The AC Blog

Seeking Scientists to Review Student Researchers at Symposium

Posted on March 29th, 2019 by Allendale Columbia School

By Travis Godkin, Upper School Science Teacher

If you have experience or expertise in any field that is conducting ongoing research, you can help develop Allendale Columbia’s young scientists as they present their original research.

AC offers a course in the Upper School called Science Writing and Research. In this course, some of our most experienced and talented students are asked to take their learning and apply it to original research. This opportunity of doing original research is often relegated to later years in college or graduate school, so it gives our students an early opportunity to contribute to the body of scientific knowledge in an area in which they are curious or have a passion. (more…)

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AC’s Younger Students Becoming Global Citizens, Too

Posted on March 1st, 2019 by Allendale Columbia School

Students throughout Allendale Columbia School don’t just learn about other parts of the world, they become global citizens, learning alongside their peers in other parts of the world. That’s just as true in Lower School.

Last year, AC first-graders explored the Amazon rainforest and ran a successful fundraising campaign to become stewards of a section of the rainforest equal to the size of AC’s campus. Building on that experience, AC’s Head of Lower School, Michelle Feiss, brought in Paul Hurteau, Executive Director of OneWorld Classrooms and a former Upstate New York teacher, who thrilled current first- and second-graders with stories of his experiences teaching students in Ecuador, complete with photos of the people and wildlife, poems, and artifacts from that rainforest community.

(more…)

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Robotics Teams Win Design, Amaze, and Research Awards

Posted on January 31st, 2019 by Allendale Columbia School

by Donna Chaback

Allendale Columbia School teams brought home three awards at the VEX IQ Robotics Qualifier, and at least two teams, VEX Chargers and MAGMAS, will be going on to the State Championships.

The Qualifier was held Saturday, January 26th, at the Museum of Science and Technology (MOST) in Syracuse. A total of 38 VEX IQ Robotics teams of students in Grades 4-8 participated. AC’s teams were all composed of 5th-graders. The State VEX IQ Championship will be held at the MOST on March 9th. AC has had teams go on to the World Championships in each of the last two years, with last year’s team winning one of the Sportsmanship awards. (more…)

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Seniors Present Research at SJFC Symposium

Posted on May 8th, 2018 by Allendale Columbia School

Students at Allendale Columbia engage in original research and presents papers and talks for review. Just last month, five AC students in the Science Writing & Research class participated in a symposium at St. John Fisher College in conjunction with SJFC’s symposium on student research and scholarship. These seniors presented their papers before a panel of judges and other observers.

• Aditi Seshadri: Determining the Relationship Between the Fundamental Properties of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and their Cytotoxicity to E. coli through Self Organizing Maps (SOMs)
• Rui (Tony) Zhou: A Deep Convolutional Neural Network for Lung Nodule Segmentation using Mask R-CNN and DenseNet
• Anjana Seshadri: The Relationship Between Various Chemical Parameters and the Phototoxicity of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons: An Analysis Using Self-Organizing Maps
• Jason (JT) Coupal: The Psychological and Physiological Benefits of Virtual Environments
• Tingyan (David) Deng: Using Finite Element Analysis to Determine the Structural Integrity of Allens Creek Bridge

Two others will be presenting their research papers at the May Term Exhibition Night in June.

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AC Senior’s Medical Neural Network Research Wins Regional and State Science Fair Awards

Posted on March 23rd, 2018 by Allendale Columbia School

by Rui “Tony” Zhou 

I participated in the Terra Rochester-Finger Lakes Regional Science & Engineering Fair last Sunday and the New York State Science and Engineering Fair at New York Hall of Science last Monday. It was an extremely rewarding experience not just because I won many awards.

My project involves creating a Deep Convolutional Neural Network that detects and analyzes lung nodules in CT scans, that is, using the lasted Artificial Intelligence techniques for Computer-Aided Diagnosis. I started this project last summer, at a lab in Tsinghua University, the top-ranked university in China. Then I continued with this project though AC’s Science Writing and Research Class. Currently, I’m still adjusting and optimizing the neural network structure in an effort to create a system that can better assist doctors and radiologists. The fundamental motivation for me in doing this research lies in its hope to fight against regionalized healthcare because this is a system that is applicable to most CT scanners throughout the world. We hope to bring more accurate diagnosis, and, thus, reduce the misdiagnosis rates while increase the earliness of lung cancer diagnosis.

Despite the excitement of doing two science fairs in 48 hours, it was an eye-opening experience to meet and talk with other young researchers, and I was kindled by their passions and how they are striving to improve the world we live in though their own efforts.

 

Rui Zhou Rui, or Tony, as he is known around school, is a senior from Jiangsu, China, who has enjoyed the numerous STEM opportunities at AC. While he's waiting for his college decisions, he's sure he will be majoring in computer science next year.

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Ideas Pitched in Mindset to Skill Set Class

Posted on January 12th, 2018 by Allendale Columbia School

Students in the Upper School elective Mindset to Skillset gave 2-minute pitches on their business plans or researched case studies in front of a panel of local business people on Tuesday, January 9th. Some Research Topics were: fashion, restaurants in China, and high end cameras. Some of the business plans presented by these budding entrepreneurs included full-service therapy (from physical to mental), cost-effective durable backpacks made of innovative material, and recycled technology. The class has been taught by Hybrid Learning Coordinator Tony Tepedino and Amy Oliveri, Director of AC’s Center for Entrepreneurship.

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AC Students Presenting at Science Writing and Research Symposium April 28th

Posted on April 28th, 2017 by Allendale Columbia School

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