A team of science and math ‘whizzes’ from Lincoln High School is hitting the book--and the buzzers--in preparation for an upcoming battle with the top middle school math and science students in the nation.
Eighth-graders Keshav Vemuri, David Liu, and Emilie Song and seventh-graders Kyung-seok Oh and Robin Xu, along with coach Roberta Harbrucker, are headed to Washington D.C. at the end of this month for the National Middle School Science Bowl, which is sponsored by U.S. Department of Energy. The students earned the all-expenses-paid trip to the prestigious national competition by winning the Florida Science Bowl a few weeks ago. They’ll be representing Florida against the top middle school teams from 35 other states.
“It’ll be challenging competing against the best schools in the country,” said Vemuri. “We can see how well prepared they are for this competition and how we stand against them.”
The competition uses a fast-paced question-and-answer format similar to the game show Jeopardy. Questions will cover mathematics and a variety of sciences, including earth, physical and life sciences.
To prepare for the nationals, the students at Lincoln spend much of their free time conducting research in their own specific areas of expertise. As a group they practice answering sample questions with a buzzer system that simulates the competition format. They’re also working together to develop a hydrogen fuel cell model car, which is a requirement of the national bowl.
Team members say they enjoy both the competitions and the preparation.
“It’s a great learning experience, but it’s also a lot of fun,” said Liu. “I like the anticipation of hearing the question, then the exhilaration of hitting the buzzer.”
“This is a great team,” said Harbrucker. “They work hard as individuals to prepare for the competitions, but they also work well together.”
That teamwork is critical for the competition. Teams can earn their biggest point totals in the bonus rounds, during which team members debate and discuss before offering a final answer.
“You have to really work as a team to get the right answer,” said Song. “And of course, with the hydrogen car, we have to work together or it won’t work.”
The students recognize that such collaboration is essential, not just for winning a competition, but for success in the field of science.
“We each have to contribute ideas,” said Oh. “One person can’t make a discovery alone. It has to be several people with different viewpoints and ideas coming together.”
And of course, all the students say that behind their willingness to work on the competition is a deep interest in science.
“Science is really fun,” said Xu. “It’s the way you find out how and why things work.”