) was chosen for Junior Division Project of the Year and received a $2,500 cash prize, for the project titled "A Novel Home-Built Metrology to Visualize Oral Fluid Droplets and Quantify the Efficacy of Masks." Two special committees, one for each division, reviewed all first place winning projects from every subject category in order to select the best project in each division.

This year, seven Senior Division students were named as finalists in the 2021 virtual Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, which was held May 16-21, 2021: Harjaisal Brar from Bakersfield, Kern County; Roy Gross from Palo Alto, Santa Clara County; Alexis MacAvoy from San Mateo, San Mateo County; Pranav Moudgalya from Irvine, Orange County; Aakarsh Vermani from San Diego, San Diego County; Paulina Wodarz from Irvine, Orange County; and Jessica Zhang from San Francisco, San Francisco County. Collectively, these seven students took home ten Special and Grand Awards.

All Junior Division projects winning any level category award, including Honorable Mention, and which had not already been nominated by their county or multi-county affiliated science fair, were nominated to the 2021 Broadcom MASTERS competition.

In addition to serving as a sponsor, the Broadcom Foundation launched Broadcom Coding with Commitment, a special recognition, open to 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade students or teams in any science fair category who combine STEM knowledge with computation or coding in the project's research, design, or development to express a passion for helping or improving the community. At the California Science and Engineering Fair, it was Carina Gross, from Santa Clara County, who earned the recognition for "Perfect Form: Using Audio Feedback to Maximize Athletic Performance."

A complete list of Category Award winners as well as information on recipients of Special and Recognition awards can be viewed at www.californiasciencecenter.org/CSEF/. Reporters may also email the Science Center's Communications Department at [email protected] for winners from their area.

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Media Contact:
Kristina Kurasz | [email protected]
www.californiasciencecenter.org/CSEF/

SOURCE California Science Center Foundation