[content for this page was copied and pasted form the following blog post:
http://ssep.ncesse.org/2010/11/ssep-is-proud-to-announce-the-student-proposals-selected-for-spaceflight-on-sts-134/ , and the Proposal Summaries were then added. Your administrator can do the same for your community, and formatting and links will be preserved]
TITLE: The Effect of Gravity on Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells
Grade 9, Great Mill High School
Co-Principal Investigators: Katie Jahn, Sonia Lee, and Casey Scheetz
Teacher Facilitator: Rhonda Morgan, Chemistry Teacher
Proposal Summary:
The experiment will look at how stem cells are differentiating and specializing in microgravity. This relates to how animals develop in microgravity and has many applications for animal growth. Development of embryonic stem cells in the first few weeks are critical to how an animal develops. If the developmental process includes gravity then the growing process can and will be interrupted; the embryo may form mutations. This is important because mutated growth may cause complications.
TITLE: Effects of Digestion in a Microgravity Setting
Grades 11 and 5, Great Mills High School
Principal Investigator: Molly Tracy (Grade 11)
Co-Investigators: Kelles Gordge (Grade 11) and Jay Tracy (Grade 5)
Collaborator: Taylor Nelson (Grade 11)
Teacher Facilitator: Rhonda Morgan, Chemistry Teacher
Proposal Summary:
Although many advanced and specific topics are being researched in a microgravity setting, simple yet crucial ideas are being overlooked. Digestion is a critical part of human life, but it has not been studied in space. However, if humans were to attempt to live away from Earth, information on digestion would be extremely valuable. This experiment simulates digestion in microgravity by allowing hydrochloric acid (HCl) and corn powder to mix while in orbit around Earth. Corn powder is the food product to be “digested” in this simulation because corn is such a common food base in the United States. In fact, George F. Will from The Columbus Dispatch stated that within our grocery stores processed corn can be found in a quarter of the 45,000 items investigated. HCl is the active chemical in gastric acid. The HCl in space will essentially “digest” the corn powder, the product of which will be evaluated for mass, percent yield of reaction, pH, and content. Meanwhile, the experiment will be replicated on Earth and performed at the same time as it will be in orbit. The results of this experiment will be compared with the results of the experiment in orbit to find any differences in digestion in microgravity. Possible discoveries could include differences in efficiency, acidity, and nutritional content.
[You might add more information about these experiment, e.g., put up the entire formal proposals or just provide the PDF; have photos of the teams; and have the teams write some blog posts about the experience, with a link in the posts to this page.]
